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Sublette official blasts feds

By CHRIS MERRILL
Star-Tribune environment reporter

PINEDALE -- A high-ranking federal official has dropped the ball in his dealings with the Rainbow Family by not requiring accountability from the group -- and by leaving local authorities out of the loop until it was too late, a Sublette County official says.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey's decision to allow the "Rainbow Gathering of Living Light" to assemble near Big Sandy without a permit, and without any substitute for planning and approval, has undercut the regional response to the event, said Joel Bousman, Sublette County commissioner. And it has "demoralized" local law enforcement.

Bousman said he is angry, both as a commissioner and as citizen.

"About six months ago, (Rey), for some reason, took it on himself to negotiate directly with the Rainbow group, but decided they did not need a permit or to do any planning with the Forest Service," Bousman said. "For some reason, Mr. Rey chose to circumvent the whole government process."

Rey's decision, which Rey said Thursday was an "experiment" to try to better protect the natural and cultural resources on public lands, has undercut the ability of the regional Forest Service, the BLM and local law enforcement agencies to organize for the safety of the Rainbows and area residents, Bousman said.

"It's not right," he said. "He left local people out of loop in the planning process, which puts us in a defenseless position to try and plan for what's going on at the last minute, with no notice, no planning and no permit."

The Rainbow Family has assembled on public lands every year, somewhere in the United States, since 1972, and the events occasionally draw up to 25,000 participants.

Sublette County has about 6,000 permanent residents, and currently has enough law enforcement to maintain the safety of its citizens, Bousman said. But now it's facing the sudden potential for 5,000 to 25,000 Rainbow participants flooding the county in the coming days.

Rey should have included the county in the process from the start, Bousman said.

"The ambulance services and health care services will be under stress, as well. The method chosen by Mr. Rey has totally cut out local government," he said.

The decision not to require the Rainbows to be accountable through a permitting process is also an insult to the Boy Scouts of America, Bousman said. That organization has been planning for years a large, educational project for hundreds of Scouts in the same area the Rainbows have lately chosen. The Scout project is scheduled to begin before the Rainbows will be finished cleaning up after themselves.

No final decisions have been made, but Bousman said it looks as if the Scouts might have to alter their plans for the project.

"It's not fair to the Boy Scouts. They did everything right. They admit they're a group. They played by the book -- yet they're going to be displaced. It's just plain not right," he said.