by Craig Tucker, Klamath Organizer for Karuk Tribe (e-mail: ctucker [at] karuk.us) 

HERE for questions by KBC

Oregon Wild's latest strategic blunder threatens Tribes' chance to save salmon and expand waterfowl habitat 

For several years the feds, states, Tribes, farmers, enviros, and fishermen have been locked in negotiations over the fate of Klamath River dams. 

While Tribes have taken the lead on an aggressive campaign against corporate tyrant PacifiCorp and their owner Warren Buffett, Oregon Wild (formerly known as ONRC) has done little to help the Tribes in their struggle to save their river. 

The Tribes have repeatedly staged actions in Portland targeting PacifiCorp each requiring an eight hour bus drive to do so. We have never gotten support from Oregon Wild although they are just around the corner. When it comes to ending corporate oppression the guys at Oregon Wild are all talk and no action! 

Instead, Oregon Wild has staked out an exclusive moral high ground that Indians, fishermen, farmers and anyone else trying to protect their families' health and income can't reach. 

Today Oregon Wild posted an action alert to congress urging activists to oppose the settlement framework developed by Tribes and others. For those of us that actually live and die in the Klamath Basin, this is viewed as the best chance to save our fish, our water quality, and our rural economies. For the 'environistas' at Oregon Wild, they'd rather see Indians driven deeper into poverty than comprise with Farmers. The folks at PacifiCorp must be sending in the donations to these guys by the boatload! 

The fact of the matter is that we are very close to the largest river restoration in world history in large part due to the political pressure our protests and actions have put on the company and elected officials and because we have been willing to work with the farm communities in the basin. Our Klamath Settlement Framework specifies dam removal, river flows that would allow salmon to recover, incentives for farmers to develop more wetlands, expands the size of Upper Klamath Lake, and more. 

Because Oregon Wild has failed to achieve their organizational mission to drive farmers out of the basin, they'd rather see the deal go down in flames than compromise. This means that PacifiCorp and Warren Buffett will be able to continue their extraction of the Klamath's wealth and poisoning of our fishery. Thanks a lot, Oregon Wild! 

If you fund these jokers or answer their alerts, you may want to reconsider. They may have good intentions, but I've played battleship with four year olds that have a better mind for strategy. 

Learn more about our effort to remove dams at  http://klamathmedia.org/ 

homepage: http://www.karuk.us 

phone: 530-627-3446 x3027