With a few critical tweaks, Senator Wyden’s legislation could be a net gain for the conservation of nature for the benefit of this and future generations. Without those tweaks, the bill as drafted is an existential threat to the conservation of federal public lands and should not be enacted into law.

The Forest Service has announced it is going to be proposing new regulations to address the “climate resilience” of the National Forest System. We can hope these will include the conservation and restoration of mature and old-growth forests and trees.

Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said it of pornography, but he could have applied the thought to old-growth forests as well: “I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced . . . but I know it when I see it.”

The nation’s largest land manager is proposing a new “conservation” rule that might result in improved land management but more likely will serve as a shield for the agency to continue to degrade public lands at the expense of this and future generations.

This is the third of a three-post examination of forests in the American East. Part 1 diagnosed an “environmental generational amnesia” that makes people think it is okay to not have real (old-growth) forests and to tolerate, if not facilitate, massive and repeated clear-cutting and/or deforestation in the name of creating “early successional habitat” for species of wildlife that we need not be concerned about. Part 2 shed light on a conspiracy of self-interested timber companies, misguided public land foresters, misinformed wildlife biologists, and Kool-Aid-drinking conservationists. This Part 3 suggests ways to partially—but significantly—bring back the magnificent old-growth forests that have long been lost.

This is the second of a three-post examination of forests in the American East. Part 1 diagnosed an “environmental generational amnesia” that makes people think it is okay to not have real (old-growth) forests and to tolerate, if not facilitate, massive and repeated clear-cutting and/or deforestation in the name of creating “early successional habitat” for species of wildlife that we need not be concerned about. This Part 2 sheds light on a conspiracy of self-interested timber companies, misguided public land foresters, misinformed wildlife biologists, and Kool-Aid-drinking conservationists. Part 3 will suggest ways to partially—but significantly—bring back the magnificent old-growth forests that have long been lost.

This is the first of a three-post examination of forests in the American East. Part 1 diagnoses an “environmental generational amnesia” that makes people think it is okay to not have real (old-growth) forests and to tolerate, if not facilitate, massive and repeated clear-cutting and/or deforestation in the name of creating “early successional habitat” for species of wildlife that we need not be concerned about. Part 2 will shed light on a conspiracy of self-interested timber companies, misguided public land foresters, misinformed wildlife biologists, and Kool-Aid-drinking conservationists. Part 3 will suggest ways to partially—but significantly—bring back the magnificent old-growth forests that have long been lost.

This is the second of a two-post exploration of the stage of forest succession that occurs after a stand-replacing event and before the canopy again closes and dominates the site. Part 1 discussed why preforests are valuable, if undervalued. Part 2 addresses management of preforests to preserve their ecological value.

This is the first of a two-post exploration of the stage of forest succession that occurs after a stand-replacing event and before the canopy again closes and dominates the site. In Part 1, we discuss why preforests are valuable, if undervalued. In Part 2, we will address management of preforests to preserve their ecological value.

Understanding the history of public lands is useful if one is to be the best advocate for the conservation of public lands.

This is the second part of a two-part tribute to Dave Foreman, who recently shuffled off this mortal coil. Part 1 recounted Dave’s contribution to stopping the infamous Bald Mountain Road, a dagger into the heart of the Kalmiopsis wildlands in southwestern Oregon. Part 2 is my take on Dave’s unique contributions to the conservation and restoration of nature.

This is the first part of a two-part tribute to Dave Foreman, who recently shuffled off this mortal coil. Part 1 recounts Dave’s contribution to stopping the infamous Bald Mountain Road, a dagger into the heart of the Kalmiopsis wildlands in southwestern Oregon. Part 2 is my take on Dave’s unique contributions to the conservation and restoration of nature.

While some states have more forested BLM land than does Oregon, in terms of biomass (think lots of big trees) Oregon’s BLM lands are likely more carbon-rich than all of the others combined.

Increasing criticism of the National Environmental Policy Act and other federal and state regulations is coming from those who want to protect the environment by rapidly decarbonizing society.

It turns out that state forests are not held in trust for the financial benefit of certain timber-addicted counties.

This third try may be the charm in Senator Wyden’s long effort to enact public lands legislation to conserve wildlands in the Owyhee and lower Malheur Basins in Oregon.

For President Biden to ensure that 30 percent of the nation’s lands and waters are conserved by 2030, as he promised, the pace and scale of protections needs to increase dramatically.

Blumenauer’s bill would open up Mount Hood National Forest to new logging loopholes.

We don’t have to despoil the environment and view off the shore of Oregon to produce carbon-free electricity.

“It’s a home ignition problem, not a wildfire control problem.” —Jack Cohen, USDA Forest Service fire scientist