246 



species, destroying che habitat of not just the 

 California spotted owl but also the coho salmon, 

 west coast steelhead, Modoc sucker. Pacific fisher, 

 marten, goshawk, and pileated woodpecker. 



Twenty of these sales will cut valuable old growth 

 forests. Numerous studies have documented the 

 importance and rarity of old growth forests in 

 California. The recent Sierra Nevada Ecosystem 

 Project (SNEP) report explains the value of Sierra 

 forests in protecting watersheds, sustaining fisheries, 

 and providing for the needs of both people and 

 wildlife. The SNEP report also documents that late 

 successional old growth forests at middle elevations 

 at present constitute only 7 to 30% of the forest 

 cover of the Sierra. 



President Clinton's Northwest Forest Plan also rec- 

 ognized the importance of ancient forests, and gave 

 many old growth forests and important watersheds 

 new status. The plan identified Key Watersheds that 

 provide cold, clear water for at-risk fish species. The 

 plan also established Late Successional Reserves 

 containing many of the sparse remains of 

 California's uncut, old growth forests. The 

 Rescissions Act Logging Rider made the protections 

 granted to these critical areas in the Northwest 

 Forest Plan unenforceable. 



A Threat to Citizens' Rights 



This is not the first time that the Forest Service has 

 proposed environmentally damaging timber sales in 

 California. But, it is the first time that citizens have 

 lost their rights to appeal administratively or judi- 

 cially to insist that agency regulations and the laws 

 be respected. 



This anti-democratic provision was ostensibly 

 included to prevent "frivolous" appeals from stop- 



ping legitimate timber sales. However, only 8 of 11 9 

 timber sales in California were appealed by conser- 

 vationists last year — hardly a major obstacle to 

 timber production, but an important safeguard 

 helping to bring about some balance in forest man- 

 agement. In reality, limiting citizen participation 

 ensures that the timber industry will have unob- 

 structed access to the most ecologically important 

 and valuable forests that remain in our state, old 

 growth forests that have withstood generations of 

 human activity. 



Although the Rescissions Act logging rider "expires" 

 December 31, 1996, the provisions of the rider 

 shielding agency and corporate actions from judicial 

 oversight will extend on for months, or even years. If 

 a "salvage" or Option 9 (Northwest Forest Plan) sale 

 is offered by December 31, 1996, then it can pro- 

 ceed under che terms of che "lawless logging" rider 

 for years until che entire projecc is logged. Citizens' 

 righcs must be rescored. There is no justification to 

 deny the public che opportunity to participate in 

 decisions chac aflect the public lands. 



A Forest Health "Crisis" in California? 



Proponents of "lawless logging" argue that wild- 

 fire, disease, and insect activity are threatening 

 "forest health." The evidence does not support 

 chac argument. 



The recent SNEP science report 

 observes that insect outbreaks during the 1980s were 

 a repetition of patterns common for many decades. 

 "Tree mortality, even widespread or locally severe 

 morcalicy, is an inherenc component of Sierran forest 

 ecology and an important generator of plant and 

 animal habitats," the repon concludes. 



