The Sierra Forest Voice
Web Edition
Vol. 3, No. 2 September 10, 2009
Ninth Circuit Rules
It is by now common knowledge that the 2004 Framework was designed to increase Forest Service revenue by allowing the commercial logging of large, fire-resilient trees. Last summer, Sierra Forest Legacy scored a huge victory when a panel of judges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Forest Service's failure to consider any alternative mechanism for raising revenue likely violated the National Environmental Policy Act. As a result, the Ninth Circuit halted big-tree logging that was scheduled to take place on more than 1000 acres in the Plumas National Forest.
On August 13, 2009, the Ninth Circuit issued a new opinion authored by Judge Raymond Fisher that reaffirms and clarifies its decision from last year. The new opinion confirms not only that the Forest Service broke the law when it adopted the 2004 Framework, but also that logging big trees under the 2004 Framework "does nothing in itself to prevent forest fires, because large trees make poor fuel." Accordingly, the new opinion sends the case back to the district court in Sacramento to decide whether the 2004 Framework should be set aside and the Clinton-era 2001 Framework reinstated. In reaching this decision, the Ninth Circuit reminded the district court that Legacy has never sought to stop the Forest Service from removing small diameter trees to reduce the risk of wildfire, but rather seeks only to prevent the commercial logging of large trees.
It is gratifying after these many years of working to restore the Framework decision to see the skill in which the judges broke through the smokescreen surrounding the issues. Since 2001, the Forest Service has failed to implement, to any significant measure, the visionary, award winning 2001 Plan that took years to complete and which was totally embraced by the Clinton-era Forest Service. Instead, the agency has spent untold time and money fighting and wrangling to impose a return to the proven failures of the past logging heydays, prodded by logging lobbyists and a political ideology opposed to the very idea of environmental protection. The outdated model which is overly dependent on logging receipts would damage the last remaining habitat for imperiled species, and further degrade marginal habitats while failing to restore and preserve the public's resources. We cannot afford such missteps in light of global warming and increasing pressures upon the fragile ecosystems that hold our Sierran watersheds together. While the Forest Service tried to promote the 2001 Framework as a "no action" plan, the appellate court was not impressed by such antics.
Judge Noonan, in concurrence with Judge Fisher's opinion, added pithy commentary to the opinion. Here's an excerpt:
"The financial incentive of the Forest Service in implementing the forest plan is as operative, as tangible, and as troublesome as it would be if instead of an impartial agency decision the agency was the paid accomplice of the loggers.... the Forest Service's own regulation requires that the Forest Service 'objectively evaluate all reasonable alternatives.' 40 C.F.R. § 1502.14(a) (2000). Can an agency which has announced its strong financial interest in the outcome proceed objectively? Could an umpire call balls and strikes objectively if he were paid for the strikes he called?"
Read the court opinion, and more.
Owen's Valley Pupfish
by Darça Morgan, Conservation Biologist
Aldo Leopold said the curse of a biologist is that everywhere you go you see a broken world. I certainly see what he means, but the blessing of being a biologist, or simply an attentive observer, is that we recognize the tremendous beauty in unlikely places. When we spot a rare species or magnificence in the curve of a tree or a river, we witness complexity of form, seemingly boundless diversity and simplicity all at once. I found some of that magic in a tiny spring fed pool in the Owen's Valley. Ground zero for water diversion in the American West, I returned there to visit petroglyphs I stumbled upon in high school, but found a lot more.
The ancient and brightly colored Owen's pupfish lives one dry season away from extinction. I happened upon their tiny refuge, not much bigger than a bathtub, one hot day in June. A spring in the high desert is a precarious place for a rare fish to make a living. I was awed by their oasis framed by the eastern Sierra crest. I watched the pupfish quietly dart here and there, flashing turquoise. What a treat it was to get to see these brilliant and delicate creatures who live no where else in the world and have continued to persist since the Pleistocene. I only hope they can stick around so that others get this chance to marvel at them.
The precarious existence of a fish in a tiny spring is easy to comprehend. The great gray owl or Pacific fisher also persist in isolated populations, in their meadow and old forest sanctuaries surrounded by landscapes of highways and tree farms. They live a similar life to a pupfish in the desert. I am thankful for the opportunity to protect these creatures and give them every chance to persist in this human dominated landscape. Everyone has this opportunity but not all see the need.
Ed Pister, the biologist who guarded the Owen's pupfish wrote in his essay on the experience, Species in a Bucket, said:
"Having spent much of the past two decades responding to the cynical question: 'What good are they? I have made use of an effective counter query: What good are you?"
Leopold's answer was: "To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering."
