Lived lessons for those fighting wind industry corruption

While many are aware that I have been fighting to save wildlife species from wind energy developments, most have no idea that I have an extensive history going back decades dealing with State and Federal wildlife agency fraud. Some of this information has never been disclosed but I feel getting this information out is important so communities fighting wind projects will better understand what they are up against.

The fallout from 13 years of research                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   From 1979-1995 I lived on the edge of a large remote wilderness area located in NE California.  I studied the deer herds while living in this region. Over a 13 year period I had witnessed at least 80% deer populations declines. From my many thousands of hours in the field, I documented how over-hunting had severely affected deer herd reproductive behavior and contributed to these declines.  In my research I also discovered an alarming decline in the body weights of deer from this region going back 8 decades of approximately 25 percent. I attributed most these declines to over-hunting and the selective harvesting of trophy deer over the years.

I went public with my deer herd research and hunters across the state were furious to find out that they had been hunting "ghost herds" of deer. Stories were published in the media, comments were submitted to the State EIR and I even met with Fish and Game Commissioners.  My lengthy comments were published in the State EIR but they were printed with the words fragmented so they could not be read. All the other comments submitted  by others supporting the EIR were crystal clear.                                                                                                                      

Nothing was accomplished by any of this so a lawsuit was filed in 1992 by a concerned group of Sportsman.  All this went on over a several year period and even two worthless Senate Bills (2052 and 1964) were introduced by two-faced career politicians. In the end I did manage to fight through some of the corruption and helped make changes to hunting laws in Northeastern California.                                                                                                                                                                                         Officially the California Department of Fish an Game alleges that the massive reduction 1993 deer tags were the result of a severe winter deer kill.                                                                                                                                                                                   Here is the real story.............                                                                                      

It was my knowledge of these deer herds and secret meetings I had with Modoc County representatives that led to the greatly reduced hunting tag allocations in 1993.  

These county representatives were well aware that the lawsuit that had been filed in Sacramento had been rigged.  This lawsuit was filed to help these deer.  Yet none of my research was used and I was never called to testify about this ongoing fraud. This sportsman's group had several moles and at their very last meeting I exposed these two primary scumbags for the deceptive part they had played in the failed lawsuit.                           

Several weeks after this lawsuit ended I was contacted by a group from Modoc County. In the first several sentences of our conversation they made it clear "we know this lawsuit was rigged and a new lawsuit filed in Modoc County, will not be."  I was asked to help them.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

I arranged to have secret meetings because my life was being monitored. Nothing was ever said on the phone because my phone had been tapped and my mail was also being tampered with.  I suspected and confirmed the phone taps by devising a plan to smoke them out.  It took less than one day to get a response. My mail was also being filtered (theft), opened, and manipulated.  

One of the manipulated pieces of mail was from Wayne Pacelle  who is now head of the Human society. Funny thing about this piece of mail, I received a call about the contents of his letter even before I had received it. I had no idea what the caller was talking about. Checks made out to me also routinely disappeared.  After proving that this was taking place, I set up an alternate address to receive important mail with a elementary school teacher and never again had a problem a problem with my mail.     When Modoc County representatives met with me I was immediately told they were going to file a new lawsuit. I was also told that their Superior Court Judge was an honest man and he also wanted to save their dying deer herds.  Unlike the first lawsuit that was rigged, I spent many hours going through my research educating and getting them prepared for a trial.

There was no question that the CA Department of fish and Game was falsifying their deer herd figures for Northeastern CA.  It was quite easy to prove that deer population figures were being estimated 4-5 times higher than the actual numbers. With these bogus numbers, the State was using them to grossly inflate deer tags allotments to hunters.  It was these deer tags where we really had the DFG.

The reported numbers of deer being killed by hunters (hunter success) was clearly being rigged to create a false market for these tags and there was plenty of proof this was taking place.  Based upon my field research and from personal interviews with people legally allowed to validate deer tags, there was an alarming decline.  I interviewed county sheriffs, postal workers, firemen, forest Service personnel and even Game wardens throughout this region of CA. Collectively they all were reporting  the numbers of deer tags they had been validating had dropped 70-90 percent from previous years.  Yet none of the DFG hunting figures were disclosing these declines in hunter success.                                                                                                                                                                                    Modoc County was going to make (subpoena) the CA DFG to produce all the supposedly validated deer tags. These tags must be signed. Both by the hunter's and the person validating the tags before they are returned to the DFG which is a requirement.   I knew and boys from Modoc County knew it was impossible for them these validated tags to substantiate their claimed hunter success.  I also gave these Modoc County representatives the statistical evidence that would destroy any of the published DFG data concerning these deer herds.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   It was obvious these people from Modoc County were truly committed. They had the proof, and with my help could easily would win a fair court case.  This scandal would also greatly embarrass the California Dept of fish and game, which I was certain they wanted to avoid. So at my last meeting I made a suggestion  that they arrange a meeting with the DFG. Tell them straight up you know they are committing fraud, that are going to file a lawsuit, have plenty of financial backing and that the DFG is going to lose. Then tell them what you want to make this all go away.

The truth was these deer herds were dying out and they had been severely over-hunted for years. The only reasons I could determine for all this was for State revenue and the lobbying efforts of powerful timber/agricultural interests,two groups that do not like these deer.                                                                                                                                                                                    Much of this story was printed in newspapers and broadcast in TV news clips. Even 60 minutes had considered doing an investigative story on it and I to kept them updated. When the story was dropped I was told this just one of dozens of similar stories they have in their laps at any given time and they can not run them all. Too bad because my secret meetings with "Bill", the surveillance,  and all the details about a very pissed off Modoc County never hit the media.

The Spring and Summer of 2012                                                                               

My other experience was with the Federal Government (Forest Service) rigging facts had to do with an investigation that took place in 2012. That year 45 active swallow nests had been illegally knocked down at a Marina on Shasta Lake which was a violation of the Migratory Bird Act. These nests with eggs and young had been systematically obliterated over a several week period. I wanted the people responsible prosecuted, but instead the Feds stepped in, created a cover story and the DFG was pulled off the case.

                                      The official cover story was printed in the media. Severe wind and wave action was given as the official cause for the 100 percent eradication and annihilation of every one of these swallow nests over a 6 week period. The perpetrators were protected and crucial evidence mysteriously disappeared. This was damning evidence that I had only told a Game warden and a Forest service supervisor about.  

Thankfully Bridge Bay Marina was sold and the new owners are leaving these swallows alone. The wind and waves are as they have always been, and dozens of these swallows nests are successfully producing offspring each year.

So when comparing our current government wildlife agencies to investigate the hidden wind industry slaughter of species,  express outrage over the industry's voluntary regulations and the industry's self reporting of industry fatalities ,  it is all just more of the same.  Their relationship with the wind industry is to help rig the data and cover for this terrible industry.

The lesson for readers here is that the truth and persistence can overcome corruption.