Cross Posted from Cascadia Forest Defenders
Tree sitters, blockaders, and the support crew have found their new home near the head waters of Myrtle Creek on O&C land in the White Castle timber sale.
They are defending 77 acres of native never-before-logged forest from Variable Retention Harvest, also known as clear-cutting. As Doug Heiken of Oregon Wild describes “The White Castle project is a cynical attempt to pass off clear-cutting century-old trees as restoration. In reality, the true focus of this project is providing cheap timber to old-growth dependent logging mills at taxpayer expense.”
The White Castle timber sale contains lush native and old growth trees punctuated by flowering rhododendrons, trilliums, and wild iris amongst salal and Oregon grape. It is considered habitat for 5 pairs of endangered spotted owls, three fens and rare forest wetlands.
Yesterday, after being discovered by a survey crew, our friends were visited by various levels of law enforcement including the Douglas County Sheriff and Myrtle Creek Police.
There have been no arrests, no extractions, and no loss of conviction. We are here to stay!
