Bitterroot Settlement Two Year Anniversary: Native Forest Network and other groups accuse Forest Service of "Gross Negligence"

MISSOULA, MONTANA - Today, at the two year anniversary of the controversial Bitterroot Settlement, which personally involved Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth and Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey, conservation groups released information obtained from the Forest Service showing that the Bitterroot National Forest is out of compliance with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Biological Opinion for their Burned Area Recovery plan.

The groups also released information obtained from the Forest Service showing that two years into the "recovery" plan only 17% of the total required road and watershed restoration work has been completed and, in the words of one Bitterroot National Forest official, $18 million in Bitterroot restoration funds "is just gone."

While the critical restoration work lags far behind schedule and may never be completed due to the $18 million funding shortage, over 9,000 acres (14 square miles) of the Bitterroot National Forest have been logged as part of the "recovery" plan. Enough trees have been cut from the Bitterroot to fill over 4,300 log trucks lined up bumper to bumper for 50 miles.

Conservation groups point out that the vast majority of the logging - done under the guise of "restoration" and "fuel-reduction" - has occurred far from the nearest community and that logging companies have systematically cut down the largest, most fire-resistant trees, many measuring 3 feet in diameter. The groups have released graphic photos to demonstrate this fact.

"Significant and avoidable damage to watersheds and fisheries is resulting from the Forest Service's gross negligence. Much of the restoration work that the Forest Service has failed to complete is actually the higher priority restoration work identified by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service," explained Larry Campbell, Conservation Director of Friends of the Bitterroot.

"We've said all along that the Bitterroot logging plan is a living example of the so-called Healthy Forests Initiative. Just look at the facts. Under the guise of "fuel reduction" the Forest Service is cutting down the largest trees miles from the nearest community. The Forest Service admits that their logging is increasing fire risk for up to eight years. The critical restoration work is simply not being done and with an $18 million funding shortage it's doubtful it will ever be completed."

Chris Frissell, Senior Scientist and fisheries expert with The Pacific Rivers Council, explained: "The public's water and fishery resources pay a severe price for delay and outright failure of the Forest Service to get the road restoration work done. These roads were causing damage to streams even before the fires, but salvage logging traffic tears them up and multiplies the problem. It appears the only projects the Forest Service is capable of completing are the logging projects. Every logging operation that hauls on these bad roads pumps sediment into these streams, damage that could have been avoided had the promised road work been done."

Matthew Koehler of the Native Forest Network said: "We encourage people to visit the Bitterroot National Forest to see for themselves just what the Forest Service is doing on public land under the guise of community protection and restoration. Anyone who goes out on-the-ground will see that the largest, most fire-resistant trees are being logged while the real restoration work isn't being done or is being done in a haphazard manner. This is an indisputable fact. Unfortunately, what's happening on the Bitterroot is just another clear example that as long as the Forest Service's budget is tied to commercial logging they will be incapable of truly restoring our forests."

BITTERROOT RESTORATION FACT SHEET

On February 7, 2002 the U.S. Forest Service, timber industry and seven conservation groups signed a Settlement regarding the Bitterroot National Forest's Burned Area Recovery (BAR) plan. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth and Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey attended the Settlement negotiations as required by a federal district court judge.

Two years into the Bitterroot National Forest's "recovery" project and the on-the-ground realities of the project stand in stark contrast to statements from Forest Service officials. Remember, these officials repeatedly stated that the public appeals process for the Bitterroot plan was circumvented so the Forest Service could move forward with critical restoration work.

The Bitterroot National Forest has not complied with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Biological Opinion for the BAR plan. Two years following the Settlement and only 17% of the total required road and watershed restoration work has been completed. Over $18 million in Bitterroot restoration and rehabilitation funds are still missing and Bitterroot National Forest officials have confirmed that they have no money available to complete the additional restoration work outlined in the BAR plan.

RESTORATION ACTIVITIES AS OF JANUARY 29, 2004:

According to information obtained from the Bitterroot National Forest:

• The Bitterroot National Forest is out of compliance with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Biological Opinion for the BAR plan. Page 61 of the USFWS's Biological Opinion stated, "To ensure connectivity, the Forest shall replace those culverts identified as priority one by the Forest on roads within the action area prior to September 2003." Appendix B of the Biological Opinion lists 20 culverts as priority one culverts. According to BNF officials, as of February 3, 2004, only 7 of the 20 priority one culverts have been replaced.
• Best Management Practices (BMPs) upgrades have occurred on only 72.3 of 513 miles of road (14%). BMP upgrades are modifications of an existing road's surface and drainage that improve its ability to handle traffic without large increases in sediment delivered to streams. Deferring this work means these roads continue to generate polluted runoff and are highly vulnerable to damage from log hauling and other traffic.
• Road obliteration has occurred on only 13.2 miles of 46 miles (29%). Road obliteration means the road surface is restored to natural contours near drainage ways and culverts and other impediments to drainage are permanently removed, resulting in more natural patterns of runoff and sediment. Most roads slated for obliteration are of little use to management and are falling apart due to deferred maintenance. And any delay results in continued erosion and pollution of waters.
• Road storage has taken place on only 20.79 of 105 miles (19%). Road storage means drainage is altered to more natural patterns, but crossing structures are not fully removed, and the road can be easily rebuilt for future use. This does not reduce erosion and other impacts as much as road obliteration, but the same issue holds --- deferring the work means continuing high levels of impact from problem roads.
• Logging: 9,060 acres of 14,700 acres logged (61%). Another 2,000 acres of logging is under contract, meaning that 75% of the logging is either finished or under contract.

ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS

Just as with their rhetoric pushing the so-called "Healthy Forests Initiative," the Bush Administration and Forest Service touted restoration as the top priority of their Bitterroot "recovery" plan from the very beginning. Conservation groups repeatedly maintained that the Forest Service was using restoration rhetoric as a smokescreen to push through massive commercial logging projects, but the Forest Service has yet to make true it claims of restoration.

"It's imperative that we move forward with the project to help restore the land and prevent further environmental degradation."

- Dale Bosworth, Chief, U.S. Forest Service explaining why the Forest Service needed to circumvent the public appeals process on the Bitterroot (New York Times, December 9, 2001)

"The most important thing to me is getting on with the restoration work. There's lots of other work we wanted to do - roads we wanted to obliterate, watershed work, reforestation. The idea of the whole project was fire restoration"

- Dale Bosworth, Chief, U.S. Forest Service defending the need to circumvent the public appeals process on the Bitterroot two days following a court-order preliminary injunction (Missoulian, January 9, 2002)

"We are not behind in our restoration work. We might even be a little ahead."

- Dave Bull, Bitterroot National Forest Supervisor responding to a National Forest Protection Alliance and Greenpeace report, which identified the Bitterroot National Forest as an "Endangered Forest" (Missoulian, June 6, 2003)

"The $18 million is just gone. It isn't there. We are not expecting to get a windfall of $18 million. It's not going to happen"

- Dixie Dies, Bitterroot National Forest Spokeswoman when asked about the $18 million in Bitterroot restoration and rehabilitation funds still not returned after $25.5 million was "borrowed" to pay for costs associated with the 2002 wildfire season (phone conversation with Matthew Koehler, January 30, 2004)