Today, Governor Kate Brown announced a historic agreement between conservation groups and timber companies that represents an important first step in a process that will see the most significant update of Oregon’s Forest Practices Act in decades. This agreement, formalized as a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the timber industry and major conservation groups, should deliver significant benefits for Oregon’s …
The Salmon Coast
The Olympic Peninsula is home to some of the last great places for wild salmon and steelhead in the Lower 48. Of course, it’s the wild steelhead that draw many of us to the OP. But it’s also the huge trees and beautiful brawling rivers that make the OP a destination for fish and anglers alike. While much of …
Big WIN for sportsmen on the Elliott State Forest
On Tuesday, May 10, sportsmen and women won a huge victory when the Oregon State Land Board voted unanimously to keep the Elliott State Forest in public hands. The 80,000 acre Elliott is a popular area of public lands with high habitat and sporting values for salmon, steelhead and trout, deer, elk and other game species. The land board …
What does the Antiquities Act have to do with steelhead?
A seemingly innocuous little law passed in 1906 has become highly controversial in recent years. The Antiquities Act, signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt, was a response to an escalating problem of looting of archeological and geologic resources and empowers the president to designate to significant historic, cultural, and scientific features as national monuments. The Antiquities Act has …
Better buffers mean healthier steelhead
Last week, the Oregon Board of Forestry met to consider stream buffers as they revise a rule that would determine how close timber can be harvested when next to a stream or river. The riparian rule as it’s called, stands to impact thousands of miles of water in Oregon and as such, important populations of steelhead. Increased buffers improve shade, recruit large …