Did you know we lead free guided hikes to some of Oregon's threatened landscapes? All summer we'll be taking group trips to Roadless areas, proposed Wild & Scenic Rivers, waterfalls, and Old-growth stands so you can learn about these threatened landscapes, and what you can do to protect them. This summer's itinerary includes...
Tumalo Falls
Salmon River Giants
Gordon Lakes
Latch Mountain Old Growth
And more! Follow the link in our bio to find out more!
The Trump administration just announced plans to revise the management plans for 2.5 million acres of Western Oregon Bureau of Land Management (BLM) forests in order to "maximize" logging. BLM manages scattered parcels across western Oregon, which contain some of the last remaining low-elevation old-growth forests in the state. Notable areas threatened by the proposal include parts of the Sandy River and North Fork Clackamas, the Valley of the Giants, the Upper Molalla River, Mary’s Peak, Crabtree Valley, Alsea Falls, and many more.
UPDATE: Check out our upcoming webcast to dive deeper and learn what more actions you can take. Find the link in our profile bio.
The proposal will include:
Nearly 2 million acres of public lands with reduced protections targeted for logging, including old-growth forests and other lands previously set aside for conservation
Shrinking logging buffers around rivers and streams to 25-100 feet, scientifically insufficient to protect endangered fish like coho salmon and steelhead
Placing logging above all other public lands uses, like recreation, wildlife habitat, and drinking water, in violation of the O&C Lands Act of 1937 and subsequent environmental laws and court rulings
These public forest lands need your voice. Follow the link in our bio to submit your public comment today.
All photos taken on Bureau of Land Management managed forests in Oregon by @davidherasimtschuk
Feeling overwhelmed by the attacks on public lands? Want to do something but don't know where to start? Join us for the re-launching of WildOnes, an activist community where we learn together, take action, and support one another in defending the places and the values we love. Join us this Tuesday for our virtual kick-off, where you'll be introduced to Oregon Wild staff members leading the charge, what trainings we have coming up, and how to write a letter to the editor supporting your public lands.
Follow the link in our bio to register for our kick-off, and subscribe to our channel for the most up-to-date information!
Photo Credit:
1. Dartagnan Fearon
2. Evan Marx
3. Ronnie Bustamante (hummingbird) and Jacob Durrent (Newt)
Some great Friday news: The long-fought Blue and Gold old-growth logging sale proposed by the BLM has been stopped by the US District Court. Thankful to our partners @cascadiawildlands@umpqua_watersheds and @craglawcenter who helped make this victory possible!
Central to the claims in the case were declarations by former federal biologists stating that the agency intentionally misrepresented the age of the forests in planning documents to facilitate the illegal logging of this unique block of old-growth. Additionally, field visits and documentation efforts by members and staff of plaintiff organizations and records obtained via Freedom of Information Act requests confirmed that far older forest dominated substantial portions of the project area than what BLM disclosed.
Unfortunately, yesterday's ruling did not come soon enough to save all of these ancient forests. On Tuesday, plaintiffs Cascadia Wildlands, Oregon Wild, and Umpqua Watersheds filed for a temporary restraining order after volunteers discovered illegal old-growth logging in the timber sale area, something the BLM said would not happen, both in its planning documents and in court.
While Blue and Gold is just one of many mature and old-growth timber sale projects currently proposed by the BLM, the Trump administration is working to revise the agency’s 2016 Resource Management Plans that govern the management of 2.5-million forested acres in western Oregon. The agency aims to quadruple the cut with the revision and make logging the sole focus of these lands over other values, such as recreation, habitat, carbon storage, and clean water. The proposal to ramp up logging levels across the western Oregon BLM estate is expected this summer and is being watched closely by conservation interests.
📸: David Herasimtschuk
Through a modest increase in the statewide lodging tax, HB 4134 will fund wildlife and habitat conservation, primarily the implementation of the state’s Wildlife Action Plan, which has identified over 300 species as having the greatest conservation need.
Species included as having the greatest conservation need are sea otters, Sierra Nevada red foxes, American pikas, silver-eared bats, North American porcupines, pygmy rabbits, western painted turtles, tufted puffins, great grey owl, desert horned lizard, Pacific lamprey, western bumblebee, and monarch butterfly.
Also included in the legislation is support for fighting poaching, promoting habitat connectivity, combating invasive species, funding wildlife coexistence, wildfire risk reduction, and conservation workforce programs.
This is a historic move to ensure that the tourism that relies on our wildlife helps support it. Thank you to everyone who played a part in this, and may we all take a moment to celebrate a victory.
Wildlife video credit: drferry, mlharing
This isn't an exhaustive list, and unfortunately, it is sure to get longer, so let us know what we missed in the comments.
Rather than timber volume sold, or oil and gas produced from our public lands, the values many of us hold dear are not easily put in the language of private industry. Instead, we measure the
value of our public lands in the experience of hiking through towering forests along freeflowing rivers, with birdsong and fresh berries to enjoy. In welcoming salmon home to a restored stream and sharing fishing traditions with family. And in the opportunity to visit jaw-dropping rock formations bearing signs of ancient civilizations.
These public values that we share are being deprioritized by Trump, his administration, and
powerful members of Congress, as they seek to loot and pillage our natural heritage for private profit.
We can’t let this happen. Our public lands are too important. As co-owners of these forests, rivers, deserts, mountains, and plains, we have a responsibility to defend the lands themselves and the democratic tools that are central to the idea of public lands. Block by block, Oregon Wild is working to thwart Trump’s dismantling of what we hold dear.
Comment "protect public lands" and we'll send you a report where we highlight some examples of Oregon’s treasured places at risk, as well as how we are fighting for these places day in and day out, for the public’s voice, and for a future where nature doesn’t just survive, but thrives.
This is by no means an exhaustive list ( and stay tuned for part 2!) so please let us know what you're concerned about in the comments.
We can’t let this administration loot and pillage our natural heritage for private profit. Our public lands are too important. As co-owners of these forests, rivers, deserts, mountains, and plains, we have a responsibility to defend the lands themselves and the democratic tools that are central to the idea of public lands. Block by block, Oregon Wild is working to thwart Trump’s dismantling of what we hold dear.
Check out the link in bio for our newsletter, or comment "protect public lands" and we'll send to a link to an in-depth report.
🚨In response to illegal logging of old-growth forest recently documented in the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Blue and Gold timber sale located in the Oregon Coast Range, conservation organizations @cascadiawildlands , @oregonwild and @umpquawatersheds through the legal prowess of @craglawcenter filed a Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction to stop any further cutting. Volunteers documented the logging of old-growth trees, some of which are estimated to be 250-years old and are required to be protected by the BLM’s own rules, while camping near the contested area in the lower Umpqua River watershed this past weekend.
These old-growth forests supply clean drinking water, offer treasured recreation opportunities, store incomparable amounts of carbon to help mitigate climate change, and provide critical habitat for threatened and endangered wildlife. The logging recently documented at the Blue and Gold timber sale included old-growth trees up to 67 inches in diameter — a clear violation of law.
Visit the link in our bio for the full press release.
#forestdefenseisclimatedefense #protectpubliclands #worthmorestanding #protectforests #welikeitwild
Fire has always been part of our landscape. In the age of climate change, the real problem to be solved isn't in the backcountry; it's how we create communities that can co-exist with wildfire.
Read more about the role of fire in forest health in the PNWFCA’s Wildfire Messaging Guide — a collaborative resource that aims to demystify how we talk about fire. 🔗Link in our bio!
Stay tuned for more from the Messaging Guide soon :)
Join us on Thursday May 14th from 4:30-6:30pm for Action Night at @thecommonsbend for an evening of tangible action.
@theoregondesert@orsierraclub@oregonwild@energizebend will be there to walk you through local policy actions you can take!
Actions include:
🚚Writing Roadless Rule public comments
🌿Local election info
🪨Signing petitions around the Mcdermitt Caldera Mining
🐟Info about the Snake River damn removal campaign
⚡️Info and signing petitions on the Climate Impact Fee
Come for the action, stay for the bevs! The Commons is giving $1 off drinks for anyone who takes an action and gets a red ticket 🎟️ Come ANYTIME between 4:30-6:30 for the best happy hour in town 💅🏼✨
