Urge the Obama Administration to Protect Oregon Forests
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Before leaving office, the Bush administration — in
a blatant attempt to increase logging of old-growth forests on behalf of
their friends in the timber industry — enacted a last-minute plan
eliminating many forest protections on Bureau of Land Management lands in
western Oregon. Called the Western Oregon Plan Revision (WOPR or Whopper),
the scheme would open up thousands of acres of old-growth forests protected
by the Northwest Forest Plan to logging — with devastating impacts on
the many species that depend on these majestic forests for their survival,
including the Pacific fisher, northern spotted owl, and marbled murrelet.
Overall, the WOPR allows the timber industry to nearly double its logging on
public lands in western Oregon, despite numerous scientific studies concluding
that these dramatic increases in logging will hurt clean water and healthy
streams, contribute to global warming, push fish and wildlife toward
extinction, and destroy much of Oregon's remaining mature and old-growth
forests.
In the next few weeks, Interior Secretary Salazar will decide whether to
defend Bush’s plan in court or to do the right thing and withdraw it.
President Obama and Secretary Salazar have pledged to restore scientific
integrity and ethical responsibility to public lands management. Eliminating
the WOPR would show real commitment to fulfilling that promise.
Please take a moment now to urge Secretary Salazar to withdraw the WOPR and
protect the mature and old-growth forests of western Oregon…Click here.
