Logging "exemptions" - a burgeoning crisis. Over a million acres in logging projects - with no public notice, no environmental review, and no waiting!
On August 30, 1993, Louisiana Pacific filed an "exemption" to do "salvage" logging on 1,380 acres of timberland directly upstream from the Elk town wells, near Greenwood Creek, in Mendocino County. On Sept.16, the Greenwood Watershed Association, and the Elk Water District obtained a restraining order from Superior Court Judge James Luther, halting the logging project. Attorney Susan Brandt-Hawley has asked the court to rule on the applicability of CEQA to Forest Practice Act (FPA) "exemptions." This lawsuit represents the first legal challenge to "exemption" logging in California.
"Exemptions" require no public notice, no waiting period, no public or agency review, and no timber harvest plan (THP). There is no limit on the acreage that can be "exempted." Well over a million acres are under "exemption" in the state, with single "exemptions" as large as 69,025 acres. Each "exemption" is good for one year. All the forester has to do is drop 2 pieces of paper in the mail Ñ a one page form and a map. There is no approval process. Often, the operation is over before the California Department of Forestry (CDF) knows about it. The potential for abuse is staggering.
"Exemptions" allow the timber owner to remove 10% of the volume per acre, in "dead, dying, diseased or downed" trees (as judged by the private forester), and can be accompanied by extensive road clearing. By declaring an "emergency," the owner can take even more timber. "Exemptions" and "emergencies" are exempt from the timber harvest plan process. There is no provision for cumulative impacts assessment. (See Forest Practice Rules, #1038 and #1052.)
5,974 "exemption" and 900 "emergency" papers have been filed in the state so far this year Ñ more than double that of last year. 78,647 acres of timberland have been "exempted" in Mendocino County. 65,202 of those acres belong to L-P. CDF admits that it cannot adequately monitor these operations. WE REPEAT: THERE IS NO ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND NO PUBLIC NOTICE.
Questions to contemplate and to ask CDF
Why is the timber industry turning to "exemption" logging? Is it because their forest holdings are so depleted that they have nothing else to log? Why are they avoiding the THP process? What are they hiding? What is going on in these huge areas of "exempted" forestland?
How can a logging project on 69,000-plus acres, even "salvage" logging, be considered insignificant, as to impacts on the environment? How can such a huge project be "exempt" from public notice, and all other environmental safeguards?
Why is there so much damaged timber on corporate forest holdings? Could it be related to the way they have logged these lands? In Elk, the area of greatest blowdown from the Feb. '93 storm (the L-P forester's claimed "emergency") occurred in an area that was heavily logged in 1990. There is an obvious connection between the blowdown and the prior logging.
What is a "dead, dying or diseased" tree, and what is its usefulness to the forest and to wild life?
What You Can Do:
1. CONTACT your local CDF office immediately and request copies of all "exemption" and "emergency" filings on watersheds of concern. On large acreages, insist that a THP be required, for cumulative effects assessment. Insist that CDF and other agencies monitor the operation.
2. Write to the State Board of Forestry (B of F) (1416 - 9th St., Sacramento, 95814). Insist that the B of F put the issue of the larger "exemptions" as well as three-acre exemptions on their agenda, and adopt stringent rules, including:
a) Public notice of all "exemption" and "emergency" filings.
b) A 30-day waiting period, except for special emergencies declared by the Director.
c) Requiring a Timber Harvest Plan (THP) on anything over 10 acres.
d) Prohibiting "exemptions" upstream from private or public beneficial uses of water, or in watersheds with threatened or endangered fisheries (require a THP).
e) Prohibiting any removal of timber in the Water and Lake Protection Zones without a THP.
f) Prohibiting "exemptions" near endangered species habitat (require a THP).
California Board of Forestry Tel.: (916) 653-8007. Fax: (916) 653-0989. Address: 1416 9th St., Sacramento, CA 95814.
3. WRITE OR CALL Richard Wilson, CDF Director, and insist that he immediately issue an administrative order requiring that all "exemptions" and "emergencies" appear on public THP notification lists before operations begin. Richard Wilson, Director, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Tel.: (916) 653-7772. Fax: (916) 327-7744. Address: 1416 9th St., Sacramento, CA 95814.
4. WRITE to the Greenwood Watershed Association, describing your inquiries of CDF, and any verifiable facts indicating administrative failure by CDF, abuse of the forest, or violations of the rules, on "exemption" or "emergency" projects. "Exemptions" and "emergencies" are supposed to follow Forest Practice Rules, and have special rules of their own (see FP Rule #1038 and #1052). Your facts may aid the lawsuit. Write to: Greenwood Watershed Association, P.O. Box 106, Elk, CA 95432.
5. SUPPORT the Elk "exemption" lawsuit. Elk is a tiny town of 250 people on the north coast. The lawsuit is designed to address the larger issues, but Elk can't carry the cost by itself. SEND DONATIONS TO: Greenwood Watershed Association, P.O. Box 106, Elk, CA 95432. Contact Mary Pjerrou: (707) 877-3405. (Donations to G.W.A. are tax-deductible.)
6. SUPPORT the Mendocino Environmental Center. The MEC is doing vital research and organizing for the "exemption" lawsuit, and is helping to publicize the issue and fundraise for it. SEND DONATIONS TO: Mendocino Environmental Center, 106 West Standley, Ukiah, CA 95482. Contact Betty Ball: (707) 468-1660. (Donations to MEC are not tax-deductible.)
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2004
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited