Defenders of Wildlife Blog

It’s music to our ears. A team of documentary filmmakers–on behalf of the acoustic guitar industry–is advocating for stronger protections of ancient, or old-growth, trees in Alaska’s Tongass National Forest.

Nearly every acoustic guitar, the filmmakers said, started as a seedling in this coastal temperate rainforest–the largest of its kind in the world. Luthiers fashion guitars out of old Sitka spruce trees. But logging of the species–mainly to meet construction demand overseas–has reached a fever pitch and threatens to wipe out guitar-quality Sitka spruce in less than a decade, they said.

Related: Court protects 2.3 million acres of old-growth forests.

Lynx depend on old-growth forests for survival.

“Trees that can reach up to 1,000 years old and twice the height of the Statue of Liberty should be protected and not made into door frames,” they said in an email statement. “The process of making acoustic guitars has remained unchanged for hundreds of years, but a critical shortage of ‘musicwood’ from over-logged forests threatens to silence the industry.”

Get Involved: Learn how you can support the “Musicwood” documentary.

We’re big music fans here at Defenders, but it’s wildlife and wild places that we care most about. Imperiled wildlife, like the lynx, depend on old-growth forests for survival.

These ancient forests and habitats need our help. And we are encouraged to see folks from the acoustic guitar industry join the chorus of voices calling for stronger protections for old-growth forest.

Learn more about what Defenders is doing to protect wildlife in national forests.

A coalition of 120 California organizations has sent a letter to the Obama administration, criticizing a proposal for new national forest-planning rules.

Listen to the Public News Service report:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

The San Juan National forest is one of 155 national forests nationwide that will be affected by the new policy.

The “Our Forests Our Future California” coalition calls the proposal a big step backwards. Ryan Henson, senior conservation director for one of the member groups, the California Wilderness Coalition, says the proposal doesn’t do enough to protect the most precious resources in California’s forests: water and wildlife. He says the new rule would weaken strong standards already in place.

“It says things like the decision-makers shall ‘consider’ the best available science. ‘Consider’ could be glancing at it or it could be convening a panel of scientists. So, it really falls down in the specific elements that could achieve its lofty goals.”

The forest-planning rule also lacks clear standards of protection for watersheds such as a minimum size of buffer zones for streams, Henson says, and doesn’t require local forest managers to maintain viable populations of all wildlife.

The forest-planning rule also lacks clear standards of protection for watersheds such as a minimum size of buffer zones for streams, Henson says, and doesn’t require local forest managers to maintain viable populations of all wildlife.

Henson says most of California’s water comes from national forest land, which is why the precious resource needs greater protections.

“When adequate protective buffers aren’t in place around streams, inadequate water quality goals laid out in these national forests plans – all of that can affect our drinking water.”

About a quarter of the national forest land in California is still in a wild, fairly undisturbed state, Henson says, and yet is unprotected. The coalition wants to ensure the new forest-planning rules provide that protection.

– Lori Abbot, Public News Service – CA

View this story on the Public News Service RSS site and access an audio version of this and other stories.

Learn more about the new forest rule on the Defenders website.

Juniper Springs, Ocala National Forest, Fla.

BREAKING: Amid pointed questions from conservation organizations, the Obama administration is hosting a series of public meetings beginning in Washington, D.C. today to explain and respond to questions over its recently released draft plan for managing national forests and grasslands.

Conservation groups are concerned that the Obama administration’s draft rule ignores scientific recommendations it has received on wildlife diversity protection and misses key opportunities to advance wildlife conservation on national forests by making longstanding requirements that the Forest Service maintain wildlife populations largely optional.

The following is a statement from Rodger Schlickeisen, president and CEO of Defenders of Wildlife:

“President Obama holds the future of our nation’s forests and wildlife heritage in his hands as his administration crafts the new rule governing national forest policy. His administration has an opportunity to lead us into a new century of forest management. Unfortunately, in its present form, the draft rule promises much more than it delivers, leaving the future of wildlife on 193 million acres of land belonging to the American people mostly up to chance.

President Obama holds the future of our nation’s forests and wildlife heritage in his hands as his administration crafts the new rule governing national forest policy. His administration has an opportunity to lead us into a new century of forest management.

