From: Western Ancient Forest Campaign <[wafc d c] at [igc.apc.org]> Newsgroups: rec.music.gdead Date: 02 Sep 93 07:23 PDT Subject: Ancient Forest Comments Needed Now The President has released his plan to protect the Northwest's ancient forests. Chosen from 10 "options" developed by scientists and others, the President's preferred plan, "Option 9," was designed to maximize the timber cut to the limits of the law rather than protect the Northwest's ancient forests. Only one option, "Option 1," offers the ancient forests any hope of recovering from the past decades of unsustainable logging. While Option 1 would save the last 10% of our ancient forests in protected reserves, Option 9 leaves over one third of the ancient forests in the timber base and allows logging in ancient forest reserves. Under Option 9 over one hundred species face probable extinction. Rather than end logging on our ancient forests, the President's plan relies on extensive monitoring, large scale restoration, and experimental forestry as the primary basis for species protection. Its success depends on continued funding from Congress and extensive management by federal agencies. While the Administration has painted Option 9 as an innovative protection plan, it represents risky management at its worst. Unless activists generate a loud and strong response, the Administration will implement Option 9. The ancient forests of the Northwest deserve better. Your input is critical! Make sure your comments include these important points: All Remaining Ancient Forests Must be Protected. Under Option 9, over one third of the ancient forest will be logged. Less than 10% of the original ancient forest remains, and is too severely fragmented to withstand further logging. Even small patches of old growth provide critical habitat for thousands of small organisms and endemic species, and are key to maintaining biodiversity across the landscape. Agency scientists admit that species protection is correlated to the amount of ancient forest protected in reserves. Because Option 9 fails to protect enough ancient forest, over one hundred more species are expected to go extinct. In order to protect the myriad of species who depend on ancient forests, protection of all remaining old growth is essential. No Logging in Ancient Forest Reserves. While scientists have consistently recommended inviolate ancient forest reserves as part of a protection strategy, Option 9 allows logging in reserves. Salvage and thinning is allowed in forest stands under 80 years old in reserves if "beneficial or neutral" to the creation of old growth conditions. In reserves on the eastern slope of the Cascades, the salvage is even less controlled. Agencies entrusted with the federal forests have consistently used salvage timber sales as a means of logging healthy ancient forest. The abuse of salvage logging is well documented, and allowing agencies any discretion to log in old growth reserves will be akin to letting the foxguard the hen house. Thinning and salvage logging have not been proven to be "beneficial" to ancient forests, and may adversely impact surrounding plants, animals, and soils. Perhaps most destructive are the roads that may be built to carry out these salvage and thinning operations. Roads do immense damage to ecosystems, causing severe erosion and siltation of streams. Inviolate ancient forest reserves with no logging and no roads, must be a key component of the Forest Plan. Full Protection for Wild Salmon and Forest Streams. In the past, agency scientists have made recommendations for stream protection that were included in Option 1, but weakened in Option 9. Option 9 cuts only provides half the recommended protection for intermittent streams outside of riparian preserves. These small streams are critical to the survival of many species, including amphibians, mollusks, and fish. Because Option 1 protects these sensitive riparian areas, it provides significantly higher viability ratings to hundreds of species than Option 9. Under Option 9, many fish species, including salmon, trout, and steelhead, are at severe risk of extinction. The Forest Plan claims to give these fish about a 65% chance of survival over one hundred years, but these ratings depend on massive watershed restoration efforts, whose continued funding is uncertain. If the restoration strategy is not fully funded, the viability ratings for salmonids falls to 50-55 percent. Over 300 stocks of wild salmon and fish are presently at risk, and their survival must not be solely dependent on the whims of Congress. These species must be given the best possible protection including full stream and riparian habitat protection, and guaranteed restoration. Protection for All Roadless Areas. Roadless areas represent some of the last intact ecosystems relatively free from human impact. But these keystones of biological diversity are poorly protected under the Forest Plan. Only "high profile" roadless areas have been included in the forest reserves, while others remain in the "matrix" and open to logging. All roadless areas should be permanently off limits to logging. No Local Control of Adaptive Management Areas (AMAs). Option 9 is the only option that creates Adaptive Management Areas, ranging from 78,000- 380,000 acres in size. These areas, chosen for their proximity to traditionally timber dependent communities, are to be managed for "intensive ecological experimentation," and will allow for a large amount of involvement by local citizens. AMAs include ancient forests, and will serve as experimental playgrounds where "new forestry" and other untested management techniques will be applied. AMAs must be closely monitored to insure that AMAs are not managed merely for timber. Poor management of the forest ecosystems within these expansive areas will severely impact many species inside and outside of AMAs. Adaptive Management requires extensive monitoring to achieve its goals, and the Administration has not fully developed monitoring guidelines for these areas. Because AMAs will be partially funded by the timber logged from them, the overriding goal may become timber receipts rather ecosystem management. Ancient forests within AMAs should not be subjected to logging or experimental forestry, and adequate monitoring plans must be developed. Species Diversity Must Be Protected. The proposed Forest Plan fails to protect many groups of species, including arthropods, fungi, lichens, and mollusks. Thousands of these small organisms play critical roles in the ancient forest ecosystem. Populations of many mammals will suffer as well, including nearly all species of bats, American Martens, fishers and others that serve as barometers of ecosystem health. In addition, the Forest Plan fails to provide protection for many threatened plant species, including Port Orford Cedar and Pacific Yew. The range of species associated with ancient forests represent rich biological and genetic diversity. Failing to manage for species diversity may mean the loss of yet unknown cures for cancer and other valuable resources. Under Option 9, the ancient forests will lose hundreds of species, severely compromising the ancient forest ecosystem. Only Option 1 provides enough insurance that a fully functioning ancient forest ecosystem has a chance of survival across time. Protection for Ancient Forests of the Eastside. The Forest Plan passes over some of the most fragmented and threatened forests found in the Northwest--the ponderosa pine forests east of the Cascade Mountains. While the Administration has recently announced a "plan" for the eastside forests in response to a threatened lawsuit, the proposal offers too little protection, too late. The plan calls for protection for riparian areas, and to reduce logging of healthy forests by nearly a half. Salvage logging, however, is allowed to continue. The Forest Service has consistently abused the use of salvage on the eastside, logging acres of healthy ponderosa pine under the guise of salvage. All ancient forests east of the Cascades must be permanently protected in reserves and riparian areas fully protected. Salvage logging should be strictly monitored. TO SEND COMMENTS: Comments must be postmarked no later that October 28 and mailed, not faxed, to Interagency SEIS Team, P.O. Box 3623, Portland, OR 97208-3623. Send comments as early as possible. To order copies of the Forest Plan, call the Interagency SEIS Team at (503) 326-7883 and ask for the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) and Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment Team Report (FEMAT). For more information, contact the Western Ancient Forest Campaign at (202) 939-3324.