Cascade Volcanoes • Entered by Barb Fox-Kilgore on April 1, 2023
Letter writing
April 1, 2023 – April 1, 2023
Participants and Hours
| Pre Planning hours | 0.25 |
| Post Admin hours | 0.25 |
| Activity Hours | 1 |
| Participants | 1 |
| Total Hours | 1.5 |
Key Issue: Public Lands Health & Protection
Activity Type: Advocacy (rallies, lobbying, meeting decision makers, letters/calls/emails)
Key Partners: Oregon Natural Desert Association
Short Description of Activity
Wrote letter and signed petition Opposing Military Threats to the Owyhee Wilderness Area.
Low flying Military jets.
Fail to analyze and mitigate impacts of jet noise on regions of wilderness, wildlife and recreational values.
Affect of pollution of water, air and vegetation of the area.
Increased fire risks.
Fails to protect cultural and historical resources.
Impact on tourism and local communities.
Letter:
I am writing to voice my utmost concern with the final Mountain Home Air Force Base Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Airspace Optimization for Readiness plan.
This plan fails to properly consider the numerous and severe impacts of intensive jet fighter training on wilderness, wildlife, water, recreation and local communities throughout the training area. It lacks legally required scientific analysis of the impacts of the increased number of sonic booms on desert resources, the effects of contaminants on waterways, and the threats from training on cultural sites and resources.
Oregon’s Owyhee Canyonlands are a wilderness paradise and a wildlife stronghold. Greater sage-grouse, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep thrive on this landscape, and all three are affected by fast, low-flying jets. A diverse array of fish, birds and wildlife will daily be subjected to sonic booms, aquatic pollutants, habitat loss and the many other threats associated with military training.
The Owyhee also preserves a rich human history in the region, cultural sites and trust resources that Native American tribes continue to use today. Shockingly, the Air Force’s plan acknowledges that noise or vibration may affect historical and tribal interests and resources yet fails to offer any alternatives for protecting them in the training area.
Finally, southeastern Oregon is experiencing a climate emergency, warming faster than most of the country. Flares released as part of training are known to cause wildfires. The new plan would allow the continued use of flares across some of the driest terrain in Oregon’s high desert.
For all of these reasons, I oppose the Air Force’s plan and will continue to support every attempt to force reconsideration of this poorly considered scheme.
Reflection/Evaluation
Every voice counts and hope enough people speak out to block this intrusion.