Stopping Destructive Logging: McKenzie River Protection Project
The upper McKenzie River, located one hour east of Eugene, is public land administered by the McKenzie Ranger District of the Willamette National Forest. This is an international recreation destination for outdoor enthusiasts. Bikers, hikers, birders, anglers, backpackers, rafters, and mountain bikers from around the world descend on the watershed for its outstanding natural features. Towering old-growth forests, cascading waterfalls, glaciers and volcanoes are all found here. Well over 200,000 Oregonians get their municipal water supply from the McKenzie.
The district is rich in cultural history too. Dozens of Native Americans groups enjoyed abundant catches of salmon, berries, and obsidian in the McKenzie area. Many trails, coming from all different directions, descended on Obsidian Cliffs, the source of the black volcanic glass many tribes used in creating instruments.
However, the McKenzie Ranger District has planned logging projects for over 3,000 acres of mature and old growth forests in the watershed. These projects threaten to degrade the beauty and values of the McKenzie River watershed. It simply does not make sense to log the native forests that bring so many visitors to this region and support local tourism and recreation businesses. It does not make sense to log native forests in the watershed that supplies all of Eugene's drinking water! It does not make sense to log the native forests that are critical habitat for threatened and endangered species such as the Northern spotted owl.
Located in designated critical habitat for the Threatened northern spotted owl (listed under the Endangered Species Act), the Trapper timber sale would be the third project to be implemented in the Blue River Landscape Strategy. This timber grab would "approximate" a severe fire by aggressively logging 149 acres of 140-year old native forest. Due to pubic outrage, the Forest Service has increased the number of leave trees on most of the units. Roughly 30% of the canopy will now be retained.
As an obvious alternative to the age-old regime of logging mature and old-growth forests, the Cascadia Wildlands Project and many others advocate for a restoration-based approach to management in the district. Decades of public land clearcutting in the watershed have left us with a legacy of even-age tree farms. These homogenous plantations are in need of restoration thinning which will benefit not only wildlife and the watershed, but local economies as well. We see this as a win-win approach that will enjoy lasting success. Within the McKenzie watershed are thousands of acres of dense, young plantations in need of restoration. The road to the Trapper timber sale is lined with young plantations ideal for thinning, yet no projects are planned for these stands.
