Mark Stopher, Senior Policy Advisor
California Department of Fish and Wildlife
601 Locust Street
Redding, CA 96001
Dear Mr. Stopher, May 11, 2015
I am writing this letter to you to formally request (again) a suction dredge permit for California. I own several mining claims here in California and have been denied the ability to provide for my family by mining my claims in the only effective method which has been proven time and again to be environmentally friendly and “not deleterious” to the CA fisheries. This does not even take into consideration that over 80% of the gold claims in CA have no anadramous fish.
As you are aware, Judge Ochoa ruled and signed an order calling your moratorium on suction dredging a “scheme” and stated it is “unenforceable”.
Sierra Fund has been allowed to use an inefficient cutter dredge under the guise of mercury removal and as you are also undoubtedly aware, a cutter dredge is only 84% effective at mercury removal where a modern suction dredge is 98% to 99% effective. Sierra Fund has received millions in tax payer funds to operate their dredge on Lake Combie and have received a permit to operate this destructive piece of equipment.
You claim the CA DFG is woefully underfunded and yet Sierra Fund is paid tax money to dredge, but you deny the revenue CA DFG could generate by ending this ridiculous “scheme” to ban suction dredging in CA. Literally hundreds of millions of dollars have been lost to the CA economy from your “unlawful” “scheme” to create a defacto ban causing businesses to close, families to be hurt and entire rural communities to be devastated.
Sir, I am not interested in your form letter response, but one typed by you, not a secretary or an aide, you sir. I would like you to answer a few simple questions, and being that you are a public servant, paid for with my tax money and that you work for a public management agency, kindly answer these few questions.
1) Why is an ineffective cutter dredge allowed to operate while suction dredges which generate revenue to the state not allowed to operate?
2) Judge Ochoa’s order clearly states your moratorium is unlawful, when will you acknowledge his order?
3) When will you issue my suction dredge permit so I can provide for my family?
4) Please state what process I need to go through to obtain my suction dredge permit for California.
Sincerely,
Mr. Shannon Poe