Recent reporting suggests that Oregon logging could be vastly expanded. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is holding an open comment period for the public to weigh in on how they want their public lands managed. Unfortunately, Monday, March 23, is the last chance to submit a comment.

The timber industry has championed the fairy tale of “sustained yield” since the 1970s. Now that we are seeing more frequent and intense wildfire seasons, they promote the falsehood that their management practices reduce wildfires. I question why, if “sustained yield” is effective, the timber companies can’t survive on private land regeneration of timber. Could it be that a seedling takes most of a human lifespan to become profitable to harvest?

And why do wildfires start in and mostly explode on tree plantations meant for future harvest? Could it be because the yield is monoculture and made up of stands of overcrowded trees? We need wood products, of course. But we should protect what little is left of our old growth forest, where fire is less likely to begin and meanwhile provides recreational opportunities for everyone.

You can affect BLM’s direction on how it manages public forests for the next 10 years if enough of us submit input to the BLM before the input period closes.

Randall Sinnott
Eugene