Recent Events

In recent days there has been some comment in the Boise media questioning the degree to which Hammer Flat will or will not be accessible to the general public for everything from hang gliding to ATV riders. I recognize that there are a variety of views on this subject. The following one is mine. I welcome yours. Give me a brief, logical, argument supporting a reasonable position and I will be happy to post it.

6/1/2010

A Case for Limited Public Access.

For more than five years SaveThePlateau.org’s mission, and mine, has been dedicated to promoting and coordinating activities designed to maintain and preserve Hammer Flats as a viable habitat for deer, elk, eagles, and the variety of other species.

I was ecstatic when Boise City announced the acquisition of the area. Now, with a mixture of amusement and dismay, I watch various groups proclaim their right to do everything from fly their hang gliders to drive their 4x4s, ATVs, motorcycles, and mountain bikes on the property.

My amusement comes from knowing that just about any ultimate use is more suited to wildlife than a subdivision. My dismay comes from knowing that recreational use of sufficiently high intensity can be just as detrimental as can suburban development.

The thought that Hammer Flat should be opened for summer recreation undoubtedly comes from Hammer Flat’s designation as “Winter Range”. After all, anyone who has been there in both summer and winter will readily note the lack of wildlife in the summer, compared to its abundance in winter.

However, the same people would do well to note the lack of cattle, cowboys, and people recreating in dead of winter, compared to their abundance in summer.

That observation leads to the question of whether or not we would see increased numbers of species and higher population densities on Hammer Flat, summer and winter, if human presence in summer were as minimal as in the winter. The answer to that may be forming as I write.

This year the Flat is devoid of grazing cattle and their attendant cowboys. The area is also seeing reduced levels or recreation activity courtesy of locks on a couple gates. Concurrently, at least one small herd of Antelope, some elk, hundreds of geese, and a pair of Peregrine Falcons, are present on Hammer Flat.

The chance that the increased late spring animal populations are a direct result of reduced human access is enough to suggest that continued restrictions to the area are worth investigating.

Some Modest Proposals

First, if the current higher animal populations are a direct result of reduced human presence, it makes sense to continue the current restrictions on recreation long enough to see if the effect is permanent. If the increased number of animals is a non recurring anomaly, we can always increase human access later.

Second, the total reclamation and dedication of large parcels of property for wildlife habitat next to large population centers is a rare event. Boise City deserves tremendous credit for taking this step and can rightfully be proud. To build on this accomplishment the city should investigate linking with appropriate university programs for the purpose of monitoring, documenting, and educating students and civic leaders on how the property and the attendant wildlife adapt as time progresses, and the manner by which local and state economy’s benefit.

Finally, after culminating a major purchase many people like to see, touch, and feel their new possession. The managers of Hammer Flat should investigate means of providing low impact public access to Hammer Flat. There is no single right way to do this, but my sense is that these could be in the form of tours, guided by trained staff, and scheduled for low impact times of day and week, throughout the entire year. They should be available to the general public as well as to groups and organizations. It seems reasonable to charge a nominal fee to cover the cost of the tours with surplus revenues dedicated to funding restoration projects on Hammer Flat and recharging the Foothills Levy.

Regards,
Tony Jones

WE WON! - THE PEOPLE WON! - THE WILDLIFE WON!

You may want to read that again. Here at STP world headquarters the news is still sinking in.

Details are still emerging* but, broadly, this is what happened.

From the outset, the proposed development on Hammer Flat was one of the riskier proposals in the valley. It was far out of town, the site was inhospitable, the soils were thin making utilities harder to place, and the list goes on.

Then there was the matter of the entrance road. For most developments, entry and exit is a no-brainer. Not so in this case. The Cliffs went into the approval process without an agreement to use state land for their entrance road. It was a right the development never achieved and it proved to be a handicap from which it never recovered. In the waning months of 20009 the main questions revolved around the form the death throes would take, and the degree to would it be possible to protect the property for wildlife.

Cutting to the chase, a coalition of Boise City, Foothills Conservation Advisory Committee members, and Idaho Department of Fish and Game, using a combination of Foothills Levy funds and federal funds, came to the rescue and picked up the property for about 30 cents on the dollar. Hammer Flat is now public property. It will be managed by Idaho Department of Fish and Game as an extension of the Boise River Wildlife Management Area. The official announcement by the City of Boise was on March 9, 2010.

Make no mistake, this is a great event for the people of Boise, the Treasure Valley, and Idaho. Bragging about quality of life is one thing. Taking the steps necessary to protect quality of life is a harder, rarer, task. Mayor Bieter, the City Council, and Fish and Game, deserve all the credit in the world.

This is also a great moment for community activism. To the thousands of people who came to meetings, wrote letters, testified, offered advice and assistance, and helped in a thousand ways, please, give yourself a big, big pat on the back. It is support like yours that gives people like the Mayor, and other public officials, the extra dose of encouragement it takes to keep doing the right thing.

We didn't win it by ourselves. Not by a long shot. The anchor to which the struggle for Hammer Flat was tied was laid years ago, make that decades ago, by all the people who fought for the Foothills Policy Plan and the Foothills Levy.

We waged a good clean campaign against staggering odds. We lost many of the battles but we won a couple of critical ones. Exposing and pressing the entry road issue was HUGE! And, by keeping the process alive, we helped make it possible for Boise City, the Foothills Committee, and the State to make this final critical purchase. We were on the right side of history and it feels mighty good. Congratulations, and thank you, to everyone who helped make this possible!

Sincerely,

Anthony Jones
SaveThePlateau.org

Special Note

Folding Hammer Flat into the larger Boise River Wildlife Management Area is a great and wonderful thing. At the same time, it is important to remember that the WMA is a refuge, not a recreation area.  The primary function is to provide habitat for animals.   Assuming the Hammer Flat portion is managed in the same manner as is the current WMA, access will be restricted from about mid November through about mid April when wildlife are most susceptible to stress from cold and lack of forage.

It is important to remember that, to the extent this will be a hindrance, it pales in comparison to the avoided hindrance of 1,350 houses and the attendant streets, cars, etc.

Let’s do our part to make the Hammer Flat addition as successful as possible at protecting wildlife by keeping human impact as light as possible.  Let’s respect Fish and Game’s seasonal closures of the area.  We will have plenty of time to tour the area later in the year.

* This post was authored in anticipation of the formal announcement by Boise City, Fish and Game, and others. As such, it is as accurate as it could be given the secrecy surrounding the final negotiations. Revisions will be forthcoming as details emerge.

Contact - SaveThePlateau.org

Sincerely,
SaveThePlateau.org