Long Draw Sale Threatens Unprotected Wilderness in Washington
11/12/97
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Headline: Long Draw Sale Threatens Unprotected Wilderness in Washington
Source: Steve Holmer
Campaign Coordinator
Western Ancient Forest Campaign
1025 Vermont Ave. NW 3rd Floor
Washington, D.C. 20005
202/879-3188
202/879-3189 fax
wafcdc@igc.org
Date: 11/12/97
(Okanogan, WA) The Okanogan National Forest recently released an
environmental impact statement for the Long Draw timber sale. This
project will bulldoze 22.5 (12.5 new and 10 reconstructed) miles of
road, and log 1,063 acres of the unprotected Pasayten wilderness area.
The Long Draw timber sale includes portions of the Long Swamp and
Long Draw roadless areas. At 100,000 acres in size, these roadless
areas, also known as "The Meadows," comprise the largest unprotected
wilderness in Washington state.
A high elevation forest consisting of a series of wetland complexes that
are covered in snow for half of the year, the Long Swamp/Draw
roadless area is home to the largest population of lynx known to exist
in the lower 48 states. The lynx is a candidate species for listing under
the endangered species act.
Long Draw timber sale will impact four Lynx Management Units and a
Grizzly Bear Recovery Area. This sale is likely to adversely affect
grizzly bears and may adversely affect gray wolves, wolverine, fisher,
and marten.
This sale contains clearcut units much larger in size than allowed by the
Forest Plan. In fact, it requires a special Forest Plan Amendment to
even allow for the sale! Publicly, the Forest Service claims the sale
will log only dead and dying trees, yet the EIS identifies that most of
the timber to be cut is green and healthy.
Chief of the Forest Service, Mike Dombeck, said in February that in
order for the Forest Service to rebuild its credibility with the American
public it needed to refrain from logging in old growth and roadless
areas. Here we have yet another example of the same old Forest
Service policy of log the wilderness no matter what the public says or
the environmental risks.
It is clearly past time the Administration got involved and stopped
this Forest Service project before another pristine wilderness is
destroyed. Please call the following officials and urge them to
cancel the Long Draw sale:
Chief Michael Dombeck, U.S. Forest Service, 202-205-1661;
FAX: 202-205-1765
Katie McGinty, Council on Environmental Quality,
202-456-6224; FAX: 202-456-2710
For more information please contact Tim Coleman, Kettle Range
Conservation Group, 509/775-2667, tcoleman@televar.com
Steve Holmer
Campaign Coordinator
Western Ancient Forest Campaign
1025 Vermont Ave. NW 3rd Floor
Washington, D.C. 20005
202/879-3188
202/879-3189 fax
wafcdc@igc.org