To read Ed Pister's amazing story of how he saved the Owen's pupfish go to: Owen's Valley Pupfish
Photo (L): Owen's Valley Pupfish and (R) Habitat
Alternatives to Pile Burning Can Provide Multiple Benefits to Homeowners
by Karina Silvas, Firewise Communities Program Coordinator
Recently, I attended the Foresthill Fire Safe Council meeting to talk about continuing Firewise within the district. At the end of our meeting a volunteer from the local cemetery in Foresthill spoke about getting fined for pile burning without a permit from the Placer County Air Quality Control District-when the volunteers had gone to the local fire department for a permit to burn. This came as a shock to all of the Fire Safe Council board members, and upon further inspection of this issue, we found that cemeteries are not classified under the jurisdiction of the Air Quality Control Districts specifically. Cemeteries are not considered residential, so this means that they needed to get a permit directly from the Air Quality Control Board and were fined for not having the proper permit.
Pile burning is an effective management tool for removing unwanted fuels from a property, and is heavily utilized throughout the Sierra Nevada. However, pile burning does not mimic how fire would naturally occur in our forests. Piles burn with greater intensity and severity, often leaving the soil directly below the piles sterile. When leaves and needles fall to the ground, nature does not waste these materials. Although decomposition times can vary depending on the local climate, as these materials decompose they restock the soil with nutrients and make up the spongy part of the forest floor called the humus. The humus absorbs and holds rainfall, and helps reduce erosion. This fallen leaf litter also provides food to very important soil organisms that are vital to ecosystem health.
After pondering the benefits that leaves and needles provide to our environment, I thought, "What are the alternatives to reducing the fire hazards associated with accumulated leaves and needles while using these beneficial resources?" After conducting some research, I found two alternatives that are feasible for the average homeowner.
Alternative 1: Taking all your leaves and needles to the dump is a feasible option, but depending on where you live it can also be a hefty chunk of change that you spend in order to reduce the surface fuels on your property. Disposal fees can range $6.00-$8.00/yard of green waste. Green waste consists of yard clippings such as: grass clippings, leaves and needles, and trimmings from bushes, trees, or other yard vegetation. Now, depending on the size of your property this may be out of the question for you.
Alternative 2: Leaves are very important for holding nutrients, and can be a great money saver for you if utilized around your home. According to the website compostguide.com, one large shade tree can be worth as much as $50.00 of plant food and humus. With Californians being more focused on becoming "green" and lessening our carbon footprint, what better way than adding leaf mulch to your everyday composting routine. This option may be a bit more labor intensive, but not only are you being green, you are also burning calories by collecting your leaves. The American Council of Fitness and Nutrition stated that raking leaves for 30 minutes you can burn up to 150 calories. After collecting all your leaves you can add them to your garden as mulch of compost them, and in both cases it is best to shred them first to allow for better and faster decomposition.
You may enjoy learning more at Home Composting Made Easy on the web for a step-by-step guide on the benefits of backyard composting. Also, the Environmental Protection Agency has a great program, GreenScapes, that provides efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for managing yard trimmings. Check it out here.
Firewise Days
by David Jaramillo
For the past several years, Sierra Forest Legacy has been working hard to educate residents in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) about the realities of fire threats. By using the Firewise Communities/USA program we have been able to work with several communities in the Sierra Nevada to help address and mitigate those threats. We always try to emphasize that residential collaboration is a major component to how successful a community will be when challenged by a wildfire. One of the several requirements required to obtain national Firewise Communities/USA recognition is to hold an annual Firewise event. These events can be whatever the community desires as long as they are focused on fire mitigation and/or education. Recently I was able to help organize and attend a Firewise event for the Banner Mountain Homeowner Association (HOA).
Banner Mountain is located on a heavily forested ridge above historic Nevada City. The threat of wildfire is real in this mountain community. The fire regime here has been severely altered by logging, large amounts of mining, fire suppression and development. In addition, the false sense of security coming in the form of a CalFire air base leaves many residents thinking that their risks are not what they may seem. A wildfire burning on this mountain would put thousands of people, homes, and the environment at risk.
In 2008 the Banner Mountain HOA was introduced to the Firewise program and decided to utilize it as a means to educate community members on the risks associated with living in a fire adapted ecosystem. With the help of Sierra Forest Legacy, the local Fire Safe Council and several fire agencies the HOA began the process of assessing the wildfire threats and organizing themselves around wildfire issues. This year, the HOA decided to put on a community education day. They wanted community members to have fun and gather some basic information. In order to accomplish this, the education day came in the form of a BBQ.
