Growers in the Klamath Basin of Oregon and California, literally squeezed out of agricultural production this year by eco-activists bent on saving long- and short-nosed suckers and a small salmon run, are asking about the people who have taken the water for their livelihoods.
They approached Utah Congressman Jim Hansen (D-Utah) and got permission to use figures he obtained and entered in the Congressional Record. A writer from the Sacramento Bee originally compiled the list.
Mark Van Putten, CEO of the National Wildlife Federation, $250,000; Kathryn Fuller, president, World Wildlife Fund, $241,000; John Flicker, president, National Audubon Society, $240,000; John Adams, director, Natural Resources Defense Council, $239,000; president, Wilderness Society, $204,000; president and CEO, Defenders of Wildlife, $201,000; Buck Parker, president, Earth Justice Legal Defense, $157,000; Carl Pope, Sierra Club, $199,577.
"Our Klamath Basin Water Crisis" members have failed to get a judge to overturn the environmental ruling that has literally destroyed the Basin's No. 1 industry. While the courts ruled growers must be paid for their lost water, the payment plan is unknown and the amount indefinite.