A report released today indicates that 95% of the public that commented on the Biscuit post-fire logging proposal on the Siskiyou National Forest opposes the Bush administration's preferred alternative for intensive logging of the area.
The proposed logging will cause serious damage to an area that has more Wild and Scenic rivers than any place in the continental U.S., the largest unprotected roadless forest in Oregon, some of the best remaining salmon runs in the contiguous U.S., and one of the most botanically diverse forests in the country.
"The public does not want to see massive logging of the Siskiyou Wild Rivers Area," said Bill Meadows, President of The Wilderness Society, which, along with the Siskiyou Project, sponsored the review of the public comments for the timber sale. "This area is one of the most valuable natural wonders in the United States, and we should not destroy it with a heavy-handed approach to logging."
Largest Timber Sale in Modern History
The comments come in response to a proposal made by the Bush administration last November to embark on a massive logging project in the area burned by the 2002 Biscuit Fire. It is one of the largest proposed timber sales in U.S. history. Since then the EPA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and prominent scientists have all raised concerns that the logging would harm water quality in streams, destroy habitat for endangered species, and diminish the values of old growth forests.
The proposed sale will log in pristine roadless areas and in designated old growth reserves. Because the fire burned in a mosaic pattern, many of the logging areas contain green trees never touched by the flames. Even stands that did burn are now well on their way to natural recovery.
Key findings of the report include:
- Out of 22,856 public comments, 95% OPPOSE the Forest Service's Preferred Alternative.
- Out of 22,856 public comments, 90% SUPPORT a more balanced restoration alternative with far less logging.
- 82% of personally written letters oppose the Forest Service's Preferred Alternative.
"The public opposition to this timber sale is simply overwhelming," said Don Smith, executive director of the Siskiyou Project. Staff from the Project conducted the analysis of the comments at the Forest Service offices in Grants Pass during the month of April.
"Even when we analyzed the individually written letters, we saw that over eighty percent of the public commenting on the sale opposed the logging proposal for the Siskiyou Wild Rivers Area," said Smith.
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