TENNESSEE CITIZENS for WILDERNESS PLANNING Newsletter No. 214 January 19, 1997 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 1. Big South Fork .. P· 4 A. GMP under w.ty B. Oppose Beu CrHk landfill C Black bears 2. Obed Wilier news ........................ p.4 A. Oear Creek Dam study near end C. Objective: Stale ONRW designation B. Obed selected for national program D. Water Resour'e Mngt Plan 3. State parks and other state lands .. .. .. p. S A. St.tle Parks reform initiative C. Appeal stripmine .tdjacent to Frozen Head B. Support Fall Creek Falls protection D. Acquisitions of state lands 4. The Tennessee legislature .. P· 7 A. Makeup of new General Assembly C Forestry legisl.ttion B. Gilbert's Stale Pnks bill D. Beverilgeo<ontainer deposit l.lw 5. Othersl.tle news .. P· 8 A. Scotts Gulf update D. Greenw�ys B. Sequatchie Valley pump stouge: E. Stripmine de�nup very slow pl�n ch�nged, project still b�d F. Upper Clinch conservation efforts C Ch�nge in Administr�tion G. Tenn.'s new feder�lly endangered plant 6. Smokies (�!so see 112F) .................... P· 9 A. C�t�loochee development concepts B. Cochran Creek acquisition 7. Cherokee National Forest... p.10 A. Ocoee Natl. Rea. Area? B. Appeal Cherokee decision C. Report on USFS 8. TVA's Duck River EIS and other maHers . p. 11 A. F�te of lands acquired for deceased Columbia Dam C Law forbids dock fees B. St�le: TVA recommending too much development D. Wamp heads uucus 9. Prospects for the new Congress. , , .. .. .. .. p. 12 A. Environment �nd election B. Face of new Congress C. Legislation preview 10. Other n�tion�l issues .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. p.14 A. Sub·c�binet positions B. Puk fees C. St�te election initi�tives 11. Oak Ridge and Knoxville issues . p.l4 A. O�k Ridge �nd proposed Beltway B. Turkey Creek wetlands 12.. TCWP news .. p.lS A. 1997 Annual Mtg. C. Contributions E. Th�nk you's B. Political Guide D. Grant: no luck F. 1996 Ann. Mtg. report 13. Job openings, �clivi ties, and reading matter .. ................................. �17 14. ACTION SUMMARY ······ · ·· p. 2 Editor. lian� B. Russell, 130 Tabor Road, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Phon�. 423-482-2153 Stu in margin means "A�tion NHded." Don't be overwh�lmed -check the ACTION SUMMARY! 11.1.214,1119fl7 2 14. ACTION SUMMARY ... LB BurCreckl.oofill Div. of Solid Wute (by 1216 ·Permit sh011ldnm IN: granted!" 2B ObedOowmcterrnaintenante PaddlinJtlubs Asltifthey'll�ontributeto main�nanct:c0$t 38 Fai!CreekFallswatershed Sec.Babbin:Gov.Sundquist Sendlhopreprinted posu:ard$ Sootu Gulf Gov. Sundquist "S�te should help acqu� and prolect area!" 6B C«hnnCreek acquisition Foothilb Conservancy Send contribution ($330 buys oneacre)!" PropoudCk:oeeNa!IRe<:r.Area Rep.Warnp'sOffice "Pieaset.akcleadinthisproject'" 8A Fate of Columbia lands lVA (by March 7) "Chose AlternativeD (ruource-managcment area)" Koo•ville Belt,.·aypropo$alS Tn Dept. ofTrnnsportlltion Attend Jan.28 hearinJ ("'C rec�nd'"cnngc"' route) T"'keyCm:k wc!l;md (1) TDEC (by2/U) Comment on pro.>pOSed pennit issuance (2) Michelle Neal Add your name to petition to City l2A TCWP's 1997 Annual Mill M:tork yourcalendarforOct.l • Nov.2 l998Politka1Guidc Voluntetrtohelp Senator John [)(I( TheHon.JohnDoe Pres. Bill Clinton GovernorDon Sundquist Unite<.!Stat� Senate U.S.HouS<'ofRepresentatives The WhiteHouse State Capitol 6�·· r Washin1ton.DC2�10 Washin�ton.DC20SIS WashinJton,DC20S00 Nashville, TN 37243-9872 202-456-1111 615-741-2001: Fu532-97JJ prcsidcm(twhitehousc.gov DearSenator [)(I( DcarCong,.,ssmanDoc DearMr.Prc1idcnt DearGovSundquist Sincerely you!'$, Sioccrely)·ours, Rcspectfullyywrs, Respectfully yours S.:n.BillFrist: Phone: 202-224 -3344; FAX: 202-228·126-1 e-mail: senator_frist.Knate.gov Local:423-602 -7977 S.:n. Thompson:Fred Phone: 202·224-4944; FAX: 202-228-J679 Locai:423-S4S- 4253 Rcp .Za<:hWimp: Pllont: 202·22�·3271 Local:423-483-3366. To�all any other Rtprc�ntative or Senator. dial Conllrnsional switchboard, 202-224-3121. To findout aboutthcstaous offcderalbills, call202-22S-1772 NL 214, 1119197 3 1. 