Willamette National Forest

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Field checking the Calloway timber sale — May 17

WildCATs looking over maps for the Calloway Timber Sale during this Summer's Basecamp (photo by Cascadia Wildlands).

Join Cascadia Wildlands WildCAT Field Checking outing to the U.S. Forest Service’s Calloway Project, located within the McKenzie District of the Willamette National Forest. THIS EVENT HAS ALREADY HAPPENED.Please check back on our website and social media for more field checking opportunities this summer!You can email Madeline to let them know you are interested in future field … Read more

BLOG: Field Notes from the Calloway Timber Sale 

Abe within an old-growth stand adjacent to a Calloway unit (photo by Abe).

— written by WildCAT, Abe. On a bright October morning I had the honor of joining a group of volunteers and staff from Cascadia Wildlands for a day of field checking in the woods. Field Checking is the tactic of comparing existing conditions in the forest with conditions alleged in Forest Service sale proposals. Often, … Read more

BLOG: Field Checking for the First Time

— written by WildCAT, Emma E. Saturday, October 21st was marked in bold on my calendar, as it was my first time meeting up with other WildCAT volunteers to conduct a field check in the Calloway timber sale. I walked through the fog early in the morning to meet-up with two other volunteers, Becky and … Read more

Press Release: Over 100 “Kayaktivists” and Community Members Protest Old-Growth Logging

October 8, 2022 — Today, a “kayaktivist” flotilla of over 100 concerned community members rallied on the McKenzie River to protest an old-growth logging sale in the Willamette National Forest. The Flat Country project, proposed by the U.S. Forest Service, targets over 2,000 acres of old-growth and mature forests for logging across the headwaters of the McKenzie River. The agency could auction the old growth to be cut at any moment.   Attendees held up signs from boats and kayaks, and unfurled a large banner declaring “Forest Defense is Watershed Defense”, to draw attention to the logging sale’s impact on downstream drinking water.

Press Release: Mature and old-growth logging sale undermines Biden climate policy; threatens McKenzie River, habitat

August 2, 2022 — Today, old-growth forest and wildlife advocates provided the U.S. Forest Service the means to reconsider the pending Trump-era “Flat Country” timber sale in Oregon’s Willamette National Forest. The vast majority of the proposed logging would be in mature and old-growth forests, with over 1,000 acres of clearcutting, even though President Biden this year ordered his administration to prioritize conserving these forests as a crucial climate protection.

Press Release: Post-fire Logging Halted on the Willamette National Forest

December 3, 2021 — Today, a federal judge enjoined post-fire logging on the Willamette National Forest near Detroit Lake and Breitenbush hot springs. The Forest Service was converting previously approved restorative thinning projects into post-fire clearcuts without any public notice or environmental review, despite the significant new information and conditions created by the fires.

VICTORY! Court Halts Roadside Post-fire Logging Project

November 5, 2021 — Today for the second time this year, a federal court halted U.S. Forest Service (Forest Service) plans to carry out extensive post-fire roadside logging. In granting a preliminary injunction, the court stopped planned commercial logging along 400 miles of roads within the Willamette National Forest. Federal District Judge Michael McShane’s order states: “Given the immense scale of this Project, which allows the felling of trees along 404 miles of forest roads, Plaintiffs [Cascadia Wildlands, Oregon Wild, and Willamette Riverkeeper] have demonstrated a likelihood of success on the claim that the Forest Service may not use the road repair and maintenance [Categorical Exclusion] to avoid [National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)] review,” page 11. The Forest Service will be largely precluded from commencing logging until the court has heard and decided on the case, likely in early 2022.

BLOG: Reporting Back from the Oakridge/Westfir Field Visit

By Danielle Curtis, 2021 Summer Legal Intern On an uncharacteristically rainy morning in mid-June, myself, along with my fellow Cascadia team members, pulled into the Middle Fork Willamette Ranger Station. Here, we would meet with representatives from Oregon Wild, as well as a number of Willamette National Forest District Rangers and fuel planners. The purpose … Read more

FIELD REPORT / BLOG: Quartzville-Middle Santiam Old-Growth on the Chopping Block

Proposed Quartzville-Middle Santiam (QMS) Timber Sale Project: Field Check Trip, July 2020 by Chelsea Stewart-Fusek Cascadia Wildlands Legal Intern, Summer 2020 On a gorgeous day earlier this month, the Willamette Valley Broadband of Great Old Broads for Wilderness joined the Cascadia Wildlands field checking team to survey some of the units in the QMS timber … Read more

Fall Creek Fire Ecology Hike — October 14th

Join Oregon Wild and Cascadia Wildlands on a fall hike through old-growth forests affected by the 2003 Clark Fire near Fall Creek in the Willamette National Forest. This area is well known for its lush and beautiful creek-side trail, which we’ll experience while exploring the natural recovery of this diverse area after the fire. We’ll … Read more