Logging and the Spotted Owl

The recent ruling to allow logging on several thousand acres of old-growth forest in western Oregon was portrayed in the national media as a blow to environmentalists, but the action may not prove so damaging in the end. While the ruling permits logging on 13 of the 44 sites that were under consideration by the so-called God Squad, logging was ruled out on the rest of the sites. Even where logging was allowed, strong conditions were added, mainly that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which owns the land, finally come up with long-term plans that will aid in the owl’s survival. Also, in spite of its name, the God Squad’s decisions are not final, but can be appealed to the Court of Appeals, which the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund (SCLDF) has now done.

But the main reason that the approved sales have not yet occurred is that they are held up by two court injunctions won by the SCLDF. Interestingly, it was evidence presented at the God Squad hearings by federal agencies opposing the sales that has strengthened the hand of environmentalists in court, according to Andrew Stahl, Staff Forester for the SCLDF. The EPA and the Department of Fish and Wildlife both opposed the BLM at the hearings.