Fanning the Flames of Wildfire Hysteria

“Forest Biomass” from Public Lands

Forests born in fire

FISHLAKE NAT’L FOREST UTAH

SISKIYOU NAT’L FOREST OREGON

B. Campbell

Firewise.org

Firesafe home measures 35-200 feet around home:

1) Pruning low-hanging dead tree limbs

2) Clearing flammable vegetation (grass, blackberries, etc)

3) Moving combustibles away from home (woodpiles, fuel tanks)

4) Replacing shake roof with metal

5) Available water source6) Proper signage, access

and turnaround space for fire vehicles

7) Screens on vents

Firewise home project in rural OR

BEFORE AFTER

HEALTHY FOREST RESTORATION ACT (HFRA), 2003

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

The purposes of this Act are—

(1) to reduce wildfire risk to communities

HFRA logging old growth

WILLAMETTE NAT’L FOREST, OR(ON CHOPPING BLOCK 2009)

BITTERROOT NAT’L FOREST, MT 2006

How does this “reduce wildfire risk to communities?”

BITTERROOT NAT’L FORESTMONTANA

MIDDLE EAST FORK HFRA

4 MILES FROM NEAREST HOME

Matthew Koehler, Wildwest.org

“Fuels reduction” for rainforest & biggest trees in the world?SEQUOIA NAT’L MONUMENT

OAKRIDGE THINNING & FUELS REDUCTION PROJECT

WILLAMETTE NAT’L FOREST, OREGON

Sequoiaforestkeeper.org

HFRA = Biomass

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

The purposes of this Act are—

(2) to authorize grant programs to improve the commercial value of forest biomass (that otherwise contributes to the risk of catastrophic fire or insect or disease infestation) for producing electric energy, useful heat, transportation fuel, and petroleum based product substitutes, and for other commercial purposes;

Forest Biomass = GREENWASH

Using Forest Residues Reduces Soil Carbon Stock

— The use of harvest residues for energy production decreases soil carbon stocks. These changes in soil carbon stocks are remarkable compared to the other greenhouse gas emissions caused by the use of forest residues for energy. On a national scale, soil carbon stocks play an important role in forest carbon balances.

-ScienceDaily, 2008

Taxpayer $$$ for forest biomass

The US Forest Service has awarded $1.2 million as a one-time grant…involving the use of woody biomass. -2007

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY INVEST $18.4 MILLION IN SUPPORT OF BIOMASS ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS-2008

AGRICULTURE SECRETARY SCHAFER AWARDS MORE THAN $4.1 MILLION FOR USE IN WOOD BIOMASS DEVELOPMENT-2008

$50 million of Forest Service’s $1.15 billion stimulus payoff can go to “wood to energy grants to support the increased use of biomass” on forest land.-2009

$10 million of stimulus for “hazardous fuels reduction” across 8 Oregon counties. “Biomass would be used to reduce non-renewable energy consumption.”-2009

Obstacles to the forest biomass industry

FOREST BIOMASS INDUSTRY NEEDS PUBLIC LANDS!!!

“Obtaining a consistent supply of woody biomass from federal lands is one of the primary impediments to developing a biomass utilization sector.”

-Sustainable Northwest(pro-biomass group out of Portland, OR)

Forest Biomass in Oregon

“The bulk of potentially available forest biomass is located on federal lands in Oregon. However federal lands account for little of the forest biomass supply currently utilized.”

- State of Oregon Forest Biomass Working Group

“Instilling” urgency?

“A sense of urgency for the work outlined by the Forest Biomass Working Group to reduce un-natural fuel buildups must be instilled.”

-State of Oregon Forest Biomass Working Group

US Forest Service:Fanning the Flames

“The geographic scope of the fire-fuels problem is enormous, with estimates exceeding 180 million acres of Federal lands at risk from unusually severefires.”

“Reducing wildfire hazard is now the Forest Service’s top priority.”

-US Forest Service

Oh, Smokey…not again!

OREGON CHAINSAWMASSACRE

“These biomass projects will boost economic fortunes, fire safety and environmental protection across Oregon’s forests and forest communities,” said Wyden.

-wyden.senate.gov, 2005

S. 536 would amend the Clean Air Act to classify “forest biomass” from federal lands as “renewable biomass.” 

Artist rendition of Senator Wyden

Forest biomass

=Pandora’s

box

“Expanding the market for woody biomass could lead to adverse ecological consequences if the demand for woody biomass leads to excessive thinning.”

-U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), 2005

The Science on “Thinning”

THE WATERSHED IMPACTS OF

FOREST TREATMENTS TO REDUCE FUELS AND

MODIFY FIRE BEHAVIOR

BY JONATHAN J. RHODES

prepared for PACIFIC RIVERS COUNCIL

2007

“Fuels reduction” thinning means:

-Elevated road use…roads are typically the single largest source of elevated erosion in forested watersheds.

-Accelerated topsoil erosion through thecombined impacts of soil compaction andremoval of soil cover.

-Soil damage from intensive thinning is likely to be as great as or greater than that from conventional logging.

-The loss of topsoil is irreversible within human timescales; associated reductions in soil productivity are essentially permanent.

What about the communities?

Roads to ruin

“The amount of sediment delivered from forests with roads can be more than 300 times greater than from undisturbed forest land.”

-Morrison, 1975

“Roads can contribute 50 to 80% of the sediment that enters streams .”

-Haans et al., 1986

Protect & Preserve:Save America’s Forests Act

The largest, most comprehensive forest protection & restoration legislation ever considered by Congress.

Would ban logging in “last core areas of forest biodiversity,” ie: ancient forests, roadless areas, riparian zones, and over 100 other “specially named” forest areas.

Endorsed by over 600 eminent scientists including E.O. Wilson and Jane Goodall.

In 2000, nearly ¼ of Congress cosponsored bill: 135 Representatives and 6 Senators.

saveamericasforests.org

Solution

Orville Camp’s Natural

Selection

“Ecostry” Camp ForestSelma, Oregon

Eco Advocates (Cascadia’s Ecosystem Advocates)

eco-advocates.org

info@eco-advocates.org

(541) 344-6017

Volunteer co-directors:

Samantha ChirilloJosh SchlossbergShannon Wilson