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Coos Bay dissolves homeless work group

in Coos Bay in recent years.

By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World

The city of Coos Bay has dis solved its homeless work group with the goal of partnering with Coos County, North Bend and other cities in the county to face the chal lenge on a greater level.

The city council voted unani mously to dissolve the work group that was started in 2018 and was in volved with several major decisions

Assistant City Manager Nichole Rutherford told the council the work group played a large role in recent council decisions such as the development of a community resource officer as well as new city regulations for towing, camping and parking rules.

“That has been very effective, but now we’re walking into a new area where we have a consolidated group with North Bend and the county,”

Rutherford said. “The county took lead on that and they are going to start a group and manage that.”

Coos County received a $1 million grant from the Legislature to partner with Coos Bay and North Bend to look at homelessness in the county. The legislation requires a countywide committee to look at the homeless issue.

“I’m curious what the homeless work group discussion was on considering the city of Coos Bay is

priority,” Councilor Sara Stevens asked. “I guess I’m concerned if we dissolve the work group and it moves to the county, there’s not that laser focus on the city.”

Councilor Stephanie Kilmer, who was on the work group with Councilor Drew Farmer, said the city’s work group was not eager to disband, but the members can see the benefit of looking at homeless ness on a larger level.

“I guess it was mixed emotion,”

Kilmer said. “There’s a lot to try to work with, but I think they actually feel there are individuals from our homeless work group that should be incorporated into this new group and there are things and people that could be added to that group and work on more issues. We’ve been working toward a goal, and are moving to the next phase.”

Kilmer said the success of the

Candidates for Congress square off in debate

By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World

The four candidates hoping to replace Peter DeFazio in the U.S. House shared their thoughts on a variety of issues during a candidate forum Thursday.

The virtual forum allowed the candidates to show their differences on a number of issues important to the Fourth Congressional District, Oregon and the country.

Republican Alek Skarlatos and Democrat Val Hoyle are the top candidates in the race, but they will also face a challenge from Mike Beilstein with the Green Party and Libertarian Levi Leatherberry.

During opening statements the four candidates introduced them selves and some of their thoughts on the race.

“The two major parties have a lock on political parties, but they’re the same brand of political pow er,” Beilstein said. “The Green Party represents the opposition to the controlled political party. The Green Party represents the power of the Earth and peace.”

Hoyle, the current labor commis

sioner in Oregon, said people in the district know her and can trust her.

“People here know me because I’ve lived and worked in this com munity for 22 years,” she said. “In this debate, you get to make some very clear choices because there’s a vast difference between the candidates. I have always stood up

for working people, I have always worked for jobs. You know me, I’ve delivered time and time again for this district.”

Leatherberry said it is time to give a third-party candidate a chance.

“I’m a local farmer, an indepen dent and a libertarian as well,” he

said. “Both parties, financially, are the same. I’m trying to find an alter native. I’m a farmer, I’ve seen how my land changes by their policies, how my ability to feed my family changes by their policies. You can’t be funded by the problem and cre ate solutions at the same time.”

Skarlatos, who served in the

National Guard before running for office, said Democrats in charge right now have done little for the district.

“I saw that our district was hurt ing. We’re the poorest congressio nal district in the state of Oregon,”

North Bend goes to the dogs - and cats - for a weekend

File photo

The Coos Bay Homeless Work Group helped the city council make many decisions in recent years, including an ordinance that limits when and where the homeless can camp in the city.

Contributed photos

Val Hoyle talks to supporters during a campaign stop. The Oregon labor commissioner is running to replace Peter DeFazio in Congress.

Contributed photos

Alek Skarlatos talks to voters during a campaign stop in North Bend. Skarlatos is one of four candidates running for the Fourth Congressional seat.

Photos by David Rupkalvis/The World

The North Bend Community Center went to the dogs over the weekend as Animal Shelter Partners hosted its sixth Barktoberfest to raise funds for the Coos County Animal Shelter.

Dozens of vendors sold wares while guests were invited to bring their pets or look at animals available for adoption from the shelter. See the Friday paper for more information.

Community Calendar of Events

Plan, Shop, Save and Cook

5:30-7:30 p.m., October 12

Coos County OUS

Extension Office, 633 Alster Street, Myrtle Point

Learn how to save money at the grocery store and eat well on a budget. Dinner provid ed. Attend both sessions and receive a free electric skillet.

Party at the Playhouse 5 p.m., October 14 Dolphin Playhouse Party at the Playhouse returns to the Dolphin Playhouse, coinciding with the opening of Savannah Sipping Society. Doors open for the annual fundraiser at 5 with curtain time for the play at 7 p.m. Tickets for the party include food, drink and the play and are $40. For tickets email dolphinplayers@gmail.com or call the theater at 541-8082611. Board members also have tickets for sale.

----------------------------------Veterans Golf Tournament

When: October 15

Where: Bandon Crossing Golf Course

Bandon -By-The-Sea Rotary Club will hold its sixth an nual Veterans Golf Tourna ment to benefit Coos County veterans. The tournament format will be a four-person scramble, with a shotgun start. Make your own team or we will pair you up with other veteran supporters. Cost is $100 per person and includes green fees, range balls, golf cart and lunch. There is a hole-in-one prize of $10,000 sponsored by Bain Insurance. Prizes will be awarded for closest to the pin on all par three holes, and for the longest drive for both men and women.

Spanglish

10:30-11:30 a.m., October 15

First meeting is virtual, second meeting at Coos Bay Public Library Program is for those who wish to practice their Spanish conversational skills and help other learners in a friendly setting. Attendees will have the opportunity to converse

in Spanish as a group for one hour in a casual, informal environment. This is NOT a class, but we will provide ideas for conversational top ics. Beginners are welcome. This program is FREE and open to anyone who wishes to sharpen their Spanish conversational skills.

Crafter’s Corner

Noon-6 p.m., every Friday, Saturday and Sunday in October

Allegany Community Center

Featuring over 15 local artisans showcasing qual ity handcrafted items and gifts such as myrtle wood products, quilted and baby items, jewelry, seasonal decorations, purses and totes, crocheted hats, gloves and toys plus a whole lot more.

There is a raffle to benefit the Pelican Harbor Food Bank and door prizes to be award ed at the end of October.

Community Yoga

6 p.m., October 19

Hosted by Coos Bay Public Library, the event is virtual Coos Bay Public Library, in partnership with yoga instructor, Kelli Bosak, will co-host Community Yoga. Kelli has been practicing yoga and mindfulness for over 16 years. She has taught yoga in community health centers, schools, and jails for adults and families with all levels of experience and abil ities over the last eight years. The virtual class will be a foundational group practice that includes guided instruc tion (and live demonstration via Zoom) of basic postures, simple movements guided by the breath, and accessible exercises to build strength and flexibility.

Unlimited Book Club

6 p.m., October 20

Virtually via Zoom Unlimited is a joint venture of the Coos Bay Public Library and the North Bend Public Library. We formed to encourage awareness and foster community discussions

on equity, diversity, and inclusion through reading and thoughtful conversation. This meeting will be an opportunity for members to meet and discuss our next title, selected by book club members, Prison Poems by Mahvash Sabet. Suggestions for future readings will come from members of Unlimited.

Oregon Oldtime Fiddlers

1-3 p.m., October 22 Winchester Bay Community Center, 635 Broadway

Please feel free to join the music with your acoustic stringed instrument, or just come to listen. Cookies and coffee provided. Admission is free and all are welcome. The Oregon Oldtime Fiddlers Association is a non-profit 501C organization which was founded in 1964 with the sole purpose of “preserving, promoting and perpetuating old time music and Old-time fiddling”.

Emergency Preparedness seminar

5:30 p.m., October 26 North Bend Public Library The free one-hour workshop will cover topics such as earthquakes, tsunamis, fire communication plans and pre paring a go bag. Register at tinyurl.com/NBPLEmergency

Community Cooking

5:30 p.m., October 27

Virtually via Zoom. Register by going to https://bit.ly/3powyqG Coos Bay Library has teamed up with Coos Head Food Coop’s Outreach Coordinator, Jamar, to provide safe, easy, and healthy recipes to create at home. Join us virtually for this fun community event! This time, Jamar will be fea turing Hearty Fall Soup.

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Pollinator Workshop 10 a.m.-noon, October 29 Stillwater Natives Nursery, 53701 Beach Loop, Bandon Each session provides you with instruction, original curriculum handouts and reference materials devel

Commissioners issue proclamation for National 4-H Week

Douglas County Commissioners Tim Freeman, Chris Boice and Tom Kress issued a proclamation at the weekly business meeting calling upon all citizens of Douglas County to observe National 4-H Week, which is celebrated every year from October 2-8. The proclamation was presented by Commissioner Boice, on behalf of the board and acknowledged that “Douglas County recognizes that 4-H is America’s largest youth development organization, and we want to recognize the significant impact it has made and continues to make by empowering nearly six million young people every year across the United States with the skills they need to lead for a lifetime.” A copy of the live video presentation can be found on the Douglas County Government Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ DouglasCountyeGovernment.

The commissioners recognized that local 4-H programs have helped thousands of youth in Douglas County to become

more confident, independent, resilient and compassionate leaders. According to the OSU Extension Service - Douglas County 4-H Program website, “The 4-H mission is to empower youth to reach their full potential by working and learning in partnership with caring adults. They aim to provide meaningful opportunities for all youth and adults to work together to create sustainable community change. This is accomplished within three primary content areas or mission areas – civic engagement and leadership, healthy living, and science.”

The 4-H Vision reads, “A world in which youth and adults learn, grow and work together as catalysts for positive change.”

Kress presented National 4-H Week proclamation certificates to OSU Extension Service Office Manager Laura Corder and Education Program Assistant – 4-H Youth Development, Nicky Morales.

The Douglas County OSU Extension Office and the Douglas County 4-H Association oversee and

administer the 4-H Program in the county. They serve over 650 youth ages 5-19 years and have club-based programs in over 50 project areas in Douglas County. They also offer 4-H science class lessons at local schools that reach over 500 youth annually. To learn more about or find a local 4-H group log onto the Douglas County 4-H Association website at https://douglas4h. com/

“I want to thank all the 4-H leaders, parents, grandparents, OSU Extension Office staff and community partners that teach, support, mentor and inspire our youth through our local 4-H programs. Keep up the great work!” commented Freeman.

The proclamation is a reminder and encouragement for our residents to support local 4-H programs by volunteering, signing up to be a leader, attending 4-H events, donating at sales, buying animals at auctions and encouraging our young people to join and discover 4-H youth programs.

~~~ DON’T MISS ~~~

Empty Bowls fundraiser

Noon to 3 p.m., October 29

Southwestern Oregon Community College

The Empty Bowls Fundraiser is co-sponsored by the Oregon Coast Culinary Institute and the Southwestern Oregon Community College. It’s an afternoon and evening of food, music and art located at the Oregon Coast Culinary Institute. With a $20 donation, guests choose one of hundreds of handmade ceramic bowls created by the Empty Bowls Coos County potters. They then get to sample soups donated by local chefs, including those at OCCI. The event in cludes a silent auction of locally made art pieces. 100% of the admission price and additional bowls or auction items purchased by guests during the event is donated directly to the local food pantries.

oped for our local ecoregion, to support you in designing your garden. These work sheets guide you and intro duce suitable native plants for your location and condi tions. Classes are held at the nursery, preferably outdoors but in case of rain we will meet in the greenhouse.

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Storytime

10 a.m. each Wednesday Coos Bay Public Library Fall into a new routine this autumn with storytimes at the Coos Bay Public Library. Babies, toddlers, preschool ers and the parents or care givers are invited to a weekly interactive program featuring songs, rhymes, movement and stories.

Young Writers Group 4 p.m. each Thursday Coos Bay Public Library

Teen writers ages 12-18 are invited to a group for young writers at the Coos Bay Pub lic Library. Each week will include a writing prompt or game, time to write inde pendently and an opportunity to share work with the group.

The group will meet weekly through December 15. No experience necessary.

Al-Anon Family Group 7-8 p.m. each Wednesday Harmony United Methodist Church, 123 Ocean Blvd.

The Al-Anon Family Groups are a fellowship of relatives and friends of alcoholics.

They share their experience, strength and hope in order to solve common problems. We

believe alcoholism is a fam ily illness and that changed attitudes can aid recovery.

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TOPS weekly meeting 9:30 a.m. Tuesdays Bay Area Senior Activity Center, 866 S. 4th Street, Coos Bay

TOPS (Taking Off Pounds Sensibly) is a non-profit weight loss support organiza tion. Its purpose is to help and support each other as we take and keep off pounds sensibly.

UnBook Club 1 p.m. every fourth Thursday

North Bend Public Library

The UnBook Club is a book club without assigned reading. Come tell us what you’ve been reading and leave with new ideas.

County candidate forum slated October 13

The League of Women Voters of Coos County will present a candidate forum on Thursday, October 13, from 7-9 p.m. at the Marshfield High School Auditorium, 972 Ingersoll Ave., in Coos Bay.

The public is invited to attend this in-person event, and will have the opportunity to hear

from the candidates for Coos County Commis sioner, Position 3 (Melissa Cribbins and Rod Taylor) from 7-8 p.m., and the candidates for Coos County Sheriff (Gabe Fabrizio and M.A. Kinnaird) from 8-9 p.m. Audience members are invited to submit written questions on the forms provided at the door

Letters to the Editor

Be alert

About the lawsuit against the county over its voting machines, I congratulate the editor of The World for posting his correction on the front page of Tuesday’s paper. I was concerned about the article in question, and he has set it straight.

There is a nationwide effort to bring suspicion on our elections, to assert without proof that they are corrupt. The purpose is to make it easy for the loser in an election to claim to be the winner. We’ve seen it a lot in recent years. I believe that this nationwide effort, in essence an effort to weaken or destroy our de mocracy, is alive and well in Coos County. Be alert.

Lionel Youst Allegany

North Bend is coming back

