CONGRESS
1. Will you support and work for repeal of the Timber Salvage rider?
Bill Burton (D) - Timber salvage logging has little to do with sustained yield concepts and disrupts a sustainable forest ecosystem with roads, equipment, drag trails, watercourse disruption as well as habitat disturbance. I will only support timber operations that work within the guidelines of option 9 and are "SMART" certified by a third party as a sustainable forest ecosystem process. I will support a repeal of timber salvage rider.
Emil Rossi (Lib) - Do not know enough about this rider.
Carol Ruth Silver (D) - Yes.
2. Will you push legislation to subsidize development of alternative energy sources?
Burton - I will push for all forms of alternative energy that are renewable and clean. As a private citizen I have worked with photovoltaic energy. I live in a solar home. I have worked on and raced in electric and solar hybrid vehicles. I will push for elimination of oil and nuclear power subsidies and tax breaks. On an equal basis solar and renewable energy is the least expensive and proper choice for ongoing use on this planet.
Rossi - No. Firm believer in private enterprise can do a much better job cheaper.
Silver - Yes.
3. Do you believe that private property rights outweigh public trust doctrine?
Burton - Private property rights has nothing to do with educated review of such issues as endangered species, river sedimentation and habitat destruction. My incumbent opponent places private property and dying species on an equal level. When species are gone, when old growth trees are gone, when the topsoil is gone we are left with nothing to show our kids.
Rossi - It depends on situation, but I am a very strong believer in private property rights and so is everyone when it is their rights and property.
Silver - Government is a balance between public and private rights. Sometimes public trust outweighs private interests, and should.
4. Do you support NAFTA and GATT?
Burton - NAFTA and GATT are in place and affecting our jobs. However, not trading with our neighbors has a social cost of increased border tensions and isolationist attitude of personal superiority. By trading with our neighbors we infuse our standards of manufacture and trade. I believe we should adjust the standards of worker safety, environmental requirements and workers' rights under NAFTA and GATT, thus requiring Mexico and Canada to meet our standards.
Rossi - Support free trade without government interference. We should have faith in the free enterprise system that has given us what we have.
Silver - I support free trade, but it must also be fair. Unfair competition - allowing trade partners using environmentally bad practices - is neither fair nor free.
5. Would you vote for reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act in its present or in strengthened form?
Burton - Yes, we need to reauthorize the endangered species act and strengthen it where critical species loss is continuing to occur.
Rossi - No. Would support a sensible one.
Silver - Yes.
6. Would you vote for reauthorization of the 1872 Mining Law in its present form?
Burton - Mining should have to pay market rate for claims and resource rights. Mining must be done cleanly and safely. The 1872 Mining Law is not current and requires overhaul.
Rossi - Do not know enough about this law.
Silver - No.
7. Do you support the present rate structure for grazing on public lands?
Burton - Subsidized grazing is unessential and, again, market rate for grazing rights should be paid.
Rossi - Do not know enough about this law. But am very much in favor of competitive system for everything.
Silver - No.
Other comments:
Burton submitted a press release concerning sedimentation of local rivers and commented that, "The logging industry is not providing adequate erosion control." He refers to several erosion control measures and concludes: "A scientific inspired slight shift in the way we do things can produce clean water and allow for economic use of the forest."
Congressional candidates who did not respond to the questionnaire: Michela Alioto (D), Dennis Chuning (D), Monica Marvin (D), Frank Riggs (R).
ASSEMBLY
1. What is your position on these forestry bills now before the Legislature?
AB169 - increases effective period of timber harvest plans from 3 to 5 years with unlimited 5-year extensions with 10 days notice for extensions and no inspections or public notice;
AB711 - widens definition of "non-industrial timberland" so as to exempt some owners from THP requirements and eliminate sustained yield requirements; limits public access to THP information;
AB1357 - allows practically unlimited "thinning" under guise of fire protection;
AB1385 - exempts harvesting activities from environmental review under CEQUA?
John Cumming (D) - Oppose all four. The first three are all attempts to reduce the roles of state agencies and the public in the regulation of forestry practices. Regarding AB1385, my understanding is that timber harvest plans are already exempt from strict compliance with CEQA's procedural requirements because the Department of Forestry's rules are functionally equivalent to CEQA. Presumably this bill would also waive the requirement for substantive compliance with CEQA, which is a bad idea.
