Happy New Year!
2014 will be a hugely important year for the future of the Tillamook and Clatsop State Forests. It’s possible that, by the end of the year, the Board of Forestry will have a new Forest Management Plan to consider implementing in Northwest Oregon. The process that will dictate what an alternative plan looks like currently revolves around a stakeholder group that includes two of our Coalition leaders. However, later in the year, we will call on you to ensure that the Board understands that conservation values need to be improved in any new plan. There will be important opportunities to testify before the Board and provide public comments to the Department of Forestry as soon as this February, so if you don’t yet receive North Coast State Forest Coalition action alerts, sign up here!
Along with crucial advocacy opportunities, we welcome you to join us as we explore, document, and promote the newly classified High Value Conservation Areas on the North Coast. These areas feature wildlife and fish habitat and some of the rare older-growth left in these State Forests. Unfortunately, though the Board of Forestry approved these areas in June of 2013, the Department of Forestry has done nothing to promote these commitments, despite direction from the Board to make the areas visible.
There are 11 large terrestrial habitat conservation areas to explore and we will begin outings on Saturday, January 18th at the Miami Terrestrial Anchor. Maps of all the HVCAs can be found here and you can find out about all of our outings here.
Last summer, a group explored the Bastard Creek area and had a blast. Consider joining us in the forest this year as we continue our effort to protect these threatened lands!
