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--> --> Klamath water protesters dismantle headgate camp By Jeff Barnard Associated Press Writer GRANTS PASS - Protesters pulled back from the headgates of the Klamath Project irrigation system on Wednesday, saying they did not want to cause more problems for the federal government in the wake of terrorist attacks on the East Coast. "We made an agreement with them that in light of our national emergency, we'd call a truce on this thing for right now," said Bill Ransom, a local businessman and member of the protest group known as the Klamath Relief Fund. As protesters dismantled their camp in Klamath Falls, some of the federal police guarding the headgates were immediately released so they could take other assignments, such as in New York City at the World Trade Center, said Larry Farmington, operations commander of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service law enforcement branch. "It appears to be exactly what everyone had hoped for," Farmington said of the agreement. "It certainly is a very favorable turn of events, something that Reclamation really welcomes," said U.S. Bureau of Reclamation spokesman David Jones. Tensions have been high in the Klamath Basin since last April, when drought and Endangered Species Act demands for endangered suckers in Upper Klamath Lake and threatened coho salmon in the Klamath River left no water for farmers on about 90 percent of the 220,000 acres of the Klamath Project. Protesters forced open the headgates of the federal irrigation system July 4. After local authorities refused to make any arrests during the ensuing week, federal police came in to guard the structure. Two weeks ago, about 300 people climbed over the chain link fence around the headgates to give federal police papers claiming farmers owned the headgates, rather than the Bureau of Reclamation, and protesters have been nose-to-nose with the guards ever since. After learning of terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., protesters who have been demanding the release of irrigation water met among themselves and approached local authorities. "We felt like we've been under siege here in Klamath, but we realized that the national emergency takes precedence over our cause," Ransom said. "We still feel very strongly there has been an injustice done in the Klamath Basin and there need to be some changes to the (Endangered Species Act). "We're not anti-government. I think you'll find some of the most patriotic citizens in the country in the farmlands." Klamath County Sheriff Tim Evinger said he relayed to federal law enforcement agents guarding the headgate structure an offer from protesters to pull out if federal police would do the same. "I was thrilled when I received a call with that type of offer," Evinger said. Representatives of Klamath Falls police, the sheriff, the district attorney, protesters, federal police and the U.S. Department of Interior met for two hours near the headgates and reached a verbal agreement that will be followed with a written one. Protesters pledged not to take over control of the headgates, while allowing the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to install new fencing, alarms, and lighting to make them more secure against vandalism. Federal police agreed to pull out once the new security measures are finished. Local law enforcement authorities agreed to prosecute anyone caught trespassing around the headgates, changing their earlier position that keeping farmers from turning on the irrigation water was solely the responsibility of federal authorities. The agreement expires Jan. 1, 2002. "I'm optimistic that the water situation will have some kind of resolve by the end of the year," Evinger said. "I'm comfortable with the timeline." Meanwhile, the Department of Interior and members of Congress are working on long-term solutions to this year's water crisis in hopes it will not be repeated next year. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing