Last spring, Oregon Wild spent quite a bit of time talking to the members of the Lane County Board of Commissioners trying to convince them they were wasting their money.

See, there are 18 Oregon counties that contain the so-called "O&C Lands" -- Bureau of Land Management held forest that many in the timber industry (and local government) view as their own private piggy bank. Of course, this land is owned by all Americans and the 1937 law that put them into BLM ownership mandated a whole host of uses. Here's the language:

"...shall be managed...for permanent forest production, and the timber thereon shall be sold, cut and removed in conformity with the principal of sustained yield for the purpose of providing a permanent source of timber supply, protecting watersheds, regulating stream flow, and contributing to the economic stability of local communities and industries, and providing recreational facilities."

Well, the Association of O&C Counties (AOCC) has for years attempted to ensure that the only part of that mandate that gets traction is the cutting down trees part. For decades, they have taken taxpayer dollars (in the form of dues from member counties) and spent them lobbying for bad ideas like the WOPR and selling off public land.

Last year, Oregon Wild and others urged Lane County to disassociate themselves from the Association. And we won.

However, our victory was short lived. The AOCC came back with promises to abandon their old ways, hold public meetings, and increase their transparency. The Lane County Board of Commissioners agreed to continue paying their dues so long as the new conditions were met.

Local activist Mora Dewey went to a recent AOCC meeting, and had some advice for the Commissioners:

Dear Commissioners,

Today I attended the Association of O&C Counties meeting in Salem at the Phoenix Grand Hotel. I was the only unexpected attendee, so far as I could tell, out of the 20 or so people present. I was not representing any organization and identified myself as a Lane County resident. There were several non-AOCC members present, including a representative from BLM and one from Fish & Wildlife.

I will not report here on the entire proceedings, although I took detailed notes. What I wish to communicate to you is that you have erred in believing that AOCC will attempt to conform to the conditions you required in order for Lane County to continue membership in the Association.

1. This is not a public meeting. I was asked by President Doug Robertson to leave the room for a period of one hour while certain agenda items were discussed. No one else was asked to leave. I asked if this was because this was executive session, and Mr. Robertson replied "more or less". It obviously was not, as the room was filled with many people not on the executive board.

2. Many topics of discussion had nothing whatever to do, in my opinion, with plans and strategies to obtain SRS funding, supposedly the Association's primary objective and the only thing we want AOCC to do for Lane County (as Commissioner Fleenor stated in his presentation in Cottage Grove). I will be happy to provide details on the issues discussed while I was in the room if you wish.

As Commissioner Stewart was present, he should be able to confirm this report for those of you who did not attend.

AOCC has failed to abide by Lane County's conditions of membership and I respectfully request that you rescind Lane County's membership immediately. County Commissioners are public servants, and, as such, have no place in secretive organizations.

Sincerely,
Mora Dewey
Lane County Resident, Cottage Grove

Thanks to Mora for watch-dogging the AOCC and making sure that our tax dollars are spent wisely and our old-growth forests stay standing tall.