Mature Humans Stand up for mature forests again!

For Immediate Release: Elders Disrupt DNR “Doc Holliday” Timber Sale

This morning, eight elder Western Washington residents delivered a letter to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), taking responsibility for having removed all the flagging from Unit 5 of the "Doc Holliday” timber sale in Clallam County on Saturday.The eight range in age from 58 to 84, and the parcel is steep, complex, and without trails. They collected the "timber sale boundary" signs as well as the flagging, and returned these to DNR as well. 

The individuals, four Clallam residents and four members of a climate-focused Western Washington group called Troublemakers, say that they decided to do this because DNR continues to log older forests that are essential to the climate, and to biodiversity. DNR has failed to update its policies to respond to science from the last ten years that reveals incontrovertibly that Western Washington forests are the most carbon-absorbing in the world, and that older forests (also known as “legacy” forests) absorb far more carbon than younger ones. Legacy forests are forests that were logged once, pre-WW2, and allowed to grow back as natural forest (rather than as same-age, single-species plantations). Additionally, DNR has failed to adhere to its own rules, and is not leaving anywhere near enough older forest to meet its own goal of 10-15% old growth in each Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) area. Currently, DNR has set aside only 5% of the Straits Planning Unit portfolio that includes Doc Holliday; unless it possesses a time machine, DNR cannot meet its old growth goals except by maintaining all existing legacy forest in that unit.

Furthermore, logging is one of the state’s largest sources of emissions. The durable wood products made from a forest that has been logged represent only about 15% of the carbon that was in the forest; the rest is emitted immediately (if burned) or over time (if left to rot). This doesn’t even take into consideration the soil carbon (estimated at 51% of the carbon in the forest, and devastated by heavy machinery), nor the opportunity cost of the carbon that would have been absorbed by these older trees—at the peak of their absorption—had they been allowed to grow.

The activists say we simply cannot afford to let this destruction continue.

"With these pink ribbons and timber boundary placards, we're demanding a voice in how our mature forests are managed," says Peter Stedman of Port Angeles, 68 and a retired scrapyard worker.

"By disrupting the sale of this parcel, we can open up the chance for a different outcome," adds Keith Dekker of Port Angeles, 70 and a semi-retired self-employed landscaper. "It's not unreasonable to expect DNR to comply with its own policies! Once these forests are cut down, we lose so much—tree farms are in no way equivalent to legacy forests."

"It's such a beautiful and richly diverse place," points out Lisa Dekker of Port Angeles, 72 and a retired fundraiser. "Knowing that these older trees are supremely efficient at carbon capture, I believe DNR must protect all of the 15 legacy forest parcels currently on the chopping block in Clallam County.  If our actions help avoid this tragedy and increase awareness, it's well worth the effort."

"I grew up on a dairy farm in Clallam County and have known loggers and millworkers since my youth," says Tim Wheeler of Sequim, 84 and a retired journalist. "I know the value of lumber and paper. Yet legacy forests are ten times more valuable: storing CO2, producing oxygen, cooling our overheated planet. The new jobs in Clallam County must be tending and extending these forests, not cutting them down."

Margo Polley of North Bend, 72 and a retired City of Seattle worker, adds, "I just hope our actions saved this small piece of 100+ year-old legacy forest. We need to protect all of  them that we can...for what they do, yes, but also for their stunning, soul-restoring beauty."

This was at least the third time that people protesting DNR's legacy forest policies have traveled to Olympia and tried to meet with Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz. Each time, she has refused to meet them.