For Immediate Release:
10-15-97
Conservationists applauded the Siskiyou National Forest today for
agreeing to buy back the five remaining units of the controversial China
Left timber sale in the headwaters of the Sucker Creek watershed in
southwest Oregon. Siskiyou Supervisor Mike Lunn stated that China Left,
located in a Key Watershed for anadromous fish conservation, was withdrawn
due to its' unacceptable damage to salmon habitat.
Awarded to Rough and Ready lumber in 1995, the majority of the sale
had already been clearcut but these five units were delayed for
consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service and were the only
ones within a Late Successional Reserve. China Left was included in the
infamous 318 rider "from hell" which exempted numerous roadless area and
Old Growth sales from judicial review, prompting massive direct action in
1996 and 1997 to prevent the further destruction of prime Old Growth
habitat in the Klamath Siskiyou bioregion.
Marty Bergoffen, staff attorney for the Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands
Center (KSWC) said " the Siskiyou is moving in the right direction, now
we'd like to see protection of all quality forest habitat in the Klamath
Siskiyou. Conservation biologists have determined that these roadless and
wild forests are critical to the survival of threatened forest dependent
species." Spencer Lennard, conservation director of KSWC stated "we
encourage all land management agencies to follow the lead of the Siskiyou
by suspending all logging of roadless and native forests in the region.
It's becoming increasingly clear that further logging in areas like China
Left irreparably damage watersheds and should not be tolerated."
Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Center
POB 332 Williams OR 97544
541-846-9273