Karen Scott (D) - Oppose all four.
Virginia Strom-Martin (D) - I oppose the bills listed. I do not believe we should ease environmental regulations affecting timber lands.
2. Do you support Mendocino County's attempt to get special forestry practice rules?
Cumming - I support the Board of Supervisors efforts and plan, which I see as an attempt to reduce logging intensity in order to maintain the long-term viability of second-growth logging in Mendocino County.
Scott - Yes.
Strom-Martin - Yes. Given that 90% of the forest land in Mendocino has been destroyed, I believe that every effort should be made to preserve much of what remains.
3. Will you work for legislation mandating a phaseout of polluting motor vehicles and their replacement with non-polluting vehicles?
Cumming - Yes. I support maintaining current mandates for ZEV [zero-emission vehicles - ed.] production, and I believe we probably need to hold industry's feet to the fire in order to continue making progress toward this goal. I don't see the internal combustion engine as a viable technology for the future.
Scott - Yes.
Strom-Martin - I support efforts to provide incentives for people not to drive polluting vehicles. However, in the short term I do not believe non-polluting vehicles and public transportation can completely replace fossil-fuel engines.
4. Will you push legislation for creation of passenger rail service for the North Coast?
Cumming - Full modernization of the railroad line, so that it can handle both high speed passenger service and heavy freight is one of my top economic development priorities for the north coast. I'm not sure that it requires legislation to come into effect. It will require heavy public investment as railroad and other major transportation systems always have, and the majority of the money will probably have to come from the federal government. This means getting our federal legislators to accept the same priority.
Scott - Yes.
Strom-Martin - I am a strong supporter of public transportation. I believe passenger rail service should be offered on the North Coast 5. Would you vote to restructure or eliminate the California Board of Forestry?
Cumming - Whether I would vote to restructure or eliminate the Board of Forestry really depends on the proposed alternative. The problems with the Board of Forestry are basically twofold: (1) the age-old tendency of regulatory agencies to become captive to the industries they are supposed to regulate, and (2) who is running the state government right now, i.e., Pete Wilson. There is a continuing need for a state agency to regulate private-land logging, which agency should not be controlled by the timber industry and should have as a primary concern the environmental impact of logging activities.
Scott - Restructure: combine with other natural resource agencies into "Dept. of Biodiversity".
Strom-Martin - I would consider a proposal to restructure the Board of Forestry.
6. Would you sponsor legislation restoring to local governments the power to regulate, prohibit or otherwise restrict the application and use of economic poisons on forest lands?
Cumming - I would support such legislation. My one concern is that the underlying problem, which is the anti-labor and anti-environmental practice of applying toxics to promote conifer growth, not be buried in the smokescreen of "local control." Local control is only as good as who is in control of the locality, and local officials are often the most susceptible to pressure from major local business interests.
Scott - Yes - allowing counties to pass environmental regulations in excess of state law is one of the 5 primary issues of my candidacy.
Strom-Martin - As long as the State sets and maintains minimum safety requirements, local governments should have the ability to set stricter standards for pesticides and herbicides if they so desire.
Assembly candidates who did not respond to the questionnaire: Doug Bosco (D), Margie Handley (R), Stephen Henricksen (R), Richard Marks (D), Bonnie Neely (R).
COUNTY SUPERVISOR
1. Do you support Mendocino County's attempt to get special forestry practice rules?
Darrel Galli (4th Dist.) - Yes, I do support this. I have worked in the timber industry and have seen first hand that there is a great deal of mismanagement that occurs. The California Department of Forestry is far too removed from the harvesting sites to be able to exercise any real control. Only by exercising local control through county forestry practice rules can we truly hope to have a real influence on timber management.
Seiji Sugawara (1st Dist.) - Yes, and I have a record of doing so in my first term as supervisor.
2. Are you satisfied with the current garbage-franchise ordinance? If not, how would you change it?
Galli - I currently serve on the Mendocino County Solid Waste Management Authority and, based on my experience on that board, no, I am not satisfied with the current garbage franchise ordinance. I would increase the amount of recycling; and I would put the garbage franchise out to competitive bid at intervals (such as five years). I would also insist on independent auditing of the franchisee to control costs and revenues. In the long term, I would like to see a county wide transfer center that will properly dispose of remaining solid waste at the lowest possible per ton cost.
