In May, Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley introduced S. 1262. This matters to Southern Oregon because it expands the Wild Rogue Wilderness by 60,000-acres and creates a 98,000-acre recreation area adjacent to the existing Wild Rogue Wilderness Area (maps available here). These public lands are near several communities that have been identified as being at high…
The alternating sunny warm weather interspersed with soaking rains has made for the most prodigious crop of grass and brush on the landscape that I have seen in decades. Coupled with that, the signs from the flora and fauna are that summer is coming early and will be long and very hot! The combination of…
Anna Yarbrough, a forester, contributed the following article in light of a proposed tax increase in the Oregon Legislature. We appreciate her willingness to allow us to publish the following, which first appeared on her Facebook page: First, let me preface this by saying I come from a family of educators and I 100% support…
Please join the editor of Scorched: Wildfires The New Normal Hell NO™ for a Clean Air Rally – Saturday, June 1, 2019 Medford, Oregon Click here to download flyer Another Summer of Smoke is Inevitable! Your Voice Must Be Heard – It’s Time To March! The State of Oregon MUST act – Our Lives Depend…
by Steve Kariainen: HFHC Great Lakes Director The following is taken from a newspaper op-ed entitled, “Earth Day – A Day to Celebrate Forestry!” that I wrote a couple years ago while doing some work for Forest Resources Association: Earth Day – an event celebrated worldwide each year on April 22nd – has its roots…
Jacob Steensen is a forester of Coos Bay, Ore. He allowed us to share this perspective on the recent closure of a mill in his community. With the closure of Georgia Pacific’s mill in Coos Bay Oregon, many Coos County residents and employees are asking “Why?”. The reasons for the closure provided by leadership at…
Rachel Lee Hall previously contributed her Forest Under Stress research here. Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities thanks her again for allowing us to share this follow-up to her work: I am a long time resident of Oregon and a citizens advocate for forest policy change from passive forest management (management by nature or hands-off) to active…
Last year, the U.S. Congress passed legislation to end the practice of “fire borrowing,” where the U.S. Forest Service “borrows” money from forest management accounts to pay for escalating wildfire suppression costs. Yet this “fix” doesn’t take effect until 2020, and the Forest Service was forced borrow $720 million in 2018. Congress needs to pass…
by Steve Kariainen: HFHC Great Lakes Director Montana’s Bruce Vincent likes to remind us, “The world is run by those who show up!” Margaret Mead is famous for saying, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” A small group…
A Democratic Governor in a deep-blue state made headlines in declaring a state of emergency ahead of this year’s wildfire season. As part of the declaration, California Gov. Gavin Newsom moved to ease state regulations to expedite targeted forest management projects to help protect communities from wildfire. We’ve long supported similar reforms in Congress to…