I’ve lived in North Bend for over 40 years and have never experienced the energy and buzz surrounding us as I do now. We are finally moving in the right direction. We are alive! The downtown has come back to life, new businesses are moving in and developers are back, wanting to build here.

I see pride coming back to North Bend, one that has been dormant for some time. This is why I’m voting for Jessica Engelke for mayor. She clearly loves this city and is proud of it. Not only does she listen to the needs and concerns of the residents and business owners, but she also puts them into action.

If John Briggs had his way 20 years ago, there wouldn’t even be a North Bend, Oregon. You should never forget that!

TGWB!

Megan Lucas North Bend

into her front window, the police couldn’t get in and tell him to knock it off. On the other side lived a guy who had served time for child molesting. Both fellows owned their properties so she couldn’t complain to any landlords. I felt so sorry for the woman since she owned a love ly home. I don’t know if she still lives there or not. Imagine trying to sell that house.

Now we have a fellow running for county commissioner who ad mits to being at the January 6th in surrection. I think he was only cited for being out after curfew but who knows what aid and comfort he was giving to the people who breached the Capitol building? I was a tourist at the Capitol a few years ago and was in awe of all the history that had transpired in the place. Now we have people breaking windows and smearing feces around! If those people go to prison I have no sym pathy for them.

Also, several years ago I had a conversation with one of the present day county commissioners who told me, several times, that he belonged to the Oath Keepers. I thought “OK. I don’y know what that is, but OK”. I’m hoping he’s no longer affili ated with that organization. And I would like to know if Rod Taylor is a member, too. At any rate, I’m not voting for him because where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

At least this year no one has stolen my Mellisa Cribbins signs . . yet. I don’t know Cribbins very well, but at least she’s not Rod Taylor!

Lorraine Pool Bandon

Strange people

There are some strange people who walk among us. Awhile back I was at a woman’s house down by Port Orford on business. She lived on a cul de sac and had two neighbors, one on each side of her. On one side she had a weird guy who had built a fortress around his property. So when he started using mirrors to reflect bright light

Not safe

Everything is a little crazy in the world. But in our area, crimes are over the top. Murder has been hap pening, but one still not solved and no news about the murderers.

I’m talking about Dr. Jackson. Two guys, his wife was there, but no arrest and no news of suspects. Nothing feels safe around here anymore.

Karen Wilson North Bend

U.S. Attorney’s Office Encourages Reporting of Environmental Crimes

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon joins its partners at the Environmental Pro tection Agency and other federal regulatory agencies in encouraging Oregonians to report all known or suspected environmental crimes.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon enforces federal laws to protect environ mental quality, human health and wildlife throughout the state of Oregon. The office works with its partners throughout the Department of Justice to hold those who violate environmental law accountable, prioritizing cases that will reduce environmental harms to historically underserved, overburdened, and marginalized communities.

The district’s environmental crimes and justice coordinators lead efforts to enforce both criminal and civil environmental laws. Intention ally violating environmental laws— including, but not limited to, the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and hazardous waste laws—is a federal crime and can be punishable by incarceration or monetary fines.

Examples of criminal or civil environmental violations include:

A landlord who leases a home without disclosing known informa tion about lead-based paint

A federal contractor who violates a contractual provision mandating the proper disposal of hazardous waste

Illegal asbestos removals that expose and create health risks for workers and the public

Illegal handling, transportation, and disposal of hazardous wastes or pesticides

Oil spills or other incidents that compromise the fishing rights or practices of indigenous or disad vantaged communities

Air emissions of toxic pollutants resulting from inadequate or non existent pollution control

False statements to the EPA or other regulatory agencies that threaten the integrity of environ mental protection programs

If you are in danger, please call 911.

If you or someone you know believe you are the victim of an environmental crime or believe you have witnessed an environmental crime, please contact the Environ mental Protection Agency’s Na tional Response Center by calling 1-800-424-8802 or by submitting a tip online at https://echo.epa.gov/ report-environmental-violations.

In May 2022, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a series of actions to secure environ mental justice for all Americans. In addition to launching a new Office of Environmental Justice within the Justice Department, Attorney Gen eral Garland also announced a new comprehensive environmental jus tice enforcement strategy to guide the Justice Department’s work and issued an Interim Final Rule that will restore the use of supplemental environmental projects in appropri ate circumstances.

