Link To Clear Cutting Examined In Wake Of Mudslides

Investigations are underway into whether clear-cut logging was a factor in two massive mudslides this month in Oregon and Washington. Correspondent Chris Lehman reports.

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A slide in the northern Oregon Coast Range blocked a major highway and destroyed several homes.

A slide near Chehalis, Washington struck a more rural area but was blamed in part for a massive debris flow that flooded communities downstream.

Both slides occurred on land that was clear-cut.  But investigators aren’t ready to pin the blame for the slides on logging.

Jason Hinkle:  “Off the cuff I’d say that’s going to be kind of a hard question to answer.”

That’s Oregon Department of Forestry investigator Jason Hinkle says they’re looking closely at logging as a factor.

Jason Hinkle:  “It’s safe to say that it’s possible the clear-cut timber harvest affected the stability of the site.  But there’s a lot of uncertainty.”

Hinkle says mudslides have been a fact of life in the Coast Range long before loggers showed up.  But some environmental groups say clear cutting is a recipe for disaster.

Sean Stevens is a spokesman for Oregon Wild. He supports a thorough investigation into the link between logging and mudslides.

Sean Stevens:  “We don’t want to be pointing fingers at people.  But we want to have it so that it’s safe, and so that there’s some sort of responsibility when things like this happen. Because when that hillside gets clear cut, someone makes money off of it. And so if people are going to be making money but exposing other people to risk, then there has to be some sort of responsibility there.”

The state has responsibility for reviewing clear-cut plans.  Oregon tightened its rules on logging in slide-prone areas following a series of slides in 1996.

A spokesperson for the Washington Department of Natural Resources says logging rules are under constant review.