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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 2006)
2 Commentary The Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2006 Clackamas Of politics and academic freedorr Free exchange of ideas is essential to modern society - recen moves to silence grad student unprecedented, indefensible violated federal law as well as the terms of the research grant by try ing to influence pending legislation on salvage logging. The BLM also TTte Clackamas Print claimed that Donato’s research team had not consulted them before sub At the turn of the year, Daniel mitting the study and the report did Donato was submitting his research not include a disclaimer saying that report to the prestigious journal the findings were not necessarily the Science. Less than two months later views of the government. The BLM’s actions kicked the con he was in the center of a national controversy regarding OSU’s funding troversy up anew and turned what had practices and the US Bureau of Land been an already shady in-house aca- Management’s impartiality regarding demic battle into an issue of governmental censorship. It controversial research. Over the last few years Donato led was seen by many as another a project under the auspices of Oregon in a series of attempts by State University’s College of Forestry officials to suppress scien which examined the impact of post tific conclusions running con fire logging in the Biscuit wildfire site trary to Bush administration in southwestern Oregon. After com policies. With a long history of piling data from sites that had been disputing scientific findings on logged and sites that hadn’t his team controversial subjects such as reached the rather controversial con global warming and oil prospect clusion that post-fire logging might be ing, it’s easy to see why some detrimental to the recovery of burned academics and civil libertarians are skittish about the subject forest land. The one-page report concludes that of governmental interference in research, par- salvage logging two ticularly from years after the Biscuit the ~ Executive wildfire set back the Branch. recovery of the forest “This is one This is one of and increased, rath of those stickf those sticky political er than reduced, the political wickets from which no amount of dry fuel on one comes away clean, the ground. This runs wickets from and the Bureau of Land counter to a report pub which no one Management may come lished earlier by two out dirtiest of all. The OSU professors that comes away suggested aggressive BLM swears up and clean, and logging and replanting down that the suspen the Bureau as a means to restore sion of funds was not burned forests such as politically motivated. of Land those devastated by However, the abrupt Managment the Biscuit fire, The ness of their response, professors’ report was coupled with previ may come out embraced by the US ous attempts by the dirtiest of all. ” Forest Service and Bush administra the Bush administra- ---- tion to bury science tion, which promptly that doesn’t agree expanded their logging with their politics, plans for the Biscuit burn. makes the move appear to most When the professors learned of scientists as punishment for not Donato’s report in mid-January, they toeing the President’s line." The sus led a contingent of their colleagues pension of the funding after contro at OSU’s College of Forestry in writ versial findings is without precedent, ing the editors of Science asking that and though the funding was quickly the journal delay publication of the restored and losses accrued during report. After subjecting the findings the suspension will be covered, much to independent peer-review, Science damage has been done. opted to publish the report despite the Donato’s research team may appear professors’ objections. the David of this particular moral The January blow-up raised ques tale, but the report as published in tions about whether the College of Science has generalities of the Forestry’s funding constituted a con sort that invite criticism. flict of interests. The school revives The data was collect roughly 10 percent of its funding from ed over a period of logging industry taxes. An opinion about two years - a piece in The Oregonian called for span that many OSU officials to examine their funding say is too short practices and take steps to maintain a time to collect . the school’s credibility. Lawmakers conclusive evi assured the »public that investigations dence, Also, would be made. the report After that the controversy appeared draws broad to be dying down. Then, as is often the conclusions case, the federal government stepped based on data in and made matters worse. collected It seems that Donato’s research at only one project was in large measure funded by burn site, grants distributed by the BLM as part which may of a federal Joint Fire Science program. or may not The BLM puHed the research project’s be repre funding, claiming that Donato’s report sentative of * Laura Jameron E. E. lost The Clackamas Print 19600 S. Molalla Ave. Oregon City, OR 97045 (503) 657-6958 ex. 2309 The C lackamas Print is a weekly student publication and is distributed every Wednesday except finals week. all. The OSU College of Forestry and the professors who attempted to block the findings come out of this looking partial to the logging industry, and will be fighting to regain credibility for a long time to come. While the report has its flaws it is still worthy of debate in the scientific community. Without the freedom to exchange ideas and hypotheses in an open forum the whole system of university education and research becomes a cruel joke, with yes-men professors as the punch The faculty involved in the scan should have known better. It might very well be that the in ing suspension was based entif on miscommunication and oversigl but the perception remains that' BLM and OSU acted shamefully! suppress scientific research. If distributors of research grants and faculty of universities send the nj sage to researchers to agree orl then progress in our understanding the world will only be hurt. 1 In that we all lose. E ditor -I n -C hief : Ben Maras C opy E ditors : Katie Weinberg, E: E. A d A ssistant : Megan Cline P roduction A ssistants : Megan S taff W riters : Courtney O'Byme, Koler, Tayo Stalnaker, Adam J. West Alexander Case, Derek Erickson, Justin Goe, Elizabeth Hitz, Frank Jordan, Mike Kimberling, Megan Koler, Adam J. Manley Matthew Olson, Joe Piazzisi, Kim Schiewe, Tayo Stalnaker, Kyle Steele, David Stark N ews E ditor : Katie Wilson C ommentary E ditor : Laura Cameron F eature E ditor : C.J. Ciaramella S ports E ditor : Mike Guidice A&E E ditor : Jädon Triplett P hoto E ditor : Jeff Sorensen A d M anager : Sam Krause Manley, Brandon Huddleston, Kraig Hansen P hotographers : Adam}. Manley, Harriet Strothers D epartment A dvisor : Linda Vogt D epartment A ssistant : Pat Lichen G oals : The C lackamas Print to report the news in an honest unbiased, professional manner. The opinions expressed do not | necessarily reflect those of the dent body college administrati its faculty or The Print. E-mail comments to chiefed@da edu.
