Oregon Natural Resources Council (ONRC) * Siskiyou Project * Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                     March 30, 2006

Contact:      Matthew Fisher, ONRC, (503) 283-6343 x 205

Rolf Skar, Siskiyou Project (971) 242-9221

Joseph Vaile, Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (541) 488-5789

Outdoor Recreation and Conservation Groups Seek Moratorium on Logging in Oregon’s Roadless Forests

Groups ask Bush administration to honor commitment; seek input from Governor

       
Portland, OR  - More than two-dozen outdoor recreation and conservation organizations have sent letters to the Bush administration asking for a moratorium on logging and other development within roadless wild areas of America’s national forests.  The organizations cited the harm such logging would cause to opportunities for backcountry recreation, as well as fish, wildlife, and clean water.

Conservation groups also noted that Undersecretary of Agriculture Mark Rey, the Bush administration official who oversees the Forest Service, has publicly stated that the administration would provide interim protection for roadless areas while awaiting input from Governors under a controversial new petition process.

“The Bush administration needs to honor its commitment to Governors and the American people,” stated Matthew Fisher, Wildlands Advocate with the Oregon Natural Resources Council (ONRC). “They cannot say to Governors “tell us what lands to protect,” while turning bulldozers and chainsaws loose in unspoiled areas before states have a chance to act.”

Up until last year, roadless lands within America’s national forests were protected under the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.  This immensely popular conservation measure safeguarded over 58 million acres of pristine wild areas from logging and development, including two million acres in Oregon. The Bush administration repealed these protections in May of 2005 and substituted a complex process where individual Governors must petition the Forest Service to restore protections for roadless wild forests in their states.

Oregon’s Governor Ted Kulongoski is a strong proponent of roadless area protection and he has made public his intention to submit such a petition.

 
Despite Mark Rey’s commitment to protect roadless wildlands until Governors complete their roadless area management petitions, several logging projects in roadless areas are pending in Oregon and throughout the nation.  A report released today by the Heritage Forests Campaign, entitled “Broken Ground,” documents the Bush administration’s plan to move ahead with these destructive projects (available online at www.ourforests.org <http://www.ourforests.org>).

“Our roadless wild lands provide Oregon families with opportunities to find solitude and freedom, and to enjoy outstanding opportunities to hunt, fish, hike, and camp,” observed Joseph Vaile, Campaign Director with the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center.  “We should be safeguarding these places as a legacy for future generations, not sacrificing them for reckless logging and development.”

Earlier this month, the US Forest Service announced its intent to conduct logging projects on lands recovering from forest fire in the Siskiyou National Forest. The sales, called ‘Mikes Gulch’ and ‘Blackberry,’ will log hundreds of acres of roadless lands formerly protected under the popular 2001 Roadless Rule.  Governor Kulongoski has sent a letter to the US Forest Service office in Portland asking them to reconsider the plan to log in these sensitive areas.

The US Forest Service is also planning development in roadless lands on Mt. Ashland in Southern Oregon.

“Oregonians who value fish, wildlife, clean drinking water, and the legacy we leave for our children have a huge stake in the outcome of this debate,” noted Rolf Skar, Campaign Director for the Siskiyou Project.   “Our great grandchildren are going to look back and thank us for the wild lands we set aside and preserve, not for the clear cuts and parking lots we leave behind.”

Copies of the letters are available online at www.ourforests.org/brokenground/letters.html under the “Oregon” subheading.  For more information, contact Matthew Fisher at mf@onrc.org or call (503) 283-6343 x 205.