FOREST ALERT
MOTHER LODE CHAPTER OF THE SIERRA CLUB
circa June 20, 1997
IT'S YOUR LAND. . .
But Representative Vic Fazio (D-CA) has cosponsored legislation in Congress that requires the U.S. Forest Service to manage 2.5 million acres of public forest land in the northern Sierra Nevada according to an experimental plan proposed by the Sierra Pacific logging company and a handful of people in or near Quincy, CA.
They're called the Quincy Library Group, and their experimental plan requires the Forest Service to log 70,000 acres of public forests every year to provide mills owned by Sierra Pacific-- the largest timber company in the state-- with cheap, taxpayer-subsidized timber.
The Quincy Library Group claims that their experimental plan will reduce fire danger in the Sierra's northern forests, but no environmental study has been conducted to determine whether their plan will be effective.
No public hearings have been held concerning the Quincy Library Group plan. No public comments have been solicited. The experimental plan is being pushed through Congress depsite the fact that these public forest lands belong to all Americans, not just a small group of people living in or near Quincy.
There are other problems with the Quincy Library Group bill. It provides no assurance that the Quincy plan will comply with the nation's environmental laws and regulations. It guarantees no protection for the northern Sierra's ancient forests, roadless areas, water quality of other sensitive resources. It will cost the federal taxpayers millions of dollars to implement.
At stake are public forest lands ranging from the town of Truckee to north of Lassen Volcanic National Park. The Quincy Library Group experiment encompasses the vast Feather River watershed, which supplies millions of Californians with drinking water. The plan also affects the last remaining habitat in the Sierra Nevada for the endangered spring run chinook salmon and important tracts of the Sierra's few remaining ancient forests.
The Quincy Library Group claims its plan represents consensus, but most local, regional and national conservation organizations oppose the bill. The Quincy plan also ignores the most recent scientific study of the Sierra which identifies ancient forests that should be protected from logging and recognizes that logging has increased fire danger in the mountain range more than any other human activity.
Ironically, the Forest Service has offered to administratively implement the Quincy Library Group experiment on a more limited basis than the program mandated by the bill. But the Quincy Library Group will accept no compromise and is pursuing Congressional approval of their experiment.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Write a letter today to Rep. Vic Fazio [addresses, etc.] Urge Rep. Fazio to withdraw his support for HR 858 the so-called "Quincy Library Group" bill. Be sure to mention the following points:
The bill's experimental plan affects too much public land and costs too much to implement -- all without any environmental studies, public hearings, or public input.
The bill does not assure compliance with the nation's environmental laws and provides no legislative protection for ancient forests, roadless areas, water quality, or other sensitive resources.
The Quincy Library Group's plan should only be implemented on a limited basis over a smaller area as a controlled experiment -- not as a legislative mandate for the public forest lands in the northern Sierra Nevada.
In addition, a letter to Senator Dianne Feinstein is needed urging her to not sponsor similar legislation in the Senate. Her address is [addresses, etc] For more information, contact the Mother Lode Chapter Sierra Club at (916) 557-1100