Write to us and the community with a Letter to the Editor

To make a submission to the editor, fill out a submission form at www.theworldlink.com, email: worldeditor@countrymedia.net or call 541-269-1222 ext. 235.

Guest Columns

A Word, Please: Adverse or averse?

By JUNE CASAGRANDE

“I’m not adverse to a little risk,” I said recently in a conversation about personal finance. Then I quickly revised my wording. “Averse. I’m not averse to a little risk.”

For all my years of studying English grammar and usage, I’ve never been comfortable with the difference between “averse” and “adverse.” My solution: I usually try to avoid both words altogether. Once in a while I’ll use “adverse,” only to realize I probably used it wrong, causing me to swiftly backtrack, then double down on my policy of never using either word.

My bad relationship with these words began early in my editing career when a 1965 book called “The Careful Writer” by Theodore M. Bernstein messed with my head: “‘Adverse’ means opposed, an tagonistic, hostile. It is incorrectly used in the following sentence: ‘He reads the morning papers and is not adverse to reading about himself.’

In this example of litotes there is no intention of conveying an idea of hostility; the intention is rather to suggest disinclination. ‘Averse,’ therefore, would be the word to use because it means disinclined, reluctant, loath.”

I find that example confusing. As Bernstein himself said, “ad verse” can mean “opposed.” So it seems reasonable to say, “He’s not opposed to reading about himself.” After all, a person who strives to be

humble or who finds self-centered ness unseemly might oppose read ing about himself. Anyone who’s googled their own name knows there’s something a little creepy about reading about oneself. So it’s not unreasonable to point out that, while some folks might be opposed to this kind of navel-gazing, this guy is fine with it.

Bernstein isn’t the only author whose advice on “adverse” and “averse” has let me down.

Here’s Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage: “When used of people, ‘adverse’ and ‘averse’ are essentially synon ymous, but ‘adverse’ chiefly refers to opinion or intention, ‘averse’ to feeling or inclination. Or, as it was put in the Literary Digest of 10 Feb. 1934, ‘We are adverse to that which we disapprove, but averse to that which we dislike.’”

So when you’re talking about people, the two words are synon ymous except that they’re a little different? See why I get confused?

Luckily, in the real world, it’s a little easier than that because “adverse” often describes things and “averse” almost always applies to people. After all, an inanimate object can’t be averse to anything because “averse” is a feeling and only living creatures have feelings. Plus, “averse” often pairs with the preposition “to,” as in “I’m averse to risk.” Less commonly, it can also take “from”: “I’m averse from risk.”

Also, while some definitions

Hiking public lands shouldn’t require a ladder

By BEN LONG

Imagine you were part owner of a nice piece of rural land, maybe with a trout stream running through it. But your neighbors won’t let you in. You don’t have to imagine, be cause access to far too much public land is legally blocked by private property owners, causing headaches throughout the West.

If you look at a map of the region, big tracts of land run in a “checkerboard” pattern of mixed public and private land ownership. The West is literally diced up into alternating square-mile sections of federally managed land and private ground, which is generally owned by a timber company or ranch.

This is not a small problem. Researchers have found that 8 million acres of public land are “landlocked” in 11 states. That’s roughly equal to the area of four Yellowstone national parks.

This land ownership pattern has been causing headaches since it was rolled across the West in the 1860s. It dates back to the days of Abraham Lincoln, when the federal government granted land to railroads as incentives to span the continent with tracks, thus opening up the West for development.

Unintended consequences continue to fill up courthouses. This year, in Wyoming, the absentee owner of a 22,000-acre ranch wasn’t happy when four hunters crossed from one section of public land to another, thanks to a makeshift ladder they raised at the corner of his private land.

Once the hunters from Missouri accomplished their “corner cross ing,” the ranch owner convinced a local prosecutor to file trespass ing charges. After a jury failed to convict, the ranch owner was not satisfied.

He filed a civil case, claiming that by merely crossing his land at the corner, the hunters had de creased the value of his property. To

be clear, the hunters never stepped foot on his land. But the land owner claimed they violated the “airspace” over the corner where properties met. The suit charged that the loss of exclusive access to his land caused millions of dollars in damages.

The case is being watched close ly around the country. Access advo cates have raised tens of thousands of dollars in donations via GoFund Me accounts to help pay legal costs for the hunters involved. They hope that a victory in Wyoming will have beneficial consequences elsewhere.

