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Show Page 6 The Gunnison Valley Gazette Thoughts on forest tour by JESSE BURRELL Thank you North Pacific for sending me on the Temperate Forest tour. I was able to go to Oregon for 3 days to learn about how to properly manage our forests. The thing I enjoyed the most was the rain. It rained every day and it rained a lot. Some of the others on the tour thought I was a bit “off” because I stood out in the rain for extended periods of time and liked it. I reminded them that it does not rain much in Utah and that I was taking advantage of every drop. The tour was designed for teachers K-12. We learned how timber can be harvested in an appropriate way and that cutting down trees is not only okay, but it can be a good thing. The Temperate Forest Foundation is put together with people from the timber industry as well as environmental groups. So it is not one sided at all. I learned that companies can certify their wood to show that it is harvested in a sustainable way. This means that you can purchase a 2x4 at a lumber store and you can find out if it is certified or not. When wood is certified it means that the process in which the wood was harvested was sustainable and that there were new trees planted in their place. It also means that there were habitat areas left for wildlife. We were able to visit a very large sawmill and learn how efficiently the timber harvested is utilized. We also learned about some of the products that are made from the leftovers after the wood is cut into usable lumber. We were able to visit a tree farm where they planted what seemed to be an uncountable number of seedlings that would then be transplanted to replace timber that was harvested. The tour was in Oregon, Thursday, July 19, 2007 GVHS Volleyball Tryouts The Gunnison Valley High School Volleyball team will begin the new season this year with tryouts starting Monday, August 6. Tryouts will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 noon daily, and team practices will be scheduled during this time. Girls need to come dressed to play: shorts, t-shirt, good court shoes, and knee pads. All three coaches are very excited about the prospects for this year and would like to invite any high school girls to come enjoy the first couple of months of school with the volleyball team! Anyone with questions can contact Coach Allred, Coach Higgins, or Coach Bartholomew. Open Cheer Try-Outs for GVHS Cheerleaders Friday • 8 a.m. High School Wrestling Gym Jesse Burrell on the Temperate Forest Tour. where they really have forests. The attitude there seemed to be quite friendly to logging and harvesting timber. This attitude came from the public being aware that the way that the timber was harvested was sustainable and that the trees that were being cut down were being managed by replacing the trees and helping to preserve habitat areas for wildlife. There are a lot of community and youth groups that plant trees, this helps the community contribute to a sustainable forest. I worry about the attitude that seems to exist in Utah about harvesting timber. It seems that there are groups and individuals that are not even okay with loggers taking the dead, beetle killed trees from the mountain. If you take a look at the mountain near our valley, there are many dead, beetle killed trees up there. I would like to see some of these trees removed, they are dead and if a fire ever got into the dead trees it seems that they would burn a lot faster than the live ones. I think removing these trees can be done in a reasonable and sustainable way. Yes, the process of logging can create quite a visual change to an area, but I challenge you to take a look at an area that has been logged responsibly after several years. Take a look at the new trees that are coming up, take a look at the wildlife that is there and the habitat that is there. I have heard that timber harvests in public lands have been put on hold for years because of law suites. Maybe the groups that are creating these suites need to work towards supporting the certifications that I have mentioned so that if a logging company is logging in a sustainable Courtesy Photo way instead of locking an area up so that it cannot be harvested at all. There are vast forests that have been lost to fire in the Oregon area that have been reclaimed by replanting trees and managing timber harvests. Even though it may take 30-40 years for a Douglas fir to grow, they have management practices in place that will take care of these forests. I know that our local forest service has similar plans in place and that if we allow them to have timber sales that can be logged in a responsible way and benefit the economy and those of us who take advantage of the multiple use of forests. Again, thank you North Pacific and Brett Ashton, their local representative, for sending me on this tour. This was a great opportunity. Questions??? Contact Monica 528-3656 