NW Forest Plan Listening Session in Okanogan

NW Forest Plan Listening Session in Okanogan

Conservation Northwest / Jun 10, 2015 / Forest Field Program, National Forests, Northwest Forest Plan

WILD NW action alert #247: June 11th meeting for input on the Northwest Forest Plan

Can you attend a meeting at the Okanogan PUD tomorrow, June 11th from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. to support Washington’s public forests?

The U.S. Forest Service is beginning a public conversation on updating the Northwest Forest Plan. This comprehensive plan is vital for protecting national forests in the Pacific Northwest, as well as the rich habitat they provide for countless fish and wildlife. It also lays out sensible regulations and forestry opportunities for timber companies and local economies.

The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest will host a Listening Session in Okanogan, Washington on June 11, 2015, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. at the Okanogan County PUD Auditorium, 1331 2nd Ave North, Okanogan, WA 98840.

Logging and natural resource extraction interests are already planning on packing this Forest Plan listening session. It’s important that conservation-minded organizations and citizens from the local area attend as well.

If you can make it, please share the following points with Forest Service staff:

  • National Forest management should focus on sound ecological objectives, like forest resilience and wildlife conservation, while still providing commercial and economic benefits as a by-product.
  • National Forest management should be guided by the best available scientific information, including conservation biology as well as ecology and silviculture.
  • When managed for forest resilience, National Forests help ease the impacts of climate change, providing refuge areas for species to weather changing conditions.
  • Our federal forests aren’t just there to provide revenue for corporations. They provide vital habitat for wildlife including endangered wolverines, marbled murrelets and spotted owls, as well conserving old growth trees, cold, clean water and our shared natural heritage.

For more information and talking points on the Northwest Forest Plan update, please see our website. We hope to see you in Okanogan tomorrow night!