But a victory for public land access is far from automatic, even if a Wyoming judge or jury agrees with the hunters in civil court. The question remains: Where do public rights stop and private property rights begin?

Legislatures across the West will be under political pressure to resolve the issue, and conservative legislatures could pass a law giving private landowners authority to block “corner crossing.”

Under that scenario, the public would lose. Yet there are proven tools to protect access in checker boarded landscapes.

All that’s required are private landowners who don’t hanker for a showdown.

Where I live in northwestern Montana, checkerboard landscapes were the norm, and when I went hunting I often had no idea whose land I was on. Public or private, though, didn’t matter, because visi tors were welcomed by both.

That changed when timber companies shifted their focus from sawing lumber to selling real estate. Thousands of acres suddenly fell behind “No Trespassing” signs or fences put up around trophy ranches.

Luckily for me, groups like the Trust for Public Land and the Montana Department of Fish, Wild life & Parks worked with willing landowners and elected officials to

of “adverse” are similar to those of “averse,” the former also has a unique definition: harmful, unfavor able or opposed to one’s interests. In this sense, “adverse” often comes right before the word it modifies: Your policies can have an adverse impact, your medication can cause an adverse reaction, and when you go to the beach you want to avoid adverse weather conditions.

Yes, when it means “opposed,” “adverse” can pair up with “to” and describe people, but that’s less com mon than cases in which it means “harmful” and comes right before a noun.

If you’re looking for an easy guideline, consider this advice from Garner’s Modern American Usage: “To be adverse to something is to be turned in opposition against it — Thailand was adverse to Japan during most of World War II. The phrase usually refers to things, not people. To be ‘averse’ to something is to have feelings against it — averse to risk. The phrase usually describes a person’s attitude. Both words may take the preposition ‘to,’ but ‘averse’ also takes ‘from.’”

Good advice for the brave. But I’ll probably keep sidestepping both words altogether.

-- June Casagrande is the author of “The Joy of Syntax: A Simple Guide to All the Grammar You Know You Should Know.” She can be reached at JuneTCN@aol.com.

secure public access. Today, every major timber company in Montana has a conservation easement allow ing the public to enter at least part of their domain. This has helped secure access around fast growing resort towns like Whitefish and Columbia Falls.

Meanwhile, then-Sen. Max Bau cus brokered a huge deal where the federal government bought thou sands of acres in the Swan River Valley, making the land state forest or national forest. Thankfully, there are sources of money through the Land & Water Conservation Fund that can pay for such solutions. Land trades are another way to settle the issue.

David-vs-Goliath fights be tween hunting parties and wealthy absentee landlords generate a lot of passion, and perhaps the disputes will conclude by securing more rights for everyday folks to enjoy public land.

But larger solutions will require more people willing to work to gether, and a lot more money on the table. Not everything needs to be settled in court.

Ben Long is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writerson therange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring lively conversation about the West. He is senior program director for Resource Media in Kalispell, Montana.

Ben Long

SPORTS

Marshfield boys play to another league draw

The World

Marshfield’s boys soccer team played to its third tie in five SkyEm League matches on Thursday, this time against Junction City.

The Pirates and Lions finished the match with a goal each in the contest at Junction City to open the second round of league play.

Marshfield also has played to ties with both league-leading Marist Catholic and Cottage Grove.

At 2-0-3 the Pirates join Marist Catholic as the only teams without a league loss.

The Pirates host Cottage Grove on Tuesday, their only match this week.

MARIST CATHOLIC 3,

NORTH BEND 0: The Bulldogs remained winless in league play as they fell to the visiting Spartans on Thursday.

North Bend hosts Junction City on Tuesday and visits Cottage Grove on Thursday.

COQUILLE 3, DOUGLAS 1: The Coquille-Myrtle Point Devil

Cats kept pace with Umpqua Valley Christian atop the Class 3A-2A-1A District 4 standings with their win at Winston on Thursday.

The DevilCats, who also beat the combined Pacific/Bandon team 3-1 on Tuesday are 8-1 heading into a big week with games at home against Sutherlin on Monday and at Gold Beach on Wednesday.

Gold Beach, which beat Suther lin 4-0 on Tuesday, is just behind Coquille and UVC at 7-1-1, the tie a 1-1 draw with South Umpqua.

Sutherlin, meanwhile, has three wins and a tie in its past four matches and gave the DevilCats a good match in their first meeting, a 1-0 win for Coquille. Pacific, mean while, is 1-8 after falling at South Umpqua 3-1 on Thursday and is at Douglas on Tuesday and hosts Glide on Thursday.

GIRLS SOCCER

MARSHFIELD 2, JUNCTION