For several months prior to the event, we began the planning process for what would be a very exciting and educational day. On May 30, 2009 the many hours of planning came to fruition. Gathering in a historic lodge, members of the community listened to several speakers, including myself and Dr. Steve Quarles from the University of California Cooperative Extension. Presentation topics included fire ecology, home ignition sources, and a newly formed chipper program for members of the HOA. The highlight of the day was the camaraderie associated with the BBQ and a live fire demonstration put on by Dr. Steve Quarles.
As the grill sizzled, people gathered while Steve explained the fire demonstration. In this particular demonstration Steve shows how firebrands can land on decks and fences, leading to home ignitions.
Photo (L) Steve Quarles fire demonstration
Moments later the first signs of fire gathered even more onlookers. As the flames got bigger Steve did a great job answering the many questions presented to him. With several stopwatches around his neck, Steve timed how long it took for each firebrand to penetrate a wall or deck. The demonstration was a great success and helped explain the process by which most houses ignite during a wildfire - by firebrands.
Overall, the community collaboration associated with this event made it a success. It was fun and a great example of communities working together to mitigate the many risks associated with wildfire. This is just one small example of a movement that is sweeping across the country as more than 470 communities have come together to address this common problem that we face in the WUI....wildfire. For more information on how you can get involved to help your community obtain national Firewise recognition, visit Legacy's website, or contact Karina Silvas or myself at: info@sierraforestlegacy.org.
Farewell to David E.
One of Sierra Forest Legacy's most faithful champions and star attorney, David Edelson, has moved on to lead the California-Nevada offices of The Wilderness Society. David will continue to be a valued partner in the quest for science-based management in the Sierra and elsewhere. We congratulate David and TWS, as we know that his skills will be put to great purpose and his move will strengthen our mutual efforts to restore the Sierra Nevada's national forests.
David was a part of the Legacy team going back over twenty years to the earliest days of the California Ancient Forest Campaign, when he was an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Counsel. As a key member of Legacy's core team of conservation staff and consultants David's tenacious commitment to a successful conservation outcome for the Sierra Nevada will long be remembered by those who worked with him. He taught us much about the law, legal writing, and he significantly sharpened our thinking on difficult policy issues over the years. David's high standards have helped Sierra Forest Legacy establish a professional presence in all phases of our work. Good luck, David, in your new role with TWS and many more years of successful collaboration on conservation projects in California.
--The SFL Team
Species Profile: Pacific Fisher
The Pacific fisher (scientific name, Martes pennanti) in the Sierra Nevada of California is now limited to a small isolated population in the Southern Sierra Nevada, in Yosemite National Park and in the Kings River area. The wide ranging fisher prefers mature and old-growth forests with high canopy cover, and dens in rotting logs, hollow trees, and rocky crevices of old growth forests.
They are specialized animals that frequently travel along waterways and rest in or on live trees, snags, or logs with cavities. These characteristics are usually only found in large, undisturbed tracts of old forest.
Fishers use cavities in living and dead conifers and hardwoods (particularly California black oak--Quercus kelloggii) as daily refuges, and tend to select the largest individual trees in dense canopy stands.
Individual trees are rarely used repeatedly as rest structures consistently from night to night, so many different large trees are required. This behavior makes the presence of sufficient resting habitat critical to fisher conservation.
Fisher habitat in the southern Sierra Nevada is restricted to a relatively narrow band of mesic mid-elevation forests, mostly on the western slope of the range, where older stands of mixed conifers, sequoia, or ponderosa pine tend to intermix with montane hardwoods such as black oak.
Threats to the fisher include loss of habitat caused by logging and development, poaching, predation, small population size and population isolation. In 2004, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that the west coast distinct population segment of the fisher "may be at significant risk of extinction" and that protection under the Endangered Species Act is "warranted," but that listing the species was held back due to lack of funding.
Quick facts:
- Light brown to dark blackish brown
- Size range from 29-47 inches long
- Fishers have a long bushy tail
- Closest relative is the (also) rare pine marten
- Diet includes small mammals, birds, reptiles, fruits, and insects
- Elevational range in California from 3500 to 8000 feet
- Estimated home range 50-150 square miles
- This species is highly imperiled
Read more on our website.
News Bytes from the Front
~Mill Closures on Capital Public Radio's program, "Insight"
August 12, 2009
David Edelson recently represented the voice of the conservation community, in a discussion on the recent mill closures on KXJZ, Capital Public Radio in Sacramento. Other voices on the program included Sierra Pacific Industry spokesperson Mark Pawlicki, Sierra Business Council president Steve Frisch, and El Dorado County Supervisor Ray Nutting.