Sugawara - The legal issues around garbage are changing so rapidly that any franchise ordinance needs to be reviewed and amended as needed to be effective in meeting the needs of the public. For instance, the County may need to retain ownership of the garbage and have service contractors to pick up and deliver it to a place designated by the County. This would require a change in the ordinance. Also Area 2, which includes the unincorporated areas of Fort Bragg as well as around Ukiah, makes no sense and needs to be made into two areas.
3. What is your view of government regulation of business activities?
Galli - The government needs to be instrumental in regulating business activities to insure that environmental, safety and public health standards are maintained and enforced. When business activities pose a threat to the environment, public health or public safety, then the government must take even stronger measures to regulate those activities.
Sugawara - Even Adam Smith, the father of modern capitalism, recognized the need for some level of government regulation to assure a competitive market and to set limits to rein in the excesses of capitalism. Certainly reasonable regulations to protect the health and safety of people and the environment for future generations are necessary.
4. Would you support home-rule ordinances for the County?
Galli -Yes, I do support home-rule ordinances, because they provide for local government control and a closer "home" administration over certain enterprises and activities. In many cases state ordinances are not stringent enough to protect the local environment in our county, and being able to enact home-rule ordinances can remedy this.
Sugawara - Not in its extreme form. I do subscribe to the idea of local control on issues that can be best dealt with locally but we need to recognize that there are local interests, statewide interests and national interests and they don't always coincide. All interests need to be heard and considered but local interests should not have veto power over the interests of the state or nation, except in limited areas where the state and national interests are minimal.
5. Do you believe that private property rights outweigh public trust doctrine?
Galli - No, I do not believe that private property rights outweigh the public trust doctrine. Ownership of property should not allow individuals or corporations to do things with that property which adversely affect the community or the environment around them. Whenever the community at large will be affected by the activities of a property owner - whether by logging, development, requests for zoning changes, etc. - the community needs to be consulted and the overall effect on the community considered.
Sugawara - Of course not! One's private property rights are limited by the property rights of neighbors as well as by the public interest. While it is simple in concept, in application it is extremely complex and difficult because it is a delicate balancing act. I have tried to be fair and reasonable and balanced in decisions involving property and personal rights issues but I know that in every one of these decisions some people are going to be unhappy.
6. How would you solve the County's budget difficulties?
Galli - The state is recovering from a recession , and soon surplus tax money should be coming down from the state. I am in favor of directing the surplus to the counties in lieu of redistributing it to the taxpayers. This will help alleviate the county's problems. I am in favor of the half-cent sales tax as an interim relief measure (I am in general not a tax advocate, but I see this as a short-term necessity to deal with an immediate economic crisis). I would insist on an audit of all the county departments in hopes of finding ways to increase efficiency and cut costs. And I would want the audits done by the county's own auditor, instead of by expensive consultants and private auditing firms.One thing I would not do to help with the budget crisis is allow increased timber sales or approve development of county lands.
Sugawara - With the general fund deficit at zero the Board of Supervisors need only to make sure that the level of service is consistent with the revenues available and that the services are being delivered efficiently and effectively. The question is, is the level of service acceptable to the public? Since only the citizens can approve a tax increase, the citizens will have to answer that question. Personally, I think that some increase of revenues will be required if we are to maintain even the current level of service in the future.
7. Are you a pro-growth, controlled-growth or anti-growth candidate?
Galli - I am basically an anti-growth candidate, but anti-growth is not a practical stance to adopt because a certain amount of growth is inevitable. The important thing is how that growth is controlled and directed. I believe in slow, quality well-planned land use so that the growth that occurs does not ruin our rural lifestyle, eat up our county resources, overwhelm our infrastructure, or turn our communities into less desirable places to live. Unrestricted growth and development do not necessarily bring more revenue or more jobs; in fact the impacts can be extremely negative economically, and once decisions for large-scale development are made, there is simply no turning back.
Sugawara - I am a controlled growth candidate. This is a free country and we live in a very desirable area. We are going to grow whether we like it or not. But we can influence the way we grow, where we grow, and the pace at which we grow and stay within constitutional limits. We do this with planning and sticking to the plan to the extent possible.
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 1997
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited