iz THE! A U‘DU BOW “BUL TEeyN 
Farmington Bay were created, in part, to alleviate this problem. Last 
year, however, 40,000 ducks died on the vast marshes below the Bear 
River Refuge and it is to combat the problem outside refuge boundaries 
that the new program is being initiated. 
Utah is an important waterfowl nesting area and the state’s botulism 
control program should provide additional insurance against serious losses 
of birds in future years. 
fi ft A 
An S.O.S. On Behalf of the Tule Lake Refuge: Kenneth McLeod of 
Klamath Falls, Oregon, states the time is rapidly approaching when 
conservationists will have to rise up in wrath and demand that something 
be done to insure the future of this vital unit of the Pacific flyway system. 
From here it would appear that the Fish and Wildlife Service is doing 
nothing toward stemming the threat of total destruction of the area. 
The latest move of exploitation is to create an irrigation district to 
take over the entire area from the Bureau of Reclamation. The first 
step in this direction has already been taken. The second step in this 
chain of events leading toward the destruction of the Refuge will take 
place this year when the inspector of the California state board of water 
resources ‘will inspect the area. to “determine the feasibility of private 
ownership taking over the maintenance and operation of the district. 
A map showing the aims of the irrigation district to “engulf an area 
of more than 90,000 acres,” illustrates that the area would be divided 
into five sub-districts without consideration for the present refuge. Once 
the land passes into private ownership, all sump lands will be privately 
owned. Once in private hands, agitation will be strong to eliminate the 
lower sump entirely as well as to reduce the size of the larger body of 
water, if not to eliminate it entirely. 
The solution to our refuge problem can come about only through an 
act of Congress giving a legal status to the refuge in this area. At the 
present time all of the great refuge areas in the Klamath Basin are 
merely plasters upon land held by the Bureau of Reclamation for 
reclamation purposes only. At any time, the Bureau. of Reclamation 
would be within its legal right to eliminate any refuge. The pressure of 
public opinion would stop such an overt act so selfish interests just whittle 
away a small chunk at a time. 
Rather than run the gauntlet of public opinion, the Bureau has en- 
couraged the setting up of an irrigation district so that private ownership 
can accomplish the act of kicking wildlife out of the area in favor of 
creating more land for the growing of potatoes. Many of the natives 
have lost confidence in the Fish and Wildlife Service’s ability to take a 
vigorous part in opposition to the aims of the Bureau of Reclamation. 
The Fish and Wildlife Service did not alert any of the conservation 
organizations when the Bureau stole a large chunk of the Tule Lake 
Refuge in the last homestead drawing. 
