July 25, 2013 — On July 1, 2013 Big Wildlife formally became part of Cascadia Wildlands—a regional conservation non-profit operating from northern California to south-central Alaska and headquartered in Eugene. The merger will mean an expansion of Cascadia Wildlands’ conservation and restoration work on predators like cougars and black bears.
State of Washington Petitioned to Better Protect Wolves: Seven Groups Ask State Wildlife Agency to Follow, Enforce Wolf Plan
July 19, 2013 — In an effort to stop the indiscriminate killing of Washington’s wolves, seven conservation groups filed a petition today calling for the state’s Fish and Wildlife Commission to make the state’s wolf-management guidelines legally binding. The new push to codify provisions put in place in 2011 comes after the state killed seven Wedge Pack wolves last year — a decision that ignored Washington Wolf Conservation and Management Plan provisions governing when lethal control of wolves is allowed.
Press Release: Bill to Protect Salmon Habitat in Oregon Passes House and Senate, Awaits Governor’s Signature
July 8, 2013 — Celebrated by fishermen, landowners, outdoor recreation businesses, and river advocates, Senate Bill 838 (SB 838) has just been passed by the Oregon House and Senate. SB 838 is now on the Governor’s desk awaiting only a signature to become law. The bill takes steps to protect salmon habitat throughout
Oregon through reasonable reductions in levels of suction dredge gold mining.
Press Release: Devil’s Staircase Wilderness Passes Senate Through Unanimous Consent
June 20, 2013 — The US Senate has approved the creation of the 30,500-acre Devil’s Staircase Wilderness through unanimous consent, marking a major milestone in the long-running effort to protect this spectacular wild area in Oregon’s Coast Range.
Press Release: Settlement Reached in Wolf Legal Fight
May 24, 2013 — After seventeen months of grueling negotiations, conservationists, Governor John Kitzhaber, the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife (ODFW), and the livestock industry have reached a compromise settlement agreement that resolves a long-running legal battle over wolf conservation in Oregon.
Oregon Outdoor Council Needs to Be Held Accountable
May 15, 2013 — A founding board member of the Oregon Outdoor Council (OOC) and the Oregon Outdoor Council Foundation (OOCF) issued a public statement today claiming that the non-profit needs to mend its ways to be in compliance with the law and ethical standards of non-profit behavior. This statement was authored by Steven K. Chapman who served as Secretary/Treasurer from the inception of the organization in 2011 until early 2013 when he resigned over conflicts relating to organizational practices and policies.
Press Release: Bills to Curb Suction Dredge Mining Approved by Key Senate Committee
April 18, 2013 — Outdoor businesses, the commercial fishing industry, fisheries experts, and conservation organizations applaud the passage of Senate Bill 838 and SB 401 by the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee last night. The legislation aims to protect water quality and salmon in Oregon’s iconic river systems from the impacts of harmful suction dredge mining.
Press Release: Sensitive Wildlife Habitat and Drinking Water Supply Protected Above McKenzie
March 27, 2013 — United States District Court Judge Anne Aiken has found that the United States Forest Service broke the law in seeking to carry out the
controversial Goose logging sale near McKenzie Bridge, Oregon, without a detailed analysis of potential environmental damage. This logging sale has drawn intense opposition from local residents and landowners concerned about harm to wildlife and nearby streams. Represented by the Western Environmental Law Center, the conservation organizations Oregon Wild and Cascadia Wildlands filed a legal challenge against the planned logging in 2012.
Press Release: 52 Members of Congress Urge Continued Federal Protections for Wolves in Lower 48 States
March 5, 2013 — In an effort championed by Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), 52 House members sent a letter today to the director of the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service urging an about-face on the agency’s anticipated proposal to remove federal protections for wolves across most of the lower 48 United States.
Extractive Industries are Killing the Planet–Eugene Rally March 3rd
February 27, 2013 — March 3 at 1 p.m. A rally will be held in the University of Oregon EMU amphitheater proceeded by a march against the fossil fuel industry. The march is follow-up to the “End All Extraction” march on February 17, since the demands from the first march were not met.