[env-trinity] [FOTR] Trinity Journal 12/8/10

Sun Dec 12 15:19:13 PST 2010

What Mary Ellen and Frank said!  I wonder if some have not yet signed  
up for the other list because they can't quite believe they need to!   
Byron's updates have been one of the hearts of my email life, and have  
definitely impacted my understanding of California's ongoing  
environmental crises.  Many thanks to Byron& All Best to the FOTR  
family.     Amey Miller

On Dec 9, 2010, at 5:47 PM, Frank Emerson wrote:

> What MaryEllen said! And Happy Holidays to everyone at FOTR.
>
> Thanks so much Byron.
>
> Frank Emerson
> CRSA
> (831) 277-0544
>
> On Thu, Dec 9, 2010 at 2:24 PM, MaryEllen Mueller  
> <mmueller at usgs.gov> wrote:
>
> Thank you Byron for everything you have done to get us where we are  
> today on the Trinity River.  You have been a tireless warrior and  
> have accomplished so much.  It is much appreciated and I hope you  
> will always stay involved and keep an eye on things.  Sincerely,  
> Mary Ellen Mueller
>
>
>
> Mary Ellen Mueller, Ph.D.
> Research Manager,WERC
> 3020 State University Drive East
> Modoc Hall, Suite 3006
> Sacramento, CA 95819
> Office: 916 278 9572
> mmueller at usgs.gov
>
>
> From:	"Byron Leydecker" <bwl3 at comcast.net>
> To:	"FOTR List" <fotr at mailman.dcn.org>, "Trinity List" <env-trinity at mailman.dcn.org 
> >
> Date:	12/09/2010 01:53 PM
> Subject:	[env-trinity] Trinity Journal 12/8/10
> Sent by:	env-trinity-bounces at velocipede.dcn.davis.ca.us
>
>
>
>
> Friends of Trinity River draws to a close
> BY AMY GITTELSOHN THE TRINITY JOURNAL
>
> Friends of Trinity River, founded to protect and restore the river  
> and its tributaries, has announced it will cease operations.
>
> The organization’s founder and board chairman, Byron Leydecker of  
> Mill Valley, said the group which has about 1,700 members has  
> accomplished many objectives.
>
> “I am 83 years old and that figures into it,” he added. “There is no  
> successor lined up here.”
>
> You could say Leydecker jumped right into Trinity River issues. It  
> started on a steelhead fishing trip in 1992 when he got stuck in  
> sediments like “quicksand” from a restoration project going on  
> upstream and had to be rescued. Leydecker found such projects to be  
> irrational, and with a group of like-minded citizens started the  
> predecessor organization to Friends of Trinity River which put a  
> stop to channel projects until full environmental reports and the  
> 2000 Trinity River Record of Decision were completed.
>
> Friends of Trinity River has also worked with the restoration  
> program and was instrumental in obtaining funding for the bridge  
> replacements that have allowed higher Trinity River flows.
>
> Members also helped to reauthorize the original restoration program  
> that expired in 1994.
>
> Another member of the Friends of Trinity River board, retired  
> Trinity County senior resource planner Tom Stokely, had high praise  
> for Leydecker although their first conversation was heated.
>
> “Actually, the first time I met Byron he called me on the phone. It  
> was in the summer of 92 and he immediately started yelling at me,”  
> Stokely said. It was after the fishing trip which wound up with  
> Leydecker stuck in the mud.
>
> “He was not very popular with the restoration program,” Stokely  
> said, but he added the resulting full environmental study for the  
> program likely made former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt’s  
> Trinity River decision possible. The decision returned almost half  
> of the river’s pre-dam water flows to the river.
>
> Leydecker added that members have helped to increase the certainty  
> of the river retaining that water by commenting on many  
> environmental assessments, statements and reports, and have educated  
> officials and the public.
>
> “Byron’s done a great job,” Stokely said, adding that he’s hopeful  
> Leydecker will have more time to do things for the river without the  
> burden of administrative duties.
>
> Both Stokely and Leydecker said there are still issues to be  
> addressed.
>
> One goal is to get the Bureau of Reclamation’s water permits for the  
> Trinity River, which allow a minimum annual flow down the river of  
> only 120,000 acre-feet, amended to reflect the Record of Decision  
> which calls for much higher flows even in a critically dry year.
>
> The decision also calls for $2 million annually for work on the  
> Trinity River’s watersheds and tributaries where steelhead and coho  
> spawn. The amount spent for that is currently $500,000, and Friends  
> of Trinity River lobbied to get it up to that amount.
>
> They also want to see use of independent science review panels, as  
> called for in the Record of Decision, to study projects on the river  
> both before and after they are completed.
>
> Leydecker is also concerned that the Trinity Management Council’s  
> direct connection to the Interior Secretary in times of disagreement  
> has been shifted to lower level employees.
>
> Leydecker said he still plans to be involved with Trinity River  
> issues, and members can still accomplish their aims without the  
> paperwork to maintain a corporation.
>
> He is working to turn over remaining Friends of Trinity River funds  
> of about $10,000 to the California Water Impact Network (C-WINN)  
> with the provision that they be used exclusively for advancement of  
> Trinity River restoration. The goal is to have river Friends  
> operations closed down by the end of the year, Leydecker said.
>
> He recommends any members wishing to stay involved with the Trinity  
> River consider C-WIN, which has a Web site, www.c-win.org.
>
>
> Byron Leydecker, JcT
> Chair, Friends of Trinity River
> PO Box 2327
> Mill Valley, CA 94942-2327
> 415 383 4810 land
> 415 519 4810 mobile
> bwl3 at comcast.net
> bleydecker at stanfordalumni.org (secondary)
> http://www.fotr.org
>
>
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