Spring has arrived in the Northwest California forests, leaving only the glorious high country blanketed in the winter’s snow. The change in seasons brings with it the threat of increased logging in the wild forests of Trinity County. You see, as the snow retreats to the alpine reaches of the Trinity wild country, the billionaire timber baron Red Emmerson is firing up his Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) clearcutting machinery. Roads are being built now as a part of SPI’s summer plans to log some of the last old growth refuges of the Northern Spotted Owl. EPIC needs your help to stop this corporate dinosaur from destroying some of the very last wild forests in Trinity County.
We have been developing a strong case, and earlier this year, EPIC formally notified SPI of our intent to file a lawsuit against the company under the Federal Endangered Species Act for illegally harming Northern Spotted Owls. We have great confidence in our case, as we have spent the winter pouring over hundreds of pages of timber harvest plans, scores of maps, and all of the most contemporary science related to the Northern Spotted Owl. After all that work, we know with certainty that this summer is of critical importance for the survival of the Northern Spotted Owl, and many other sensitive wildlife species, from SPI’s destructive logging plans.
EPIC is taking SPI to federal court because the State of California is unable and unwilling to hold SPI accountable for their destructive activities. Instead of making efforts to reform SPI’s clearcutting, and bring them into the 21st century, Governor Jerry Brown’s Administration has been promoting some inexcusable give-aways to SPI. Hidden away in Governor Brown’s state budget revision is a change in existing law that promises to save the billionaire Red Emmerson, and SPI, millions of dollars, as well as extend logging permits and reduce the public’s opportunity for review of logging plans.
We need your help to hold SPI accountable for their destructive and unsustainable practices. We know that everyone wants to be a part of EPIC’s work to protect the unique wildlife and forests of Northern California. Become a part of this innovative, and industry changing, initiative to defend threatened species and stop SPI from clearcutting Northern Spotted Owl habitat.
Our members and supporters know that EPIC is a small yet power-packed organization. With partners we have just prevailed over Caltrans in our challenge to their ill-advised highway development project in Richardson Grove State Park. This is yet another David versus Goliath legal battle that EPIC has won to the benefit of rare and precious natural resources. With your support we can take on the behemoth corportations that threaten our wild heritage and the long-term integrity of the bioregion that we call home. We are on the verge of bringing SPI to justice, and with your help we can do it right!
Please donate today to our Northern Spotted Owl Self-Defense Fund and we will protect some of the last unprotected wild forests of the Trinity from SPI’s clearcutting.
Thank you very much for your support and dedication, the team at EPIC treasures working closely with all of our members and supporters, as we are all the guardians of our Wild California!
For the wild,
Gary Graham Hughes
P.S. EPIC has been fighting for more than twenty-five years to win protections for Northern Spotted Owls using an integrated, science-based approach, combining public education, citizen advocacy and strategic litigation. With your support now we can help the Northern Spotted Owl defend its home from the destructive logging of SPI. Please make a generous gift today and share this appeal with your friends