ACTION ALERT: Speak Out to Protect the Mattole Watershed

Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) has recently filed a proposed Timber Harvest Plan (“Wooly” THP 1-25-00027-HUM) that threatens sensitive biological resources and water quality in the North Fork Mattole watershed. The plan includes 88 acres of clear-cutting out of a total 139-acre harvest area and extensive winter operations, despite the area’s known geologic instability, risk of landslides, and unpredictable weather. Key concerns include:

• Increased sedimentation into feeder streams and the North Fork Mattole, endangering aquatic life.

• Loss of old-growth trees with little to no clarity on size or age limitations, or post-harvest conditions.

• Use of herbicides on steep, erosion-prone terrain.

• Winter road construction and the use of heavy equipment heighten the risks of runoff and slope failure.

• A clear-cut adjacent to a previous large clear-cut, raising serious questions about cumulative impacts and slope stability.

• Climate impacts: By SPI’s estimate, this THP will release 892.56 metric tonnes of CO₂ into the atmosphere—nearly a quarter of the plan’s total emissions (3,719 metric tonnes) over the next 100 years. Clear-cutting forests releases carbon, undermining climate resilience when we should be protecting and expanding carbon-storing old forests.

Please help us advocate for a more sustainable, climate-resilient forestry approach—one that avoids clear-cutting, protects streams, and enhances forest resilience through selective harvests and the retention of older trees.

📅 Deadline to comment: June 12 ✍️

Submit comments to: CAL FIRE Santa Rosa Review Team at SantaRosaPublicComment@fire.ca.gov

INCLUDE 1-25-00027-HUM IN THE SUBJECT LINE

Please see below for a sample comment you can submit. Personalizing this message adds more impact.

Let’s stand up for the health of our forests, water, and wildlife!

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Subject: Comment on THP 1-25-00027-HUM "Wooly"

Dear CAL FIRE Santa Rosa Review Team,

I am writing to oppose the Wooly Timber Harvest Plan (THP 1-25-00027-HUM). This plan proposes clear-cutting and winter operations in one of the most geologically unstable areas of the North Fork Mattole watershed—an ecosystem already under stress from erosion, sedimentation, and climate change.

Clear-cutting removes the forest canopy and root systems that stabilize soil and regulate water cycles. In steep, landslide-prone terrain like this, clear-cutting is especially harmful—it accelerates erosion, increases runoff, and delivers fine sediment into streams. These impacts reduce water quality, raise stream temperatures, and threaten habitat for salmon and other aquatic species.

The proposed winter construction and use of heavy equipment further heighten these risks. Storm events in the Mattole are increasingly intense and unpredictable, making erosion control nearly impossible during the wet season.

In addition, the plan allows for the likely use of herbicides—substances that can contaminate water, harm native plant communities, and pose risks to human and animal health. Herbicide use to suppress vegetation after clearcuts only adds to the chemical burden on this sensitive watershed.

Also alarming is the climate impact. According to Sierra Pacific Industries’ estimates, this project will release approximately 892.56 metric tonnes of CO₂ into the atmosphere over the next 100 years—nearly a quarter of the total emissions attributed to the plan. While SPI argues that some carbon is stored in wood products or landfills, this release of atmospheric carbon is entirely at odds with California’s climate goals and the need to protect existing forests as carbon sinks.

I urge you to reject this plan and require forest management that maintains canopy cover, supports natural regeneration, and protects water quality. The Mattole watershed deserves restorative forestry, not extractive practices that jeopardize its long-term health.

Sincerely, 

[Your Name] [Your City or Zip Code]