816 SOUTH FORK The local community, the Scott County CommiS5ion and the Niltiona.l Park Service h"'e A. Big Soutit Fork fiener�l M�n•ge­ all been in opposition, and so is an interagency llll!nf P,.n unftr w�y group tNt hasalready obtainedsome state funds to Work on the Genera.! Management Plan for the c\eanup acid mine waste inBearCreek andis now trying to g<"t additional federal funds for this Big South Fork National River and Recreation purpose. McCreary County, north of Scott, is Areil(BSFNRRA) has got under way and will be developing a drinking-water supply from the Big under the direction of john Fisher from NPS' South Fork, just 1G-15 miles downstream from where Southeast Region. A couple of years ago, john did . the polluted Bur Creek joins it. nus water would an outstandmgjob on the CJb.EodGMP. Another piece prob;tbly be sold to S<:ott County (and. in tum, to the of good news is that Don Forester, who was then Park). Despite aU of these considerations, the Unit Manager at the Obed and is now Natural State {OSWM) at this time sees no grounds for Resour�es chief illthe BSFNRRA, will be devoting denying the landfill ptormit m..ch lime to the new GMP. As was the cue with the ()bed, TCWP hopes to be ilble to contribute to There will, however, be a hearing on January the important p�s, which will begin to involve 30, 6 p.m., the Oneidil Elementary School the public in mid-spring. The Manilgement 11 cafeteria. Written comments will be accepted until Objectives generated durillg abig two-d•y meeting in t�e summer of 1994(where TCWP wu among the Febru;try 6. The following points need making: {a) Ask DSWM to demand an Environmental Jmpi1Ct puhcipants),will be one of the basic documenu for . State scnnot berequired of a private theGMP. �ent or(ifth> a apphcant)reques tthilt the applican t furnishat least the type and quillity of information that B. Oppose permit for l•ndflll ne•r would otherwise be contained in an EIS. (b) Ask Be•r Creek DSWM whether it b co�sidering the engineering The Divi ion of Solid Waste Management . � hrm, h>red by the apphcant, as unbiased in iU (DSWM, wothm the TN Dept of Environment &:: statement that the situation vis� vis the old Co�rv tion) is ;tboutto act on an application for a � mineshafts is indeed �stable.� (c) Ask that Jandhll m the watershed, and very close to, Bear information concerning the financing of the Creek, a major tributary of the Big South Fork. The engin ering report and other permit-related tract is in the Roberta locality in the Winfield � activitoesbedisclosed to the public area, where underground coal mines were operated in the early 1900s; some local residenu still WHAT YOU CAN DO: Pro,ide oral or written remember working in these mines. Thus, the * : comments to Tom Tiesler, Duector, Division of landfill (which would accept industrial, Solid Waste Man1gement(5th Floor. L&C Tower, construction, institutional. and farming wastes, 401 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37243-1535, among others,as well as dead animals) would be phone 615-532-0780). The deadline is Feb. 6,4:30 situatedontopof abandonedmine shafts thatcould p.m. You may indicate how much the Big South be subject to subsiden•e;tnd/or contribute to the Fork means to you. Additionally,see the preo::eding problem of landfill drainage getting into Bear . paragr ph for poonts that need making. Data Creek, and thus the Big South Fork. Th<" � pertaim ng to the proposal may be viewed at engin«ring firm that has written the permit hu OSWM's Knoxville field office (call 423-594·6035 however assured the state that the •ituation is for details). �$table,� and in view of this assuranC<I! the state has made a "preliminary determination that the c. 81•ck BeM relntrodu rlon progre•• proposal meets the appbcable requirements.· � In December, NPS so\icoted comments on • proponl to release three aditional bears (fitted There are quite a few questions about what is with radio collars) and their cubs in the behind this. Neither the person who would BSFNRRA. These will partially offset losses to operate the fil!nor the man from whom the land the experimental population that occurred during would �ebought seem to have the fund5 to pay a 1996(of the orJgina112adults andll(ubs,6 half -m1l�ion dollars to the high-powered . trackableadults and S cubs remained). Among the engineenng hrm that has done all the studies useful information that haslllready been gained is required for permit application. Who hu financed the finding that illl of the bears that were the project, and why? Who has paid for the law introduced in the winter remained in and around suits that h;tve alreadyoccurred? the park.while almost allthose introduced in the NL 214. l/19.'97 . summer moved asignificantdistanCf'out of the intent to help should b<! communicated to Monika park, possibly in an attempt to return to their Mayr, Unit Manager, Obed WSR (POBox 429 , original home ranges. Wartburg, TN 37887, phone 423-346-6294). who will communicate them toUSGS. Z. OBED WATER NEWS C. Olljectl.. e: Outst•nllln• NittiOitMI Rasource A. CleMr Cl'etfll DMm Sttlfl)' Witter.s (ONRW) tla.s.. nJttlon lt's about4years since the CatoosaU tilityDistrict The state's Outstanding National Resource proposed to build a water-5upply dam on the Clear Waters (ONRW) designatiOI"I provides the highest Creek, one of the major stems of the Obed Wild &: level of protection in the Antid<!gradation Scenic River.