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Conservationists See Step In Right Direction With Forest Restoration Bill

Increased Funding For Restoration Needed; Must Come With Protections For Old Growth

The Forest Landscape Restoration Act focuses on providing more federal funds for forest restoration work but lacks necessary protections for old growth.

Republican and Democratic leaders in the Senate Natural Resources Committee introduced legislation yesterday that calls for increased funding for large-scale forest restoration projects. The Forest Landscape Restoration Act would focus on collaborative projects on federally owned land of 50,000 acres or more. The bill seeks to restore the natural fire resiliency of Western forests, reduce the amount the federal government spends on fire suppression and provide economic stimulus to surrounding areas.  One shortcoming of the bill, however, is that it lacks important provisions for protecting old growth.

“These types of restoration efforts have been working in Oregon for years,” said Jonathan Jelen of the conservation group Oregon Wild. “However, examples like the Siuslaw National Forest have shown us  that the real key to success for these projects is making sure we protect our last old-growth trees.”

The Siuslaw has served as a model for this type of restoration work for the past decade. Since the late 1990s, forest managers there have focused on conservation-based thinning projects that work to restore the forest to old-growth characteristics while providing jobs and timber to local mills. The Clackamas Stewardship Partners, working in the Mount Hood National Forest, have built on this model and recently received the “Two Chiefs’” award from the US Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The award recognizes collaborative efforts that support forest and community health.

Despite the successes of these collaborative efforts, the Bush administration has pursued increased logging of old-growth forests. The Bureau of Land Management is currently reviewing comments on the Western Oregon Plan Revisions (WOPR). If implemented, this plan would see a 700% increase in clear-cut logging of old growth.

“Working with the Clackamas Stewardship Partners (CSP) has really let us see how beneficial this collaborative model can be when old-growth logging is off the table,” said Erik Fernandez, Oregon Wild’s representative in the CSP. “That’s why it is so sad to see the Bush administration continue to go after old growth. There is consensus that by protecting the big, old-growth trees, everyone can benefit.”

Co-sponsoring the bill is US Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). In December, Senator Wyden held hearings to explore the issue of restoration thinning on federal public lands. He followed up the hearings by hosting several roundtable discussions across Oregon. In his public comments, Senator Wyden has made clear his support for federal legislation to protect old-growth forests. He is expected to chair hearings in March to explore the issue of old-growth protection.

“As the Forest Restoration Bill moves forward we hope that Senator Wyden can convey the importance of protecting our last old-growth forests, and direct the Forest Service and BLM to carry out projects that restore old-growth characteristics to forests that have been mismanaged,” said Jelen.

Oregon Wild has worked for over three decades to find common sense solutions for forest management. Oregon Wild has partnered in stewardship groups in the Siuslaw, Alsea Valley, Clackamas River watershed and recently in the McKenzie River watershed. In 2007, the organization initiated the “Black Butte Fuels and Restoration Project,” an 800 acre collaboration with the Forest Service outside of Sisters. The goal of the Black Butte project is to reduce the risk of fire to homes, protect old-growth trees from stand replacing fires and restore a more natural fire regime to the area.

Oregon Wild continues to look for opportunities to forge common sense solutions for our public forests by protecting older trees, restoring natural processes and stimulating sustainable development in rural communities.

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