Protect Oregon Old Growth from BLM

I urge you to take immediate action to protect our state's remaining old-growth forests from the Bureau of Land Management's recently announced logging proposal. On February 19th, the BLM published a Notice of Intent to revise the management plans governing nearly 2.5 million acres of Oregon forestland across 18 counties. The proposal would eliminate old-growth and wildlife protections in order to maximize timber harvest — targeting approximately one billion board feet per year, four times current levels. The public comment window closes March 23rd, and the agency has stated it will hold no public meetings. This is deeply troubling on multiple fronts: These forests are irreplaceable. Oregon's low-elevation old-growth forests store more carbon per acre than almost any ecosystem on Earth. They filter drinking water, stabilize slopes above salmon streams, and provide habitat for the northern spotted owl, marbled murrelet, coho salmon, steelhead, and hundreds of other species protected under federal law. The places at risk have names we know and love. The Valley of the Giants. Mary's Peak. Alsea Falls. The Sandy River corridor. The North Fork Clackamas. The Upper Molalla River. These are places Oregonians hike, fish, and paddle — places that belong to all of us. The existing management plans, finalized in 2016 after four years of development, carefully balanced timber production with habitat protection, water quality, recreation, and endangered species survival. Scrapping them in favor of maximum extraction would undo decades of responsible stewardship. I urge you to: 1. Publicly oppose this proposal and call on the BLM to protect Oregon's old-growth forests. 2. Demand that the BLM hold public meetings before making decisions of this magnitude. 3. Insist that the Environmental Impact Statement analyze a full range of alternatives — not just "do nothing" or "maximize logging" — including options that maintain meaningful protections for old growth, listed species, clean water, and recreation. 4. Defend existing Areas of Critical Environmental Concern, of which there are over 100 in the affected planning area. 5. Use every legislative and executive tool available to ensure streamside buffers adequate to protect endangered salmon and steelhead populations. Oregonians have always understood that some things are worth more standing than cut down. I trust you share that value, and I ask you to act on it now. Thank you for your service to our state.