Secretary's Page
From Jim Piper, DREGS' Secretary
On the Road by Jim Piper
On the Road by Jim Piper
As I reminisce about excursions to northern Nevada, for some reason one particular memory returns. In the early 80s I was involved in a grassroots exploration project in northern Nevada and southern Oregon. We took US 95 north from Winnemucca to the Denio Highway 140, ending up at place where we frequently stayed - Denio Junction, Nevada, located at the junction of 292 and 140. Our destination was actually Fields Oregon, but we usually made it no further than Denio Junction. At that time Denio Junction was no more than a truck stop with the motel.
Usually we arrived in the evening ready for dinner. There were typically three people who worked behind the counter, the man who owned the place, his wife, and his mother who went by the name Granny. Granny reminded me of the character named Granny in the television show The Beverly Hillbillies. She was a small woman, probably in her mid to late 70s, with gray stringy hair, wrapped up into a bun, and "Elephant skin" wrinkles which would make a great geophysical anomaly. Granny had a delightful personality, and was always eager to serve the customers. The diner was rather small; it had a bar-like counter, with swivel seats in front of it. There were only a few tables in the diner, so there wasn't much of a choice of where to sit, and it was noisy with the ding-ding-dings of the slot machines spoiling the silence.
The motel rooms were small and had single beds. The rooms reminded me of fifties style architecture, with large windows. I vividly remember being awoken early each day by combination of birds chirping around bird feeders attached to drain gutters which were fixed to the overhangs, and sunlight pouring through the windows, sieving through the thinly laced curtains, perforating every square inch of the room.
The rooms at Denio Junction were deluxe compared to our accommodations further north in Fields Oregon, 20 miles north of the border. Fields had a population of seven, three of whom spent most of their time in California. In Fields, there was one cottage where we stayed while working in the area. It had two rooms, a front room with a fold out bed, and a small bedroom. The flies in Fields were so thick that the fly strips that we usually hung out upon arrival were completely covered by flies in a couple hours. There wasn't any television reception, only a couple of country stations on the radio, so to pass the time we swatted flies.
There were early 60s style gas pumps in front of the grocery store, usually serviced by Ralph, a heavy set gentleman in his 60s, who sported suspenders, and wore a straw hat which gave him a fiftyish look. Ralph's dress made him look as if he could have been a character from The Andy Griffith Show, which depicted life in the small town of Mayberry, North Carolina.
The diner at Fields was even smaller than the diner at Denio Junction. I believe that we were the only customers, so the service was great. Dinner was usually served by a muscular older woman with short greying hair, and a strong deeply weathered face, who usually wore sunglasses.
Ken and Julie, the owners of Fields station, raised horses. This wholesome couple was hospitable, and we chatted with them frequently, as we purchased goods from their general store. Traffic along the road to Fields could be easily spotted from miles away, by the trail of dust left behind. Counting cars couldn't be considered as a reasonable pastime there.
We didn't really need the luxury or the amenities of a fancy motel, as we spent most of our time mapping the Whitehorse Caldera, trying not to step on the short fat rattlesnakes (or at least tip toeing around them hoping not to arouse them). One day while mapping, I noticed a wild stallion that wasn't too far in the distance. As the sound of thunder echoed throughout the caldera lightning appeared upon the horizon, and the horse began to rear and snort in defiance, as if to challenge the lightning and thunder of the approaching storm. These memories are a remnant of the West of days gone by, best described by a road sign that I saw posted not far from Gerlach Nevada in the Black Rock Desert - "This is where the pavement ends, and the West begins."
Mining and frontier stories This series was instituted in 2004
Bureau of Land Management News Release. Release Date: 01/15/12. Posted on http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/info/newsroom/2012/january/NR_01_09_2012.html . Contacts: Adam Fetcher (DOI), 202-208-6416. Secretary Salazar Announces Decision to Withdraw Public Lands near Grand Canyon from New Mining Claims - Allows for monitoring to determine impact of uranium mining on vital watershed.
WASHINGTON - Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced his decision to protect the iconic Grand Canyon and its vital watershed from the potential adverse effects of additional uranium and other hardrock mining on over 1 million acres of federal land for the next 20 years.
Secretary Salazar's decision will provide adequate time for monitoring to inform future land use decisions in this treasured area, while allowing currently approved mining operations to continue as well as new operations on valid existing mining claims.
"A withdrawal is the right approach for this priceless American landscape," Salazar said. "People from all over the country and around the world come to visit the Grand Canyon. Numerous American Indian tribes regard this magnificent icon as a sacred place and millions of people in the Colorado River Basin depend on the river for drinking water, irrigation, industrial and environmental use. We have been entrusted to care for and protect our precious environmental and cultural resources, and we have chosen a responsible path that makes sense for this and future generations."
The Public Land Order to withdraw these acres for 20 years from new mining claims and sites under the 1872 Mining Law, subject to valid existing rights, is authorized by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act. A Record of Decision was signed by the Secretary today during a ceremony held at the National Geographic Museum in Washington, D.C.
The withdrawal does not prohibit previously approved uranium mining, new projects that could be approved on claims and sites with valid existing rights. The withdrawal would allow other natural resource development in the area, including mineral leasing, geothermal leasing and mineral materials sales, to the extent consistent with the applicable land use plans. Approximately 3,200 mining claims are currently located in the withdrawal area.
"The withdrawal maintains the pace of hardrock mining, particularly uranium, near the Grand Canyon," said Bureau of Land Management Director Bob Abbey, "but also gives the Department a chance to monitor the impacts associated with uranium mining in this area. It preserves the ability of future decision-makers to make thoughtful decisions about managing this area of national environmental and cultural significance based on the best information available."
During the withdrawal period, the BLM projects that up to 11 uranium mines, including four that are currently approved, could still be developed based on valid pre-existing rights - meaning the jobs supported by mining in the area would increase or remain flat as compared to the current level, according to the BLM's analysis. By comparison, during the 1980s, nine uranium mines were developed on these lands and five were mined out. Without the withdrawal, there could be 30 uranium mines in the area over the next 20 years, including the four that are currently approved, with as many as six operating at one time, the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) estimates.
The withdrawn area includes 355,874 acres of U.S. Forest Service land on the Kaibab National Forest; 626,678 acres of Bureau of Land Management lands; and 23,993 acres of split estate - where surface lands are held by other owners while subsurface minerals are owned by the federal government. The affected lands, all in the vicinity of the Grand Canyon or Grand Canyon National Park, are located in Mohave and Coconino Counties of Northern Arizona.
"The decision made today by the Secretary will help ensure continued protection of the Grand Canyon watershed and World Heritage designated Grand Canyon National Park," said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. "As stewards of our national parks, it is incumbent on all of us to continue to preserve our treasured landscapes, today and for future generations."
Today's decision is the culmination of more than two years of evaluation during which the BLM analyzed the proposed withdrawal in an EIS prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service.
Numerous cooperating agencies, tribes, counties and stakeholders were fully engaged in this process, which included an extensive public involvement period which generated more than 350,000 comments, including input from more than 90 countries. Substantive comments, including those on the economic impact discussion, were addressed in the Final EIS, released on October 27, 2011 for a final 30-day review period.
Information on the withdrawal is at http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/mining/timeout.html or can be obtained by calling (602) 417-9504.