CITY 0: The Pirates opened the second half of the Sky-Em season with a road win.

Marshfield improved to 3-1-

Red Devils still perfect in volleyball league

Coquille’s volleyball team remained perfect in the Far West League by beating visit ing North Valley on Thursday and Lakeview on Saturday.

The Red Devils beat the Knights, 25-20, 25-14, 27-29, 27-25.

The match with the Honkers also went four sets, with Coquille winning 27-25, 25-6, 18-25, 25-16.

Coquille improved to 8-0 in league play with Satur day’s win in the team’s final regular-season home match.

The Red Devils had a nonleague match at Oakland on Monday (results were not available) and are at Brook ings-Harbor on Thursday and South Umpqua next Tuesday. They also play in Marshfield’s tournament on Saturday.

They remained a game in front of both St. Mary’s and Cascade Christian, teams they edged at home.

PIRATES SWEEP LI ONS: Marshfield clinched at least a share of the Sky-Em League title with their home win over Cottage Grove on Thursday, 25-6, 25-10, 25-10.

Marshfield improved to 6-0 with league matches remaining against Marist Catholic and North Bend, both with two league losses.

Tatum Montiel had 12 kills and Paige MacDuff and Brid get Gould six each. Those three players all had three aces, as did Kate Miles. Ava Ainsworth had 23 assists and Gracie Peach 16 digs.

Marshfield is at Marist Catholic on Wednesday and hosts the Bulldogs to finish the regular season next Tuesday. The Pirates also host their own tournament Saturday.

BULLDOGS WIN: North Bend beat visiting Junction City 25-19, 25-11, 25-20 on Thursday to improve to 4-2 in league play.

The Bulldogs were at Cottage Grove at Monday and play in Marshfield’s tour nament on Saturday before finishing the regular season at Marshfield on Tuesday.

TIGERS TOP BRAVE: Bandon outlasted visiting Reedsport 25-19, 22-25, 2520, 23-25, 15-8 in a Valley Coast Conference match on Friday.

The Tigers improved to 10-2, tied with Oakridge for second place behind unbeat en Monroe. Reedsport fell to 4-8.

Bandon is at Oakland on Tuesday and hosts Illinois Valley on Thursday before finishing the regular season with games against Lowell and Oakridge at Oakridge on Saturday.

Reedsport hosts Illinois Valley on Tuesday and Wald port on Thursday and then heads to Monroe on Satur day, where the Brave will face the Dragons and Toledo to end the regular season.

CRUISERS SWEEP EAGLES: Powers topped visiting Yoncalla 25-13, 2520, 25-16 on Friday, keeping hold of fourth place in the Skyline League.

Powers improved to 7-2, two games in front of fifthplace Myrtle Point, which the Cruisers edged in a five-set battle earlier in the league season.

Powers also beat Pacific on Wednesday 25-13, 25-11, 25-23.

The Cruisers are at thirdplace Days Creek on Tues day and host New Hope in the regular-season finale on Friday.

Myrtle Point fell to sec ond-place North Douglas on Wednesday, with the War riors winning 25-12, 28-26, 25-9.

Pacific, which remained winless in league play, is at Riddle on Tuesday and at Elkton on Thursday.

1 and is in second place behind unbeaten Marist Catholic heading into Tuesday’s home match with Cottage Grove.

MARIST CATHOLIC 6,

NORTH BEND 0: The Spartans stayed perfect in league play with the win at North Bend on Thursday.

The Bulldogs fell to 1-2-2 head ing into matches at home against

Myrtle Point crushes Perrydale, Marshfield batters Ashland

Myrtle Point’s football team dominat ed visiting Perrydale 50-6 on Friday for the Bobcats’ third win in four games.

Myrtle Point is 1-1 in the Class 1A eight-man District 1 North Division.

They will not have a game this week since the combined Falls City/Kings Valley squad canceled the contest. The Bobcats are at Alsea on Oct. 21 and finish the regular season at home against Mohawk on Oct. 28.

MARSHFIELD 45, ASHLAND 8: The Pirates dominated the host Grizzlies to improve to 5-1 overall heading into a huge home game this week against Henley.

Marshfield had little trouble with Ashland, a Class 5A school playing football at the Class 4A level, winning their third straight game.

Henley, which visits on Friday, is one of the top teams in Class 4A and enters the contest 6-0, coming off a 54-7 win over Klamath Union.

STAYTON 54, NORTH BEND 14: The Bulldogs lost their nonleague game on the road Friday, falling to 2-4 overall.

North Bend is on the road again this week, in a league game against Hidden Valley.

Stayton improved to 4-2 with the win.

POWERS 70, GILCHRIST 7: The Cruisers used opportunistic defense and explosive offense to dominate the visiting Grizzlies on Friday.

Powers had a staggering 476 yards of offense on just 27 plays, an average of 17.6 yards per play. The defense, mean while, forced seven turnovers — three leading directly to touchdowns — and allowed just 117 yards on 44 players, with all 12 players in uniform making tackles for the Cruisers.

Braden Bushnell and Michael Pedrick had interception returns for touchdowns and Rene Sears had a 39-yard fumble return for another score. Bushnell had three of the five Powers interceptions, with Alex Mahmoud also intercepting a pass.

Mahmoud ran for 207 yards on just six carries, scoring three times. Pedrick had a 60-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Sears, who also had a TD pass to Patrick Mahmoud and a touch down run. Bushnell had a touchdown pass to Talon Blanton and Jayce Shorb had a touchdown run.

