An official with a Portland, Ore.-based conservation group wants to open talks with state Rep. Jim Buck about the lawmaker’s issues with public funding to protect the Hoh River’s lower 30 miles in a land trust.
“I was surprised in the sense that we hadn’t had any dialogue with Rep. Buck, and we would very much like to do that and address the concerns he and his constituents may have,” said Josh Kling, project manager with the Western Rivers Conservancy, on Tuesday.
Buck, R-Joyce, personally handed a letter to Interior Secretary Gale Norton last week, asking her to review U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service funding to the conservancy.
Dan DuBray, Interior press secretary, said Tuesday that Norton will review Buck’s concerns outlined in the letter and “will be responding appropriately” to the 24th District lawmaker.
Response considered
Kling said he plans to involve the conservancy’s leadership and staff with issues raised by Buck and Hoh River residents, before they decide if a response to Buck’s letter and Norton is warranted.
Buck, a longtime member of the House Natural Resources Committee, contends that the legislation he was involved in crafting, which regulates the state Department of Natural Resources’ Riparian Open Space Program and “forest and fish” legislation, was intended to benefit landowners.
“The intent of the legislation was to reimburse landowners that had lost land for the (shifting) rivers issue,” Buck said.
“It was not designed for somebody who wants to buy it and make it a conservancy.
“Why would we want to spend more tax dollars to protect what is already protected?”
Conveyed to river trust
Properties acquired by Western Rivers Conservancy — about 3,500 acres since 2001 — are being conveyed to the Hoh River Trust, a private nonprofit organization based in Seattle.
The group states that its mission is to provide long-term conservation stewardship within the Hoh River corridor for the benefit of fish, wildlife and people.
Group representatives said Western Rivers Conservancy is trying to create a “salmon sanctuary” of up to 10,000 acres of protected forest.
Buck said that state funding and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Section 6 grant dollars are “somewhat interwoven,” and he plans to meet with both state and federal representatives to clarify the roles of each agency.
