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CLEAR Temp: 64 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Monday, June 16, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend June 14, 2003 Gospel truth sought in Klamath water fight Presbyterian national study board attempts to bridge the gaps By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune The Rev. Alan Jackson asked everyone gathered Friday afternoon at the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Medford to bow their heads. With that, he prayed that God provide open minds, open hearts, humor and wisdom at the start of a conference on the Klamath Basin’s water war. After all, he knew the gathered members of the Presbyterian Church’s National Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy would need plenty of heavenly guidance if they are to get the bottom of the Klamath Basin water problems in its two-day session which began Friday. During the Presbyterian USA’s annual general assembly in Baltimore last year, leaders decided to look at the issue of water rights, both from a human and biblical perspective. They chose the Klamath Basin controversy because it had drawn national attention. Advertisement "Our role is to inquire how the gospel affects issues in contemporary society," committee Chairwoman Jananne Sharpless of Sacramento told the nearly two dozen people gathered for the session. "We’re here to learn and show solidarity with people and species in the region," added committee member Bob Stivers who teaches at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. Specifically, the issue of "takings" would be reviewed in terms of water being taken away from individuals, whether they be farmers, Indian tribes or fishermen, he said. The group began its daunting task Friday morning with a visit to the basin, followed by an eight-hour afternoon and evening session in the church. A day-long discussion also was planned for today at the church. Although the fight over Klamath Basin water has been brewing for at least a decade, it boiled to the surface two years ago when the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said there was no water available to irrigate 90 percent of the 200,000 acres of farmland served by the nearly century-old Klamath Project. Under the Endangered Species Act, water was earmarked for endangered Lost River suckers and shortnosed suckers in Upper Klamath Lake, the project’s main reservoir, and threatened coho salmon in the Klamath River. The result was a flood of lawsuits, countersuits and national media attention on the basin as farmers, Indian tribes, environmental groups and fishing interests fought over the water. "The fundamental problem in the basin is there are too many promises for too little water," explained Bob Hunter, staff attorney for Water Watch, an environmental group. "The only way we’re going to get out of this crisis is to reduce demand and bring it back into balance." Hunter, who is not a member of the church, had been invited to give a presentation on water laws. "We’re allocating this precious resource based on the values and needs of 100 years ago," he said. Becky Hyde, whose family operates a ranch in the upper Klamath Basin, largely agreed with Hunter. "I’d be the first to agree the water has been over appropriated," she said. "There is a water quantity problem. But there is also a water quality problem." Solving the water quality problem would go a long way in solving the quantity problem, she said. Participant Don Gentry, both a member of the church and representing the Klamath Tribes, gave the committee insight on an American Indian perspective. "I believe the water and the native people were placed here by the creator," he said. "We were born with the knowledge of God in our hearts. We didn’t have the written words. But we knew." They also knew they had a right to the water and the land before laws were written, he noted. "The real problem is the enormity of the problem and the complexity of the problem," cautioned Lee Ann Eaton, an attorney with Native American Legal Services. But Dick Carelton, 59, a former teacher in Talent before returning to farm his family’s land in Merrill, figured the solution isn’t all that difficult. His family has been farming the basin since 1909. To protect threatened farmers in the region, environmental activists and their lawyers need to be reined in, the Endangered Species Act revised and local governments need control of local natural resources, indicated the lifelong member of the Merrill Presbyterian Church. "Our family farm lost an estimated $800,000 in total gross sales before expenses (in 2001)," he said, noting that money would have helped support other families, businesses and laborers. "With those losses facing us and the uncertainty of the future, there was more than one night in 2001 that I went asleep in tears, wondering how I was going to provide for my wife of 37 years," he added. Carelton charged the "green groups" with spreading lies and propaganda. After Carelton completed his emotional presentation, one member of the committee suggested a prayer was in order. Minister Jack Terry of St. Andrews Presbyterian Church in Portland asked for guidance from above. "Give us compassion for one another. ... ," he began. The committee will present its conclusions on the Klamath Basin water controversy at the church’s national assembly next year. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times