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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 10, 2008)
BY CAMILLA MORTENSEN Forest Stewardship Is the BLM’s WOPR just T he Bureau of Land Management’s Western Oregon Plan Revisions (WOPR) has been the using up a lot of the time and effort of environmentalists from Eugene and around Oregon. Some local forest activists think it’s a distraction from a more ne- farious plan — logging under the guise of for- est stewardship. The WOPR’s preferred alternative (Alternative 2) proposes a 700 percent increase in logging in Oregon’s old-growth forests. The public comment period on the plan ends Jan. 11, and many environmentalists believe the plan will end up going into litigation. Tim Hermach, executive director of the Native Forest Council (NFC), says the WOPR is a “totally bogus plan” and the BLM is using “military tactics, designed not to win but to re- focus.” With all the focus on the WOPR, he says, environmentalists are not paying atten- tion to stewardship contracting. “Stewardship end result contracting” was created under the Clinton administration, says Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics Executive Director Andy Stahl. It’s a plan in which land managers barter trees for “good works in the woods” — improvements to the land or watershed. For example, a con- tractor would thin trees from forestland and in exchange would maintain trails on that land or get rid of trails to restore water quality. While Stahl agrees that there are problems with stewardship projects, he says, “There is no possible way that the WOPR is a scheme to troversy about stewardship arises. “Commercial thinning has a distraction? the environmental community split,” says Stahl. He divides distract from stewardship contracting.” the split into “jobs in the Stewardship contracting was origi- woods” people who see “so- nally limited to Forest Service lands, but cial merit in having a logging in 2003, it was expanded under the Bush industry and having commu- administration to the BLM as well. The nities like Sweet Home re- stewardship authority was expanded until main on the map” versus “zero 2013 and contracts can last as long as 10 cut” who don’t want to see any years, says Bill Barton, director of field logging at all. “Compounding operations for the NFC. the split,” he says, “are Wyden There is no limit to the amount of land ‘There is no possible way that the WOPR and DeFazio who have de- under a stewardship contract, says Barton. clared themselves ‘Thinning He cites the 3.3 million acre Beaverhead- is a scheme to distract from stewardship R Us.’” Deerlodge National Forest of Montana, Andy Stahl, Stahl, FSEEE FSEEE contracting.’ — — Andy Sen. Wyden made a call which has been proposed as a stewardship back in December to increase area by a coalition of forest industry and on public lands, and green groups. This gives them “complete ‘The stewardship authority is “vague” thinning Rep. DeFazio told the News- control of a national forest,” he says. If the with “a lot of room for mischief.”’ Review in Roseburg in WOPR goes through, BLM lands in Bill Barton, Barton, Native Native Forest Forest Council Council December that he was trying Oregon could still become stewardship — — Bill to “garner support” for “an al- lands, he says, “and not one cent to the ternative approach based on counties if stewardship goes through.” thinning” and is working on legislation to get trees are not scaled (measured) Barton is con- Unlike timber sale money on O&C lands, O&C counties 75 percent, rather than 50 per- cerned that there is no way of knowing if larger which gives 50 percent of gross timber rev- cent of timber receipts. trees are being taken out, in addition to the enues to O&C counties, any money earned Once the BLM has assessed public com- smaller thinned trees. under stewardship contracting goes back into ments on the WOPR, it will release a Finally, Barton contends that although the project or other stewardship projects. “Proposed Resource Management Plan” and a stewardship contracts “give the illusion of pub- Another of Barton’s criticisms of steward- final Environmental Impact Statement in lic involvement,” the final say lies not in the ship contracting is that the stewardship author- September 2008. This will be followed by a community, but with regional agency directors. ity is “vague,” with “a lot of room for mis- 30-day “protest period.” Oregon currently has 26 Forest Service and chief.” Bill Barton and Tim Hermach will be four BLM stewardship projects, most of which Barton also says that there is “no accurate speaking at the Eugene City Club at 11:50 am involve some degree of thinning for fuels re- measure of the amount of wood taken from a Friday, Jan. 11, in a talk entitled “Logging and duction to prevent forest fires or as an attempt forest under stewardship contracting,” and Taxes: How Are We Affected?” to grow larger trees. Thinning is where the con- “they don’t scale the trees as they come out.” If ew JANUARY 10, 2008 13