NIELSON’S Continued from Page 1 piano for one group or another, or many. Many people have benefited from Colleen’s service in the community as well as church. When Colleen asks you how you are, her eyes express a sincere desire to know, this is not just a casual greeting coming from her. Family is her passion and Colleen can tell you about each one. A few of the other things she enjoys are sewing, knitting, and crocheting. Neil was born and raised in the same home he and Colleen raised their children in. This is located just south of Centerfield in the area known as Crowlyville. His parents were Bill and Valeria Nielson. He knows and loves cattle, which he still has. Perhaps that is one of the reasons he was honored with being King Cowboy for Sanpete County last year. Neil is quick to offer service. He has been Sergeant of Arms for the Centerfield Legion for many years. His work in agriculture has led to activity in related organizations. He was president of the Irrigation Company (30 yrs), on the Central Utah Conservancy Board (6 yrs), and Sanpete Conservancy Board (40 yrs). His many accepted assignments of church service included Bishop. He vividly remembers being bishop when the Centerfield Church burned down and was rebuilt. Neil and Colleen meet shortly after Neil returned from his service in the army in WWII. He was assigned reconstruction duty in Japan. Colleen sewed her wedding dress from the beautiful white silk/satin fabric Neil brought with him from Japan. They were married in 1948. Family is their first love, but together Neil and Colleen also like to camp and travel. Many times grandchildren were invited to go with. Their travel has included much of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and South America. Sanpete County 4H Upcoming Events Thursday July 19th 4h project class • Making Cards for Every Occasion Saturday July 21rst “Catch the Entomology Bug ” • GBEEC Thursday 26th 4H project class • Scrapbooking Your Project Thursday August 2nd “Art is Smart” Audrey Boore/Gunnison Valley Gazette The Gunnison 9 and 10-year-old girls on the Ace Hardware team played in the Utah State Softball Championship games in Spanish Fork on July 9 and 10. The girls played a total of four games winning two and losing two games. They ended up in 5th place. Girls on the team are: Tanlia Peterson, Kennedy Overly, Belle Blackburn, Mallori Reber, Jodee Hartley, Cory Campbell, Taela Blackburn, Riley McArthur, Carli Fredrickson, Hannah Christensen, Macady Anderson, Danielle Boore, Kennedy Jensen and Cassie Hansen. Brooke Blackburn was the coach with assistant coaches Josie Blackburn and Shannon McArthur. MELLOR Continued from Page 1 fuel, or whatever, we’d have a lot of people in a lot of trouble in a hurry,” Mellor said. “So that’s my effort, to try and help people become self-reliant in whatever area, and encouraging people to grow a little bit if they can.” That can mean basic home repairs, or utilizing grow boxes, which enable families to produce vegetables in a small area. His grow boxes, greenhouses, and potting sheds, are watered with the help of a 4000 gallon water tank heated by the sun. A nearby pond is filled with irrigation water and collects overflow from the tank. The wood shop and a metal shop feature all the necessary do-it-yourself tools. “It all comes in handy when you’re doing the self-reliant thing,” Mellor says. With six acres to take care of, he’s also got two riding mowers, a tiller, and a sickle bar mower. “I can cut a small pasture with that,” he says. Plus, he’s got a dump rake that his family originally ran with a team of horses. He’ll run it with a tractor this year. And he’s proceeding with a windmill project that will produce electricity or pump water. “I put this one together using barrels, from a design I saw somewhere,” he said. Mellor’s other self-reliance projects in the works include a solar-powered sailboat and a mobile chicken coop. He’s also readying space to try some different growing techniques, including no-till and hydroponic gardening. Mellor, his wife, Susan, and granddaughter, Kristen, have a variety of animals, including 25 range-raised Rhode Island Red chickens, 4 sheep, a couple of ducks. and Kristen’s black cocker spaniel, Katrina. He’s happy to share his Mitch Peterson/Gunnison Valley Gazette This barrel-design windmill and the framed dome are just a couple of Roger Mellor’s current projects. The windmill can produce electricity or power a water pump. The dome can be used as a greenhouse or storage unit. ideas and offer help to anyone looking for ways to be more self-reliant. “I thought before I left this world I’d like to save a few people,” Mellor said. “I may not be able to save them spiritu- ally, but if I can save them materially, then maybe somebody else can get on their spiritual side. If I can just save one family I’ll feel like my efforts have been worthwhile.” To sign up for any of these programs Call Valerie Beal at the 4H office 283-7599 |
