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EDITOR:
Why is it when the Eco groups decide that they want something done because they believe it is good for the populist, that all they have to do is get some of their crony scientists to make up false reports stating that it is harmful? Our government believes that it is fact, even though it has been proven false. For example, dredgers were targeted, not fishermen, rafters or any other outdoor recreationalist. If you take two million anglers and compare their degradation to dredgers they win, two million anglers fishing lose a minimum of 1 ounce of lead every time they fish and they only go fishing four times during the season. That is 4 ounces of lead deposited in the river times two million ounces, or 500,000 pounds of lead, which equals 250 tons of lead, and we are the ones that get kicked off the rivers when we are the ones that remove the lead.
The old timers spelled tons of mercury in the rivers; we remove 98 percent of it in any location that we dredge, along with tons of debris deposited by rafters and other river goers.
Now think about this for minute. It may be that they like fishing and rafting but they needed a target to keep their employment even though it killed the partial or total income of the 3,500 mining claim holders in the state. I know that they have taken into account the fishermen pay exuberant amounts for their permits, and the rafters bring in millions to the counties and states, but is that a reason to allow them to continue degradation of the rivers?
MARTIN SCHUMANN
Placerville
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Joe MommaSeptember 03, 2012 - 3:48 pm
Come on Martin do you think that they would allow "LOGIC" in their eco-nazi agenda...
Martin SchumannSeptember 04, 2012 - 1:10 pm
Mr. Fly, We have gone from being able to dredge 12 months a year to 5.5 months and as little as 2 months on some Ca. rivers and been banned on many prior the moratorium. Many miners own claims on the rivers for the sole purpose of making money as you and fellow rafting company’s, Dredging with a 2 inch dredge would be like bucketing out a swimming pool with a spoon. We cause no harm to the rivers only do good. I feel that we have compromised to the extent that any more would render our claims to the gold (believe me there is plenty still there) worthless. I have seen friends go from living a good life to asking for food stamps, eco is good but there needs to be a sound compromise that allows dredgers to succeed withouthandicapping them into non existence.