Over the past few weeks, EPIC has worked to protect wolves in California, stood up to big timber companies, advocated for the Wild and Scenic rivers and endangered species, protected Northern Spotted Owls, opposed the Bay Delta Conservation Plan, requested amendments to groundwater legislation, and worked to protect water quality on timber lands. The documents below are a sample of our efforts to protect the wildlife, forests and watersheds of the North Coast. Several of these documents are the product of larger groups that we work with to develop coalition letters, and other documents are original works produced by EPIC staff. We hope that sharing these works with our readers will bring an awareness of some of the issues that we are addressing to protect the environment that we are rooted in.
EPIC Comments Regarding “Scorpion King” and “Boomer.” These two THPs are proposed by Sierra Pacific Industries and would result in take of Northern Spotted Owls as a result of the cumulative effects of multiple harvest entries over a short time.
Environmental Water Caucus Comment Letter on the 40,000 page Bay Delta Conservation Plan and EIR/EIS. This 259 page comment letter was developed by a coalition of water and conservation advocacy groups including EPIC. The letter outlines environmental impacts to endangered species populations, rivers, the San Joaquin Delta and to the state’s overall water supply.
EPIC Motion for Stay filed with the State Water Resources Control Board. The motion requests a stay of the effect of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board’s approval of a property-wide forest operations Waste Discharge Requirement permit (WDR) order for Green Diamond property back in 2012. The motion for stay is in response to the State Board’s failure to address a petition to review the Regional Board’s approval of the order that EPIC filed in 2012.
HR 4272 Opposition Letter. The Forest Access in Rural Communities Act would modify motor vehicle use on public lands, which would tie the hands of Forest Service managers across the country who work to protect public safety, recreational experiences, and endangers protections for drinking water resources, wildlife and forest resources.
Northern California Prescribed Fire Council letter of support for AB2465. The bill would officially recognize the benefits of prescribed fire in California’s fire-adapted landscapes and facilitate new levels of professionalism for private lands burners throughout the state.
Letters to Senator Pavley and Assemblyman Anthony Rendon requesting amendments to ground water legislation to address the impact that groundwater extraction can have on California’s streams.
Letter of opposition for four House of Representatives bills that would damage the Endangered Species Act. These bills “would undermine the essential protections of the Endangered Species Act by obstructing the development and use of scientific research, squandering agency resources and chilling citizen enforcement.”