While all the participants seemed to be in agreement that the forests of the state need to be actively managed to reduce fire hazard, David did remind the panel that logging the biggest trees and remaining old growth in our state's forests is not part of the solution.
You can listen to an archive of the program here.
~ Hope on the Horizon for Our National Forests
In addition to Legacy's Ninth Circuit court victory highlighted above, there are even more reasons to be feeling optimistic about the future of our national forests. Our nation's bedrock environmental laws aren't going away. Here's a summary, in case you missed some of the news:
- NFMA Preserved
On June 30, federal judge Claudia Wilken of the Northern District in Oakland ruled that the 2008 Bush administration's re-write of regulations implementing the 1976 National Forest Management Act were illegal. Citing violations of NEPA's (the National Environmental Policy Act) requirements to analyze the environmental impacts of the rule change, and violations of the Endangered Species Act, the court vacated the forest planning rule and remanded it back to the USDA.
Read more on this topic, on the NFMA pages here on Legacy's website.
- Roadless Rule Preserved
On August 6, a panel of federal judges from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco judge ruled in favor of re-instating the 2001 "Roadless Rule."
In his opinion, Judge Robert Beezer wrote that the Bush plan for the nation's remaining pristine roadless areas "had the effect of permanently repealing uniform, nationwide, substantive protections that were afforded to inventoried roadless areas, and replacing them with a regime of the type the agency had rejected as inadequate a few years earlier. Such a substantial regulatory change is neither routine nor merely procedural."
"Similarly, the USDA's determination that no consultation was required under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act was arbitrary and capricious, as the permanent removal of the protections afforded under the Roadless Rule may affect federally listed species and their critical habitats."
- Speech by Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack
Also hope-inspiring was the speech given by new Secretary of USDA Tom Vilsack in Seattle on August 14. Referring to the the Roadless Rule court decision, Vilsack said, "I view this is as a very, very positive development, yet the Forest Service is still subjected to a court injunction from a Wyoming district court judge in the tenth circuit in joining the Forest Service from implementing the 2001 rule. Let me be clear. We will seek to lift that injunction in light of the ninth circuit's decision. And if the courts remain conflicted, or it's not possible to protect roadless areas through the courts, we will initiate a new rule making process to do so."
Two days later, on August 16, the Department of Justice under new leadership filed its own appeal of the Wyoming district court's 2003 decision enjoining the Roadless Rule.
~Forest Plan Revisions
Look for future information from Legacy as we await a decision from the Forest Service as to whether they will utilize the original 1982 forest planning regs or adopt the 2000 regs (which they had previously deemed impossible to implement)...or choose to develop yet another set of regulations for implementing the landmark 1976 act. Read more about the history of the NFMA planning rule in the December 2008 Sierra Voice Newsletter.
~Global Warming Updates
Don't forget to check our website regularly for the latest reports and science research papers relevant to global warming and the forests of the Sierra Nevada.
Sierra Forest Legacy Bookshelf
Here's what we've been reading lately-- you might enjoy these, too.
Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Douglas L. Tallamy. Timber Press 2009. 360 p.
This new edition volume of a classic is loaded with statistics and stories that will inspire you to plant more native species (or leave them to grow) instead of planting non-native landscapes. His arguments are well documented with research. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in broadening their understanding of ecology and natural history.
Dr. Tallamy is Professor and Chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware.
Read an excerpt here.
The Future of Nature: Writing on a Human Ecology (the World as Home)
Selected essays from Orion Magazine, Edited by Barry Lopez. Milkweed Editions. 2007. 408 p.
This contribution to the nature writing genre is "[R]equired reading for those interested in a livable future...From local economies to our genetic heritage, and from environmental refugees to the nature of education, this essential book is both a compendium of the finest writing in Orion and a crucial guidebook for the twenty-first century activist.” --from Milkweed website, www.milkweed.org
The collection contains a total of 31 essays by outstanding nature writers such as Wendell Berry, Rebecca Solnit, David Orr, Barry Lopez, Van Jones, Bill McKibben and more. On the Milkweed Editions website, there’s also an excellent downloadable 41 page study guide for teachers (and for the rest of us). Each selection contains study questions for further exploration and a list of related and highly recommended reading references, many of them available for free on the web.
Help Protect Our Sierra Nevada Forests
The work we do to protect the forests, with all of their unique and rare plants and animals, and the many wild places of the Range of Light cannot be done without the generosity of our supporters. Please help us to keep up our efforts. You can make a safe and secure donation from this website. Thanks to all who have so generously supported our work - together we form a multitude of voices. Join us in saying, "Si, se puede" on behalf of the wild forests of the Sierra Nevada.
"A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it does otherwise."
~Aldo Leopold