New roadless rule reignites forest conflict

New roadless rule reignites forest conflict

By Alex Breitler
The Redding Record Searchlight

July 15, 2004

They account for some of the most wild and remote lands in the north state.

But if controversy is any indication, “roadless areas” are also some of the most valued.

The Bush administration announced a proposal this week that gives states more say whether roadless lands in national forests should remain relatively untouched.

The plan overturns an earlier rule in which the Clinton administration set aside 4.4 million acres in California, including hundreds of thousands of acres of both the Shasta-Trinity and Klamath national forests. The two forests harbor what conservationists consider some of the most important roadless lands on the West Coast.

Loggers praised the new plan, which gives governors the chance to petition to protect lands or open them up for road-building, and thus logging or mining.

“Obviously, I’m glad to hear the states will have more control,” saidDee Sanders, manager of the Trinity River Lumber Mill. “But it’s too soon to tell” whether there will be more timber harvesting as a result.

The U.S. Forest Service says it has no plans to construct roads in these wildlands, and adds there’s not much timber there to justify commercial logging projects.

“Just because something’s allowed doesn’t mean it’s going to happen,” said spokesman Matt Mathes.

But the door has been opened, opponents say.

“The Bush administration is trying to give its allies — the Western Republicans and the timber industry — control of the roadless lands in a way they’ve never actually had before,” said Scott Greacen, whose Environmental Protection Information Center acts as a watchdog on north state forest issues.

Greacen says roadless areas in Northern California are home to 67 creatures guarded under the Endangered Species Act. The lands link a series of wilderness areas and include strips along the South Fork of the Trinity River, big blocks west and north of the Trinity Alps and smaller parcels along two inlets to Lake Shasta, among many others.

Together, the Klamath and Shasta-Trinity forests boast at least 31 roadless zones.

Not all live up to their name. Although the Forest Service hasn’t constructed any roads in those areas for a decade or longer, tracks have been blazed by woodcutters and fishermen. Road building and development are actually allowed on more than half of the nation’s roadless areas.

But other unprotected sections of the forests are so dense with intertwining, eroding roads that it’s important to preserve the relatively natural areas that remain, Greacen said.

For 30 years, individual forest supervisors decided what lands needed protection. But in the waning days of the Clinton administration, officials laid down a blanket rule that prohibited road-building on 58 million acres nationwide, sparking litigation in five states and causing federal officials to bemoan the prospect of “endless lawsuits.”

A spokeswoman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he supports the plan but doesn’t know yet which lands would merit preservation. The federal government will still have the final say.

Depending on what the governor decides, loggers hope they might land more work thinning overstocked forests.

“Whether people like it or not, there have to be some things done physically in those areas to protect them from fire,” said Ed Ehlers, executive director of Associated California Loggers.

When Clinton set aside the roadless lands, the Shasta-Trinity National Forest estimated his actions might reduce the forest’s annual timber sales by 6 million to 8 million board feet per year. That’s enough to build 600 to 800 homes.

But California Forestry Association President Dave Bischel said not to expect big logging projects on roadless lands with the latest plan, which the government estimates could cost nearly $10 million.

“I don’t believe that there is going to be a single board foot of additional timber coming out of these areas,” he said.

By the numbers

President Clinton’s roadless plan aimed to preserve nearly 58 million acres nationwide, including:

4.4 million acres in California

324,000 acres — or 15 percent — of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest

210,000 acres — or 15 percent — of the Klamath National Forest