Defenders of Wildlife President Rodger Schlickeisen

“Our nation’s forests and grasslands today provide us with clean air, fresh drinking water, abundant recreational opportunities and strong economies. To ensure these vital benefits continue, the Forest Service needs a clear directive to protect, monitor and conserve our nation’s water, wildlife and lands. This must not be left to chance. The draft rule is long on vision but short on establishing clear duties to fulfill that vision. We believe that the Obama administration wants to leave a strong conservation legacy, but this draft rule won’t do that. We will work with the administration to fix the problems in the draft rule so that the final rule hopefully delivers on its promise.”

Background:

The Obama administration announced the draft National Forest Management Act regulations last month, outlining how the U.S. Forest Service will manage 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands—a land area as big as Texas. For the next several weeks, the agency is seeking public input on its proposed plan.

The new policy comes after a decade-long legal dispute between conservation organizations and the federal government over regulations originally drafted during the Bush administration, which were widely viewed as a timber industry wish list. The Bush administration’s proposals were overturned twice by the courts, providing the Obama administration with the opportunity to craft forest planning rules that will ensure national forests and national grasslands continue to provide the many benefits Americans enjoy from them.

Learn more about Obama’s forest planning regulations.

Our national forests can provide vital habitat for endangered animals like lynx. Unfortunately, a new decision by the Obama administration would roll back forest protections that have been in place since the 1980s.

For lynx and other wildlife, it could be a forest foreclosure—one that denies these mysterious forest creatures and other wildlife the habitat protections they need to survive.

In an outrageous move, the Obama administration has proposed a new plan for our national forests, setting aside vital measures that have protected the homes of lynx and other imperiled wildlife since the days when Ronald Reagan was president.

Don’t let President Obama turn back the clock for our wildlife. Urge federal officials to stand up for wildlife protections in our national forests.

Plenty is at stake. The U.S. Forest Service manages 175 national forests and grasslands spread across 190 million acres in 42 states and Puerto Rico.

These magnificent landscapes support diverse ecosystems and an incredible array of fish, wildlife and plants including iconic animals such as lynx, antelope, bison, bighorn sheep, elk and cutthroat trout. In all, our national forests provide habitat for more than 5,000 species of fish and wildlife and more than 10,000 plant species.

Our national forests are worth protecting. The deadline for submitting public comments on the Obama forest plan is May 16th.

Take action now to speak out for these special places and save something wild.

The proposed plan would:

• Roll back existing safeguards for wildlife conservation and no longer require the Forest Service to maintain healthy and sustainable fish and wildlife populations for every species in our national forests;
• Leave the decision of whether or not to maintain healthy, viable populations of many imperiled wildlife species at the discretion of individual forest managers, leaving the fate of hundreds of species uncertain; and
• Allow individual forest managers the discretion to “give up” on protecting many needy species without facing accountability to the public.

Our national forests are the inheritance of our children and grandchildren. Please take action now to protect these special places… and the wildlife that calls them home.

Photo credit: U.S. Forest Service

Completing a 4,500-mile journey from a national forest in Wyoming to the lawn of the U.S. Capitol, the Capitol Christmas Tree will be lit tonight.

Some holiday cheer may at last come to Congress, heralded in by the lighting of the Capitol Christmas Tree this evening.

Each year since 1969, the U.S. Forest Service has combed some 155 national forests across the country in search of just the right tree to festoon the lawn of our nation’s Capitol.

This year’s 67-foot-tall tannenbaum hails from the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming, which, in addition to blue-ribbon Christmas trees, is home to moose, elk, bison, eagles and hundreds of other species of wondrous wildlife.

The forest also protects “thousands of miles of unspoiled rivers and streams” and offers thousands of miles of trails and roads — providing countless opportunities for outdoor recreation, according to the Forest Service’s website.

Want A Tree Of Your Own?

National forests are public lands that belong to all Americans. We use them for everything from habitat conservation for wildlife, to hiking, biking, mining, logging, and yes, Christmas tree harvesting.

Contact your local ranger station for information on how to harvest a tree of your own and where to obtain permits.

What Defenders Is Doing

Defenders blogger Caitlin Leutwiler shows some holiday cheer at our national headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Defenders decorates a modest tree each December, but all year long we’ve been working to secure protections for wildlife on our nation’s forests and grasslands.

In the new year, the Obama administration will create sweeping new policies that govern how our national forests will be managed for decades to come.

We’re urging President Obama to …

• Protect Fish and Wildlife – by using sound science to safeguard our natural heritage and conserve healthy fish and wildlife populations and habitats.

• Preserve Water and Watersheds – by protecting and restoring streams, rivers and watersheds, guarantying safe, clean water for people and wildlife alike.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be asking for your help, too. So in the meantime, learn more about Defenders’ work on national forest management.