Stevenson, WA Skamania Co. Pioneer (Cir. W.).. Mrs. Jensen sent her article to the Oregonian and it was published. Immediately the editors received protests from Friends of the Gorge saying Roy Craft and not Gertrude had written it. It seems a staff member of the Gorge Commission, who is hand-in-glove with the Gracie and I were gone most of last week and also over the Easter weekend and I didn't know the baby geese were showing up on Hegewald Pond until I saw the picture McLarney had: taken for this week's Pioneer. I immediately went back to the house and got. Gracie and we drove around the pond and saw two gaggles of honkers - one pair of Canadas with their babies on a grassy bank, and another pair with a flotilla of their young out in the middle of the pond. Back at home we watched a tiny hummingbird refresh himself at our feeder. I put the feeder up the other day after talking with Bud Rhode of North Bonneville. Bud was bragging about all the hummers who are showing up at his place so I thought I'd better get going. I can't stand a person who boasts about his birds, especially when I don't have any like them. COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES SENATE NINETY-EIGHTH CONGRESS 46 More Federal o rship of the gorge means less private ownership. More Federal ownership of private lands means more cost to the taxpayers. We urge you to let the citizens of the gorge continue to do what they have done so well in the past-govern themselves. I have heard some comments previous to my point here talking about shipyards, and stuff. Well, I'm a traveler, like everybody. If you go to Boston, they have tours of nothing but traveling through the shipyards, seeing the shipyards. So, industry probably will not hurt the gorge for tourism. Some of the most attractive things I've seen are watching some of the industries at work. Then I've heard comments about multipliers for tourism. Folks, one of the best multipliers there are, as the Senator is aware of, is the multiplier used in the building of homes. In fact, I'm not sure what the multiplier is today, but in the past it's been as large as a 4 to 6 multiplier per income generated in the community. I have heard people talk about the zoning issue, and I'd like to leave a comment on that. I'm not here today to argue about zoning, but I'd love to get into that discussion anytime. Because the truth of the fact is zoning has nothing to do with land use regulation. Zoning has to do with people control. The first zoning act was done in New York City in approximately 1916. It was done for one purpose, to regulate the Orientals within the business community, to keep them out of certain neighborhoods. That's a fact of law. Let's not talk about zoning, let's talk about the people. I urge you to consider first local control and let the people of the gorge continue to do what they've done best. Thank you. The CHAIRMAN. Thank you. STATEMENT Of Jim Carpenito, President, COLUMBIA GORGE UNITED Our organization appreciates this opportunity to present this testimony and documentation on the Columbia Gorge issue. Columbia Gorge United-People Opposing Federal Control grew out of a consensus among citizens in both Washington and Oregon. Columbia Gorge United's elected Board of Directors includes residents from all six counties which would be affected by the proposed national scenic area. Our membership now includes groups and individual throughout the Gorge and the Portland-Vancouver metropolitan area. We understand that today's hearing is to focus on commerce and tourism in the Gorge. However, in order to do that one must understand that the Columbia River Gorge is an area of infinite variety. It is not only the scenic beauty that goes with the lush forest, sagebrush desert, and towering cliffs, but also the many uses of the Gorge itself that give it this variety. The Gorge contains approximately 41,000 local inhabitants, three major hydorelectric dams with navigation locks for extensive barge traffic, 82 miles of major interstate highway on one side of the Columbia River, 83 miles of state highway on the other side of the river, a minimum of 115 miles of county roads, 24 miles of designated scenic highway, 50 miles of logging roads, 220 miles of power and gas transmission lines, 170 miles of two major mainline railroads, 5 sawmills, 2 plywood plants, and 2 chip plants, 2 aluminum reduction plants, one wood products treatment plant, 8 incorporated cities and 15 unincorporated cities, 44 private, state and federal parks and recreational facilities, orchards, farmland, intensively managed small and industrial woodlands, 4 bridge crossings of the Columbia River, 5 fish hatcheries, 6 Port Districts, 24 miles of walking trails, including a natural scenic trail, 2 forest service scenic areas and one wilderness area. As you can see the Gorge is not only a scenic area but a major economic transportation corridor. In the past only one side of the Gorge issue was being heard. Today people are asking why federal control over more private property in the Gorge? Why can't 47 tourism be promoted with federal intervention? We would li lowing facts: > point out the folFirst, is the support for federal control as strong as the proponents claim. Not according to the data we have compiled. 1. Skamania County-November 3, 1981, 87 percent voted against federal control 2. Cascade Locks area-July, 1982, 96.8 percent oppose federal government 3. Portland Metropolitan area-October, 1982, Independent survey conducted by Moore Information, Inc. showed 65 percent opposed federal magement Plus many others have gone on official notice in opposition to federal control (please see back-up package). Next, the proponents of federal control say that the local governments have no tools to control growth. This is totally false. Washington and Oregon have in place and are using the following: 1. Planning Enabling Acts 2. Subdivision Laws 3. Shoreline Management 4. Statewide Health Codes Plus, there are local building and planning regulations. What supporters of federal control mean is "they want their lobbyist to have control." This brings us to point Number Three. Federal control of the Gorge will remove the right of local citizens to regulate their own communities. It will place their future in the hands of powerful lobbyists in Washington, D.C. If you look at the proponents of federal control you will see they have budgets exceeding Seventeen Million Dollars. They are considered some of the most powerful lobbyist in Washington, D.C. Once they gain federal control they will direct the future of the Gorge not the local citizens. Finally, both Oregon and Washington have active programs to promote tourism. In addition, groups like the Chamber of Commerce and Mid Columbia Marketing are focusing on tourism in the Gorge. Plus local businesses will contiunue to promote tourism to expand their economic base. Both States have adopted Historic Register Acts which also allow local communities to preserve structures and assist tourism. There is much more we could say on this issue. You will find other points in our back-up package. We would like to leave you with some thoughts. There are over 41,000 people living in the Gorge. They came to the Gorge to build their homes, start their businesses, raise their families and regulate themselves. They love their communities and the land. Those of us who have heard their voice believe in their right to govern themselves. We believe they understand what the Gorge means to all of us. We will continue to carry their message to the Nation. We must all recognize that further federal control in the Gorge will not eliminate one single government agency. it will only add another level of bureaucracy. More federal ownership of the Gorge means less private ownership. More federal ownership of private lands means more cost to the taxpayers. We urge you to let the citi zens of the Gorge continue to do what they have done so well in the past-govern themselves. The CHAIRMAN. Commissioner Benson. Mr. BENSON. Thank you, Senator. The CHAIRMAN. The people in back may not be able to hear you, so get a microphone that's live and speak right into it. Mr. BENSON. We in Skamania County have been accused of being backward hillbillies, if you will. The experience here certainly shows that we are naive. We were told and believed that this would deal with commerce. I have heard regional, bistate, and the L.C.D.C. discussed here as it would control Skamania County. I think that's a far cry from commerce. In spite of the fact Skamania County would be the area most critically affected by any gorge legislation, it was not until yesterday that any elected official from Skamania County was afforded the opportunity to testify at this hearing. Indeed, without the help of Senator Jackson, I would not be here today. Much of the private property within the gorge boundaries is located within Skamania County. We feel that tourism is only one factor in the future of the gorge. Any proposed legislation could |