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Cascadia Wildlands is a member of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance (PNWFCA), the host of this webinar series.
BACKGROUND:
Following years of grassroots organizing to protect the last remaining Pacific Northwest (PNW) old-growth forests and ecosystems, the Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) was created in 1994. For 30 years, the NWFP amended all national forest and BLM management plans in western Washington, Oregon, and northern California . It was an imperfect compromise that aimed to protect and restore old-growth forest and streams for hundreds of old-forest associated species within the range of the federally threatened northern spotted owl, while still providing for limited timber harvest on federal lands.
A lot has changed since the mid 1990s, from fashion trends to the climate crisis, and now the federal government is working to revise the NWFP over the course of this year. It is crucial that the public weighs in on the proposed changes to the NWFP, as it will set the course for how our federal forest lands–including our last remaining mature & old growth forests–are managed for decades to come.
The stakes of the NWFP Amendment are huge–for our last remaining mature & old growth forests, for the livability of our climate, for threatened & endangered species, and improper fire-risk reduction management for forests and communities.Over the life of the plan, the NWFP prevented an estimated ~130 million tons of carbon emissions from making the climate crisis worse–the equivalent of running several coal plants every year! The NWFP Amendment is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to establish better protections for mature and old growth forests, meaningful relationships with Indigenous communities and a fighting chance at mitigating the climate crisis.
This webinar will be an introduction to the NWFP and the amendment process for advocates & members of the public who are interested in forest & climate protection but don’t already know much about the NWFP or the Amendment. Our goal is to increase public awareness and engagement ahead of a public comment period happening later this summer. The second webinar in the series (happening in June) will build off this by highlighting specific concerns with the proposed Amendment and offer opportunities to take action.
