Senator EVANS. Thank you.
Next is Carl Neuburger.

STATEMENT OF CARL A. NEUBURGER, PRESIDENT, CITIZENS FOR BETTER HIGHWAYS, INC.

Mr. NEUBURGER. Thank you, Senator. I'm Carl Neuburger, president of Citizens for Better Highways. This is a highway betterment group founded in 1978 and is established in Portland. It's an Oregon corporation. It was established to promote the improvement of highways and construction of such ancillary facilities necessary to enhance their use and enjoyment by the people.

Since our inception, it seems that most of the matters we have addressed have dealt with public safety. Once again, it is public safety that we wish to address at this meeting and, to a lesser degree, the convenience of the traveling public.

The bills introduced into Congress during the currrent session, as well as the previous one, proposing a national scenic designation for the Columbia Gorge appear to be written with the intent of turning a vast area, 480 square miles, into a raw wilderness, destroying local economies and abolishing representative government that is guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

At any given moment, on the average there are around 10,000 vehicles within the Columbia Gorge carrying probably over 20,000 people. Now, this is not the population of the gorge, this is through traffic. This is not surprising since the gorge is one of the Nation's chief arteries of commerce. Because of this fact, any action that would put such a large number of people at risk must be weighed with the utmost of care.

As you know, the proposed scenic area laws would exempt only the incorporated towns from the massive condemnation that the law could allow. We could lose many established settlements, homes and farms that now exist under the protection of locally established, representative government. In fact, many have been targeted for destruction by environmental extremists who are supporting these bills because they lie within so-called environmentally sensitive or critical zones which, in point of fact, is just about the entire gorge in their view.

Our concern began to become aroused when it was noted that one of these groups, the Trust for Public Land, was quietly buying up isolated properties to later resell, at a profit, of course, to the Forest Service. In one area, Wyeth, the traveling public lost the Rock Shop, a local tourist attraction and convenience stop. In fact, the entire settlement of Wyeth has been purchased, leaving the public at great risk in the event of entrapment by winter storms or slides that often close the highway in the winter.

In the settlement of Dodson, because of the threats to the existence of people's homes and businesses brought about by what is perceived as the imminent passage of one of these bills, people have closed their businesses and are trying to sell out. The area is an outstanding attraction for mountain climbers who once used the services that were available here. Since this town does not enjoy corporate status and lies in the sensitive zone, it would probably be

condemned and destroyed, leaving not only stranded winter travelers at risk but also climbers involved in accidents seeking help.

Most of the Oregon side of the gorge is already under Government ownership, so any further loss of private land with its dwellings and people does serious disservice to the public that must use the gorge for travel. Rather than depopulate the gorge which is, of course, the ultimate goal of the radical environmentalists, people should be encouraged to settle in those areas that have, by tradition, been settlements down through the centuries. Instead, we find increasingly that long time platted land is being hindered from development by governmental regulations purposely and often arbitrarily formulated to keep people from the use and enjoyment of their own property.

A further depopulation of the gorge is highly probable if the current, proposed, Federal legislation is enacted. This would come about because timberlands from which many of the incorporated cities derive their income and tax base are also considered sensitive and would, of a certainty, be condemned through pressure by such extremist groups as Friends of the Earth, the Sierra Club, and the Audubon Society.

Citizens for Better Highways opposes any legislation that would take control of the lands in the gorge away from local authorities, both because of the harm that it could cause travelers seeking shelter or assistance in what is, much of the year, a wild, unsafe environment, and because extensive studies that we have made show that the type of rigid control a Federal presence would exercise is not needed and is a serious threat to the freedoms guaranteed to American citizens under the Constitution.

The developmental and population pressures proponents of Federal control say require such stringent measures simply do not exist. In fact, population generally has declined in the gorge from its high point in the 1930's. Planners such as Paul DeBonny of Clark County, a highly educated, experienced, and recognized authority in the field, say the gorge is simply not suited to the type of development that could degrade it. We feel that those developments which are being considered

Senator EVANS. Could you please try to wrap it up? You've gone considerably overtime.

Mr. NEUBERGER [continuing]. Namely, those of a residential character which any community must accommodate, is only for the purpose of replacing deteriorating existing housing, is what the proponents don't want. They simply hate houses no matter how attractive or environmentally compatible they may be, and this is evidenced by the protests they register whenever a gorge community attempts to upgrade its housing stocks.

The questions the Senate committee has to decide is whether the citizens of the Columbia Gorge are going to be forced to live under the threats of extremists to dispossess them of their lands for no good purpose, or to continue the good job of management they, with the help of the two States' Columbia Gorge Commissions, are presently doing.

Much more than highway safety is at stake here. It is, rather, the very cornerstone of our Republic that is here at risk and it

must not be made subservient to the desires of crazies who want to dominate our society.

Thank you, Senator Evans.

Senator EVANS. Thank you, Mr. Neuburger.

Mr. Jolly, can you tell me what is the rural two category? What density of building does that allow?

Mr. JOLLY. Rural two category presently is approximately one unit per 5 acres, Senator.

Senator EVANS. And the other one, rural one?

Mr. JOLLY. Rural one states, depending upon the situation, if there is a common well in development, you can get down to 12,500 square feet per lot.

Senator EVANS. So, that's essentially a quarter of an acre.

Mr. JOLLY. Essentially it states in there, if you look in the comprehensive plan, they allow on a state-wide density factor about three units per acre, that's the average thinking behind rural one development.

Senator EVANS. From looking at the map you have, that's basically in and around the current incorporated areas?

Mr. JOLLY. That is correct. If you notice on the map there, it involves around Stevenson, Skamania-which is one of the oldest communities in Skamania County-and around North Bonneville. Basically, those are the density areas. Those are existing community areas that are there presently. So, that indicates the thought that has gone into the long-range planning of the comprehensive plan. Granted, there is further identification that needs to be done, which I stated and which the county recognizes.

Senator EVANS. OK, thank you.

Mr. Birkenfeld, do I understand correctly that on the bank loan thing you were talking about, this is a corporation essentially turned down for a bank loan because the banks were-what, just concerned about the uncertainty of the pending legislation and what it might do?

Mr. BIRKENFELD. It nullifies the property value. It's that simple. It's nothing to do with our credit. They apologized and everything else. It's because of the gray area we happen to be in. We're just going to see that, I think. They either have to do it or don't.

I'm not saying that we need the Federal control, because I'm definitely against that. The Department of Natural Resources can control our mining and our timber industry in this State. I believe that this is an overall plan that goes back to the Columbia National Forest, but they don't have to do that now because they have what's called an inholder group.

If they shut us off from the river, the valley's no good. I live 11 miles up the Wind River Valley, and to get there you have to go through Carson and you pass the blinking light. It's the only blinking light in the county. You are in a rural county, Senator. That's just the way it is.

There's 6,000 people in this county. We happen to get a lot of timber money back from both the Federal and the State. But, the States timber is not going to be ready to harvest until after the year 2000 because of its age classification in the southern part of the county. But, the State has given up in excess of 12,000 acres in this gorge area that they feel that they can never harvest because