This is an actual letter sent to a man named Ryan DeVries regarding a pond on his
property. It was sent by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Quality,
State of
SUBJECT: DEQ File No.97-59-0023;
T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. DeVries:
It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental Quality that there
has been recent unauthorized activity on the above referenced parcel of property. You
have been certified as the legal landowner and/or contractor who did the
following unauthorized activity: Construction and maintenance of two wood
debris dams across the outlet stream of Spring Pond
A permit must be issued prior to
the start of this type of activity. A review of the Department's files shows that no
permits have been issued. Therefore, the Department has determined that this activity is
in violation of Part 301, InlandLakesand Streams, of the Natural Resource and
Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections
324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.
The Department has been informed that one or both of the dams partially failed during
a recent rain event, causing debris and flooding at downstream locations. We
find that dams of this nature are inherently hazardous and cannot be permitted.
The Department therefore orders you to cease and desist all activities at
this location, and to restore the stream to a free-flow condition by removing
all wood and brush forming the dams from the stream channel. All restoration work
shall be completed no
later than January 31, 2006.
Please notify this office when the restoration has been completed so that a follow-up site
inspection may be scheduled by our staff. Failure to comply with this request or
any further unauthorized activity on the site may result in this case being
referred for elevated enforcement action.. We anticipate and would appreciate
your full cooperation in this matter. Please feel free to contact me at this
office if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
David L. Price
District Representative
and Water Management Division.
Here
is the actual response sent back by Mr. DeVries:
Re: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. Price,
Your certified letter dated 12/17/02 has been handed to me to respond to.
I am the legal landowner but not the Contractor at
A couple of beavers are in the (State unauthorized) process of constructing and
maintaining two wood "debris" dams across the outlet stream of
my Spring Pond. While I did not pay for, authorize, nor supervise their
dam project, I think they would be highly offended that you call their skillful use
of naturesbuilding materials "debris."
I would like to challenge your department to attempt to emulate their dam project
any time and/or any place you choose. I believe I can safely state there is no way
you could ever match their dam skills, their dam resourcefulness, their dam
ingenuity, their dam persistence, their dam determination and/or their dam work
ethic.
These are the beavers/contractors you are seeking.
As to your request, I do not think the beavers areaware that they must firstfill out a dam permit priorto the start of this type of dam activity.
My first dam question to you is:
(1) Are you trying to discriminate against my Spring Pond Beavers, or
(2) do you require all beavers throughout this State to conform to said dam request?
If you are not discriminating against these particular beavers,
through the Freedom of Information Act, I request completed
copies of all those other applicable beaver dam permits that
have been issued.
(Perhaps we will see if there really is a dam violation of Part 301,
Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act,
Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the
Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.)
I have several concerns. My first concern is, aren't the beavers entitled to legal
representation? The Spring Pond Beavers are financially destitute and are unable
to pay for said representation --so the State will have to provide them with a dam
lawyer.
The Department's dam concern that either one or both of the dams
failed during a
recent rain event, causing flooding, is proof that this is a natural occurrence, which
the Department is required to protect. In other words, we should leave
the Spring
Pond Beavers alone rather than harassing them and calling them dam names.
If you want the stream "restored" to a dam free-flow condition please
contact the
beavers -- but if you are going to arrest them, they obviously did not pay any
attention to your dam letter, they being unable to read English.
In my humble opinion, the Spring Pond Beavers have a right to build their
unauthorized dams as long as the sky is blue, the grass is green and water flows
downstream. They have more dam rights than I do to live and enjoy Spring
Pond.
If the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection lives up to
its name, it should protect the natural resources (Beavers) and the
environment
(Beavers' Dams).
So, as far as the beavers and I are concerned, this dam case can be referred for
more elevated enforcement action right now. Why wait until 1/31/2006? The Spring
Pond Beavers may be under the dam ice then and there will be no way for you or
your dam staff to contact/harass them.
In conclusion, I would like to bring to your attention to a real environmental quality,
health, problem in the area. It is the bears! Bears are actually defecating in
our
woods. I definitely believe you should be persecuting the defecating bears and leave
the beavers alone If you are going to investigate the beaver dam, watch your step!
The bears are not careful where they dump!
Being unable to comply with your dam request, and being unable to contact you
on
your dam answering machine, I am sending this response to your dam office.
THANK YOU,
RYAN DEVRIES
& THE DAM BEAVERS