Gilchrist’s score came on a kickoff return.

LAKEVIEW 33, COQUILLE 28: The Red Devils had a heartbreaking loss

Coquille led 28-21 when Lakeview scored on a 39-yard hook-and-ladder play. The Red Devils stopped a twopoint conversion attempt for the win by the Honkers, but Lakeview recovered an onside kick and had a big pass play to set up a touchdown pass from Benny Alves to Denver Johnson on the final play of the game after Coquille almost tackled Alves in the backfield.

The loss dropped Coquille to 4-2 in the Far West League and in danger of missing the playoffs in Class 3A a year after winning the Class 2A title. The Red Devils still have to play unbeaten South Umpqua and 5-1 St. Mary’s, with the game at South Umpqua this week. Lakeview is 3-3 but already has played both of those teams, though the Honkers host unbeaten Cascade Christian this week.

Until the stunning finish, Coquille’s defense had a bunch of highlights in the

contest. Coquille forced four turnovers, in addition to a stop on downs earlier in the fourth quarter in Coquille territory, with Waylon Messerle picking off two passes. Coquille also had a crucial turn over deep in Lakeview territory.

Messerle had a 50-yard scoring run to give Coquille a 28-21 lead with just 1:50 to go in the game. Hayden GeDer os also had a touchdown run for the Red Devils. Gage Martinez had a touchdown pass to Hunter Layton.

OAKLAND 56, BANDON 6: The Tigers struggled on the road against the Oakers, who stayed perfect in league play in Class 2A District 3.

Bandon fell to 2-3 overall and 2-2 in league play heading into a home game Friday against Reedsport.

Oakland is tied for Gold Beach for first place at 4-0 in league play. The Panthers beat Rogue River 56-6 on Friday.

GLIDE 25, REEDSPORT 12: The Wildcats kept the Brave winless on the season with the win at Reedsport.

Court: Approval of old-growth timber sales in spotted owl habitat violated ESA

Late Friday, a judge in the District Court for the District of Oregon ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) justification for Bureau of Land Management (Bureau) timber sales totaling nearly 18,000 acres including in old growth forest violated the Endangered Species Act.

The judge ruled against the Service’s claim that oldgrowth logging in the Poor Windy and Evans Creek tim ber sales on 15,848 acres of threatened northern spotted owl habitat would not harm the imperiled bird species.

“While we are pleased with this result, it goes to

show how emboldened our public land managers have become in pursuing the almighty board-foot, that they are willing to tell the American people and a federal judge that logging thousands of acres of habitat occupied by a threatened spe cies like the northern spotted owl will cause zero ‘harm,’” said Sangye Ince-Johannsen, attorney at the Western Envi ronmental Law Center. “The agencies’ singular focus on extraction over stewardship should concern every Orego nian, but today I’m grateful the law forbids that in some cases.”

“This ruling should serve as a wake-up call to the BLM,” said George Sexton, conservation director for KS Wild. “It’s time for the BLM to work with stakeholders to thin second-growth timber plantations to reduce fire hazard instead of chasing around controversial oldgrowth timber sales in the backcountry.”

Judge Aiken also found that the Bureau and the Ser vice illegally failed to consult on the effects of the East Evans Creek and Milepost 97 wildfires that actively burned the timber sale area as the Service concluded its

evaluation.

The Milepost 97 fire burned 4,706 acres of northern spotted owl habitat and reduced canopy closure below 40% in a narrow but vitally important east-west habitat bridge.

“These are fire-prone, dry areas, and we opposed this massive logging project because it would increase fire risks and hazards for the surrounding community,” said Nick Cady with Casca dia Wildlands.

“The agencies keep push ing logging projects that are putting our communities at risk, and it is past time that

fire impacts drive our land management decisions, espe cially on public lands.”

Finally, Judge Aiken fault ed the agencies for failing to analyze the effect of habitat loss resulting from these log ging projects on the competi tive interactions between the barred and spotted owl.

Judge Aiken wrote that the Service “was not faced with scientific uncertainty, but unanimity concerning the negative impact of reduced [nesting, roosting, and for aging] habitat and the barred owls’ threat to the spotted owl based on the barred owls’ ability to out-compete

for food and shelter,” order at 23.

“In offering an explana tion counter to the evidence after considering important aspects of the problem, [the Service] ultimately mini mized the effect of the action and its conclusions are not supported by the evidence,’” order at 22.

“The agencies need to recognize that when two ter ritorial species are competing for the same rare old-growth habitat, any reduction of habitat from logging will increase the chances of ex tinction.” said Doug Heiken of Oregon Wild.

Junction City on Tuesday and at Cottage Grove on Thursday. The Bulldogs tied Junction City and beat the Lions in the first round of league play.

on the road Saturday when the Honkers scored two touchdowns in the final 18 seconds to steal the win.

Coos