Gold mining operation in trouble with county, state

‘If they are breaking state law, the state has to take care of it.’

— Anita Andazola, Army Corps of Engineers

A gold mining tourism company continues to helicopter customers in for four-day stays at a gold mine on the Little Chetco River deep in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, despite a Curry County stop work order issued in 2007, and continuous warnings since.

“They have no permits,” said Candy Cronberger, planner for the Curry County Department of Public Services. “There are no sanitation permits, no building permits, no health permits for preparation of food. No planning approval. No water rights.”

The Curry Coastal Pilot’s attempts this week to reach David Rutan, owner of the Grants Pass-based Oregon Gold Trips, were unsuccessful.

However, Rutan replied to a violation letter sent by County Sanitarian Sara Hunter, saying there is no proof of violation because there has been no visit to the site by an official.

“Once a county official has visited the site and the facts are known, any violations would gladly be addressed,” Rutan’s letter said.

Oregon Gold Trips operates two gold mine areas in southern Oregon – Wines Camp, which can be reached by gravel road 45 minutes from the city of the Rogue, and Emlly, on the eastern border of Curry County near Cave Junction and the Illinois River.

The company’s Web site says it will begin selling time shares at Emlly Camp in 2010 for 100 owners. Proposed activities are marketed to people interested in outfitted and private hunting trips, building cabins, survivalist camps, paint ball battles, nudist colonies, environmental research, hiking and wilderness camping.

Cronberger said Rutan has received a stop work order in September 2007, and several notices since then. But the county has no way to reach the wilderness site.

There are several state and federal agencies that also must give approval for such an operation, he said. No approval has been given from any of those.

“I’m in the process of trying to bring the Department of Environmental Quality, the Army Corps of Engineers and whoever can get involved in to help us determine what to do,” Cronberger said.

Mitchell E. Lewis, Watermaster for District 19, said he found no water rights issued for the 60-acre private property.

“The source appears to be one or more tributaries to the Chetco River system,” he said in a letter to Rutan.

“I find no water rights of record for any use within two sections. The use of water for any mining operation where water is removed from the stream channel, referred to as ‘high-banking,’ requires a water right. In addition, it has been brought to my attention that while on site, people taking part in mining operations are also making use of nearby surface water for domestic purposes. That type of use from surface water also requires a water right before water use may begin,” the letter said.

A newsletter on the company’s Web site, www.oregongoldtrip.com, says claims were originally located by an Englishman named Emlly, although some people call the camp Emily.

“The Emlly Camp will continue to be a controversial property because it is the only in-holding within the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, and the environmentalists wished it didn’t exist. They do want to shut out the public and make it unavailable to use,” the newsletter says.

“Unless they bought it (the property), they have no rights to do so and it will be used for trips of all kinds while the opportunity is ours.

“The plan is to build additional enterprises for corporate retreats, fishing, hunting, as well as the GOLD trips. I have been approached by sporting guides who wish to operate out of our property. Connections with high profile hunting and fly fishing guides has sparked interest since the property provides an easy access to the heart of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, especially downstream by kayaks the entire distance to the coast.”

A notice of violation sent to Rutan on Dec. 15, 2008, said that the previous owner had applied for an authorization to replace a dry cabin that had burned in the Biscuit fire on July 23, 2003.

“He was never able to complete the permit due to vehicular access issues with the Department of Agriculture. The permit was closed in November of 2005. The existing dwellings burned by the fire consisted of two dry cabins for single family use and not a commercial facility for cabin rentals,” said the letter signed by Hunter.

“The Forest Service is keeping an eye on it,” Cronberger said. “There are a lot of agencies involved. It’s been an enforcement issue for us, being we can’t get to it.”

Anita Andazola, regional compliance officer for the Army Corps of Engineers, told a recent meeting of the Chetco Watershed Council that Rutan has a permit application for the site in to the Corps.

“The Corps did a public notice for that permit. It’s still in the permitting process. As it stands, there are no DEQ permits. Until you get permits from the DEQ, Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife Service. ... There is no permit yet. As I understand, this is not about getting gold. It’s about making mud.”

She said if the property is an in-holding, it is private property in the wilderness.

“What is public land is how they get in and out. The Forest Service has its own issues. The material that has to go in has to go out.”

“Rutan is still being looked at,” Andazola said. “If someone comes to us with a proposal and says this isn’t going to work, we try to work with them and tweak, tweak, tweak for something that (does). If he can modify what he is doing, we will continue to work with Rutan.

“If they are breaking state law, the state has to take care of it,” she said.