In early November, a friend and I embarked on a day hike to Snow Creek, a beautiful stream just south of Sisters. Our goal was to find where this creek flowed into Whychus Creek. The stream flows quietly through a cathedral of old-growth Ponderosa which hold the scars of recent fires on their thick spongy bark.
As we walked through the towering trees, a golden pathway of black cottonwood leaves carpeted the forest floor along the stream and two osprey called out in the sky above. It was as if nature herself knew we needed a guide on this day. As we stood at the confluence of both streams, I thought about how important it is to protect these wild places permanently. It made me thankful for the current opportunity to do so through Sen. Ron Wyden’s River Democracy Act, which would protect Snow Creek and thousands of miles of streams across Oregon as wild and scenic. If passed by Congress, this bill would provide increased protections for drinking water, fish and wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation activities.
A recent Oregon Wild report found that 1.3 million Oregonians rely on drinking water from streams that would receive additional protections from the River Democracy Act. This includes over 100,000 people in Bend who get drinking water from the Tumalo Creek watershed. The River Democracy Act is a gift to us and our local streams and I urge Congress to pass this bill for Snow Creek and for my children.
Ben Newell, Newberg
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