The San Francisco Chronicle
www.sfgate.com

New Conservation Plan Good for Sierra Nevada

Tuesday, January 16, 2001

Seeking to reverse years of ecological decline in the Sierra Nevada, the U.S. Forest Service's sweeping new management plan calls for sharp cutbacks in logging and new safeguards for rivers, lakes, ancient trees and endangered species.

Unveiled last week, the 1,800-page Sierra Nevada Management Plan covers about 40 percent of the mountain range. It marks a basic shift in federal forest policy from logging to protecting old-growth timber and reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire.

What began in 1992 as an effort to protect the California spotted owl has evolved into a comprehensive vision for managing and preserving the whole complex ecology of the Sierra.

It is a blueprint for the healthy future of about 11.5 million acres in 11 national forests -- including Shasta-Trinity, Eldorado, Stanislaus, Tahoe and Tahoe Basin -- sprawling along 430 miles of the Sierra from Bakersfield to the Oregon border.

The ambitious plan was generally cheered by conservationists and jeered by the timber industry, whose annual harvests will be cut almost in half during the next 10 years.

The White House says there is no connection between the Sierra management plan and President Clinton's order last month to ban road-building in 58.5 million acres of roadless national forests.

However, both are aimed at preserving vast tracks of forests and old-growth woodlands from the timber industry, which places high value on lumber from big, old trees.

A key provision of the Sierra plan protects old-growth trees on about 4 million acres, as well as maintaining logging bans on 2.6 million acres already designated as wilderness areas and wild and scenic river corridors.

Another provision bans cutting conifers greater than 30 inches in diameter, except when they pose a safety threat. On the eastern Sierra slope, the limit is 24 inches.

"The plan is needed," says Jay Watson of the Wilderness Society. "It has been studied at great length. Now it's time to put it in place."

The Sierra plan and the ban on new roads in federal forests are both expected to be challenged by the incoming Bush administration, which is expected to have less stringent environmental policies.

Californians have a huge stake in preserving the Sierra, its woodlands, water, wildlife and glorious biodiversity. We urge the California congressional delegation to vigorously support these efforts to heal and preserve our state's wondrous natural heritage.