Guest Opinion: The Real Triple Crown of Economic, FireFighting, and Environmental Benefits
By Dominick A. DellaSala and Rick Martinson
Senator Ron Wyden's (D-OR) recently introduced "Timber Innovation for Building Rural Communities Act" claims to "build[s] much-needed federal support for that triple crown of economic, firefighting, and environmental goals." We find it ill-advised to promote logging on federal lands that nearly pushed rural communities and ecosystems to the brink of collapse decades ago.
Senator Wyden uses charged language like "working forests" that is code for timber production. Older (unlogged) forests actually do much more "work" by purifying our drinking water, keeping temperatures from overheating further and providing unmatched recreation now driving much of the region's economic diversification. Promoting "manufactured wood products," also would dump massive amounts of carbon into the atmosphere at a time when we need to be cutting emissions, especially in forestry.
The bill would benefit from an independent audit by top Oregon climate researchers to lower its carbon and environmental costs. Specifically, when an older forest is cut down, nearly all the carbon captured in centuries-old trees becomes atmospheric carbon pollution. Only a tiny fraction is stored in wood products that at best last a few decades before ending up in landfills. Logging emissions typically exceed those from natural disturbances, including wildfires.
Carbon from logging is emitted when tree debris left in clearcuts decays along with fossil fuels needed to haul logs, milling, manufacturing and product distribution. Planting tiny seedlings does not make up for this massive carbon debt. Yet, the bill is silent on protecting our older forests that are some of the most carbon dense on the planet. The carbon benefits of wood as a substitute for other energy-intensive construction materials also have been grossly exaggerated and burning logging debris and whole trees for energy production is as bad as coal.
The Senator's approach to fighting fires with more logging also needs to change. Densely packed small trees in clearcuts and logging slash act as kindling for fires that spread fast and furious during extreme fire weather (hot, dry, windy). Thinning forests over vast areas will not work as climate change increasingly spins out pyro-tornadoes and hurricane force winds that combine with drought-induced, parched vegetation to override "fuel treatments" in the wildlands.
Prudent fire risk reduction involves reforming forestry practices that are producing flammable landscapes in the first place rather than blaming a lack of "fuels reduction" on older forests that typically burn in lower fire intensities. It also means treating private lands that are a much bigger threat of uncontrolled fires spilling over into urban areas than public lands. And it means preparing communities via home hardening and defensible space.
The 1993 Northwest Forest Plan wisely reduced logging levels on federal lands with the added benefit of shifting logged forests from a source of carbon pollution to storing vast amounts of carbon in forests as they age. Achieving the triple crown should mean supporting rural economic diversification, promoting real community wildfire protection and protecting older forests as natural climate solutions. That direction is desperately needed in Oregon and globally to solve the climate crisis.
—Dominick A. DellaSala, Ph.D, Chief Scientist, Wild Heritage, is an award-winning scientist with over 300 peer-reviewed papers and nine co-authored books, and served on the Oregon governor's task force on forest carbon; Rick Martinson, Ph.D, is Executive Director and Wildlife Ecologist for Worthy Environmental in Bend.
Bend-La Pine Superintendent should resign or support all communities
The violence Hamas committed against Israeli civilians is abhorrent. The ethnic cleansing, possible genocide, Israel is committing against Palestinian civilians is abhorrent. Why did the Bend-La Pine superintendent write a letter supporting one ethnic group while completing ignoring what is happening to a different ethnic group? Palestinians have lived under an apartheid regime since 1967, earlier by some accounts. Many Palestinians live in open air prisons with access to food, water, shelter and medical care controlled by Israel's whims, not the needs of innocent civilians. Why didn't the superintendent mention any of this? Is it because Palestinians are Arab? Why did the Superintendent not mention that areas Israel told Palestinians to go to for their own safety are now being bombed, including hospitals. Innocent people, including nearly 1,000 Palestinian children have died. Why does Bend-La Pine Schools not stand with these Palestinians, and all Arabs to ensure they feel, in the words of the superintendent "safe, respected and valued within our educational environment?"
How is it appropriate for the Superintendent to mention school policies about nondiscrimination while releasing a statement that is clearly discriminatory? And really, why release a statement at all? Support ALL those being killed - Israelis, Palestinians, Arabs, Blacks, Latinos, Whites. Everyone.
With a statement like the one penned by the superintendent, we do not believe you should be in any position of power with sway over a single child, let alone an entire district. Please resign, or the board needs to do what is right, condemn this statement of bigotry and remove you from your position.
Did the superintendent release a statement supporting Ukrainian lives at the start of the Russian Invasion (either of Crimea or the more recent one of eastern part of the county)? Is one released for the daily state violence eradicating black people in the United States?
—Jade & Alex Sharpe
Happy Birthday, Kenzie
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KENZIE!
*if this gets printed, I treat you to a Dutch bros drive through adventure <3 *
Kenzie knows how to be a close, kind, unassuming, compassionate FRIEND.
We each moved to Bend in the summer of 2021, discovered each other at the Lake Street Dive concert, and we agreed to go on a friend adventure to Smith Rock.
Our friendship has become a great source living, loving, laughing... and so much plan, dance, explore, hang, and support! Doing this weird adult life with each other every day in this little adorable corner of the world reshaped how I think of "home."
I love you, Kenzie. And I cherish our two-year friendship, and honor this birth with all the love in my heart.
Happy Birthday Zi!
—Natasha Cheeley
Letter of the Week:
Natasha – Treat her to whatever you wish, but you also get a gift card to Palate for writing the Letter of the Week. Thanks for valuing connection and friendship!
—Nicole Vulcan
