Letter: How dare he!

Published 12:15 am Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Bob Van Dyk, newly appointed to the Oregon Board of Forestry, raised the hackles of Clatsop County Commissioners Lianne Thompson and Courtney Bangs when he met with, at their request, Clatsop County property owners who will be directly effected by the Oregon Department of Forestry’s 2025 annual operations plan.

He was invited in hopes he might convey their concerns to the Oregon Department of Forestry. The ODF is not required to notify those specific landowners prior to the annual public comment period — and it didn’t.

To Thompson and Bangs, Van Dyk’s conveyance of citizen concerns was a breach of protocol, and more concerning than ODF’s need to know what those concerns are. To me, the commissioners’ priorities are what’s of concern.

JULIE SNYDER

Astoria