Kelsey Whisky Timber Sale Marked For Cutting

James Hetfield, 15.03.2004 11:40

The 46,600 acre Zane Grey roadless area, near the Wild Rogue Wilderness, just above the Rogue River, is now marked for logging.

The Medford BLM has spray-painted a few old-growth trees orange within the Kelsey Whisky timber sale. These orange-marked "leave" trees will be all thats left in the proposed clearcuts.

Through the Kelsey Whisky timber sale the BLM hopes to log over 1,700 acres of old-growth forests, 500 acres of which will be clearcut. All 1,700 acres currently provide critical habitat (as designated by the US Fish and Wildlife Service) for the threatened Northern Spotted Owl.

Kelsey Whisky is located within the 46,600 acre Zane Grey roadless area. Named after famed adventure writer Zane Grey, this wild landscape is surrently a haven for owls, bears, voles, salmon and steelhead.

The Medford BLM timber planners intend to sell-off the marked units in a timber auction in late May. In response to 140 pubic comments, and the requests of Representative DeFazio and Senator Wyden to protect these soectacular old-growth forests, the BLM actually increased the amount of old-growth forests to be clearcut. Neither endangered species or public opinion matter to an agency that is addicted to old-growth clearcutting.

The future is unwritten.

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Finding the Leave Trees 15.03.2004 - 13:45 Finding the leave trees in the photo (or the units) can be challenging, and fun. Kinda like Where's Waldo. In this photo look for orange bands near the base of the tree. There are two leave trees in the photo. Can you find them? This game is appropriate for ages 4 and up. As is forest defense. Cliff Burton> Kelsey Whisky Hike on Sundays 15.03.2004 - 16:45 Hike the old-growth forests threatened by the kelsey-whisky timber sale. Every Sunday, carpools Meet at evo's java house in Ashland, 9am, leave at 9:15. Hikes will return around 6pm. guy randori> And while you're out there hiking...... 28.03.2004 - 16:31 Notice that Unit 6-2 of this magnificent forest contains trees banded with pink flagging. This is not the work of the feds, but of the Norhtwest Ecosystem Survey Team (NEST). NESTers found ~19 red tree vole nests in the canopy of this unit last fall, and reported these findings, along with physical evidence and GPS coordinates, to the Medford BLM. Each tree containing an active vole nest must, by law, be protected with a ten acre buffer. See for yourself the blatant disregard for the law, and more importantly, for life that is evident in this unit's markings. Then do something about it! tree monkey>