Letters to editor
AG's litter panic 'a joke'
Editor, Daily Press:
A federal court is now being asked to ban the use of poultry litter as a fertilizer in the Illinois River watershed. A request that has little bearing on reality.
Poultry litter today is almost unavailable in the Illinois River watershed. Ask a farmer. The demand for poultry litter as a fertilizer has soared, partly because the state of Oklahoma has heavily promoted its use as a fertilizer across the state, partly because rising oil prices have made the cost of commercial fertilizers breath-taking.
Secondly, there is just not enough poultry litter being produced to satisfy demand. Despite the exaggerated claims of Drew Edmondson, a chicken house only produces about 120 tons of poultry litter a year – and state agency records and assessor records show there are about 1,650 poultry houses in the Illinois River watershed. That gives the farming community about 200,000 total tons of poultry litter to use every year. Farmers outside the watershed use manure transfer program tax breaks to pay more than farmers in the watershed can afford to pay. The end result? There is not much left to use as fertilizer on fields in the Illinois River watershed.
Oklahoma Secretary of the Environment Miles Tolbert claims Drew Edmondson was instrumental in helping get the Statement of Joint Principles signed between Arkansas and Oklahoma in December 2003. A major part of that agreement was to seek grants to pay for manure transfer programs – programs that began the process of making poultry litter so valued as a fertilizer in areas that are not nutrient-threatened.
So in the midst of what should be considered an environmental victory, Edmondson suddenly pretends to ride to the rescue, to resolve an issue he may have actually helped resolve years ago.
The manure transfer program for the Illinois River watershed has worked far better than anyone could have hoped. But not everyone is smiling. Especially not the trial lawyers who anticipated major money in the state’s 2005 lawsuit against poultry companies – a lawsuit filed long after the manure transfer program began.
So now we witness Edmondson’s panic – asking the court to declare poultry litter a solid waste and ban its use in the Illinois River watershed.
While the issue is seriously argued before the court, in the Illinois River watershed farming community it is a joke.
Except those who are serious about using manure transfer programs to protect nutrient-threatened watersheds aren’t laughing. The labeling of manure – any manure – as a solid waste could threaten the viability of manure transfer programs from Maryland to Oklahoma.
Those who think Drew Edmondson is an environmental savior should take a second look at his actions – designed not to protect the Illinois River watershed or Oklahoma water quality, but to protect the wallets of the contingent-fee attorneys whose political donations protect the quality of the stream Drew Edmondson cares the most about.
The revenue stream.
Rick Stubblefield
Adair County representative
Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission
Craft time a success
Editor, Daily Press:
I wanted to thank the works at the [Tahlequah Public] Library for our wonderful Valentine’s Day crafts.
The library does so many fun projects for children. I am 9, and my brother, Braden, is 6. We are looking forward to the library’s next holiday project. Thank you!
Mallori and Braden Richardson
Tahlequah
- Letters to editor
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Enforce our litter laws
I finally got down to the river on July 11. Where people park, there were these things about which my grandson would say, “Look at these white balloons.” I don’t want to tell him they’re something else, and don’t touch!
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More on ‘gene pool’
In confutation to the letter to the editor, “Thinning the Gene Pool,” I would like to address the author. Although entitled to your opinion – as we all are, Mr. Sanford – when stated, it should be an educated one at best.
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Publication objection
I would like to respond to a letter titled submitted by Troy Sanford, published July 25. Shame on you for printing that. I respect we are all entitled to our opinions and have the freedom to express them, but promoting an opinion that involved in a recent near-fatal accident should have perished because they were not intelligent is asinine. So “stupid” people deserve to die?
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Rebuttal to ‘gene pool’
In the Sunday, July 18, edition of the Tahlequah Daily Press, I could not help but feel sorry for the man who wrote a letter that day. He needs help with getting his facts straight.
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Woman gets probation for embezzlement
A Tahlequah woman was sentenced to two years of probation and six months of home confinement Friday during a hearing in front of Judge James H. Payne, chief judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
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Thinning the gene pool
Having just perused the front page of the Thursday, July 15 edition of the Tahlequah Daily Press, I can’t help but comment upon the front-page main article concerning the Oklahoma Scenic River Commission efforts to rescue stranded floaters out on the Illinois River.
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An economics lesson
The economic health of the United States is the result of decisions made by government, business, and individuals. Everyone should work toward making sound economic decisions. Government decisions can, for example, lead to a better economy.
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Stop the noise, now!
I’m sitting here in my own home, located on a peaceful dead-end street, enjoying a quiet evening of reading. Well, I’m trying to enjoy a quite evening of reading, but that quietness has been interrupted literally every 10 to 15 minutes by the boom, boom, boom of someone’s personal car sound system literally causing my windows to vibrate.
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Leading the charge
In many ways, northwestern Arkansas leads Oklahoma in water quality protection. The City of Fayetteville is active in streambank stabilization, creating green spaces, parks, and trails. Siloam Springs is taking steps to develop and protect Sager Creek, an Illinois River tributary, as it flows though the city.
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Kudos to Lake Region
We live in the Wildcat Point area of Lake Tenkiller. Early Monday morning, June 28, at 12:30 a.m., lightning struck behind our house (a loud pop and flash) and we had no electricity. In the rain, I checked outside and the neighbors all seemed to have power. I checked the breaker box and still nothing.
- More Letters to editor Headlines
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Enforce our litter laws
