In Brief: Since 1994, the Northwest Forest Plan has protected 24 million acres of public land from relentless clearcut logging practices. But now, the Bush administration is systematically weakening this management framework.

Assault on Northwest Forests
The Bush administration is currently engaged in a systematic effort to weaken the legal framework that conserves what is left of the magnificent old growth forests that once dominated the Northwest. Since 1994, the Northwest Forest Plan has governed the management of 24 million acres of public land in Washington, Oregon, and northern California. The Plan was a revolutionary change from the relentless clearcut logging that had long dominated the landscape. It shifted the focus away from pure timber production toward a more scientifically based ecosystem approach. Now, the Plan is being eroded by the Bush administration through a combination of low profile regulatory changes and secretive litigation settlements with the timber industry.

Learn more about the origins of the Northwest Forest Plan

Components of the Northwest Forest Plans
The Northwest Forest Plan has multiple elements.

It created forest reserves where destructive activities such as logging and roadbuilding are limited
It included an Aquatic Conservation Strategy (ACS) for salmon and other species that live in rivers and streams
It implemented a Survey and Manage program to protect lesser-known old-growth species that often depend on forestland outside the Plan's designated reserves

Learn more about the components of the Northwest Forest Plan

Dismantling the Plan's Environmental Protections
In late 2002, Earthjustice exposed the timber industry's goal of tripling logging in Northwest. To succeed, the industry demanded that the Bush administration remove existing protections for salmon, clean water, and old-growth forests. The timber industry groups outlined five needs:

Weaken the Aquatic Conservation Strategy
Weaken northern spotted owl Endangered Species Act protections
Weaken marbled murrelet Endangered Species Act protections
Eliminate the Survey and Manage program
Weaken ecosystem and species protections on 2.2 million acres of Bureau of Land Management land

Learn more about the timber industry's plans to dismantle the Northwest Forest Plan

Bush Administration Accedes to Industry Demands
The Bush administration has fully acceded to the industry's wish list.

In March 2004, the administration completed an overhaul the Aquatic Conservation Strategy that could fundamentally alter its protections.
In January 2003, the administration settled friendly industry lawsuits involving spotted owls and marbled murrelets, pledging to review their current status.
In March 2002, the administration settled an industry lawsuit involving the Survey and Manage program that proposes reverting to optional protections.
In August 2003, the administration settled a 1994 industry suit in order to re-interpret environmental protections for Bureau of Land Management forests in western Oregon.

Learn more about the administration's effort to undermine forest protections

Altogether, the timber industry has directed a major attempt to rewrite the Northwest Forest Plan. Moreover, it now has the people in place to continue down this path. If the administration continues down its present path, it could mean a return to the destructive logging practices that imperiled the salmon and wildlife of the Northwest and brought about the "Timber Wars" of the 1980s.

Earthjustice is committed to fighting these efforts wherever it can. Check our website for updates related to this assault on our ancient forests.