Which way for our forests?

As the Forest Service nears its decision on a management plan, Southern Californians have a chance for input—one that may not come again for 20 years

By John Monsen

Each year millions of Southern Californians visit our Chapter’s two national forests—the Angeles and the Cleveland—to spend time with their families, enjoy tremendous scenic beauty, and get away from the clutter and noise of urban life. Will future generations have the same opportunities? The answer is in doubt. Increasing development threatens the forests’ value as a haven for both people and wildlife and the very health of the forests themselves.

Our forests are at a critical juncture: The Forest Service is releasing its long-anticipated draft forest management plans early this month. The final plan will guide the agency’s management of the Angeles, Cleveland, Los Padres, and San Bernardino national forests for the next 20 years.
Either we protect our forests now or let them be developed piece by piece until their wildness is just a memory.
Fortunately, there’s an easy way for you to get involved. The Sierra Club’s Southern California Forests Campaign will provide all the information you need to make your voice heard quickly and easily.

Attend open houses
Now begins a 90-day public comment period that will feature 24 open house meetings sponsored by the Forest Service in communities surrounding the four forests. Six open house meetings are planned within Angeles Chapter boundaries; the two most crucial meetings will be at the San Juan Capistrano Community Center on May 15 and Pasadena City College on June 5.
“Our nearby forests are increasingly surrounded by sprawl and dwindling open space, which makes it all the more critical that we help the Forest Service do the right thing and pick a management plan that helps protect our forests,” said Joyce Burk, chair of the Sierra Club’s Southern California Forests Committee. “We need to make sure that our voices are heard now since this is an opportunity we only have every 15 to 20 years.”

Strong protection needed
If development on the forests is allowed to go ahead because of weak forest plans, it could threaten to destroy scenic views, scar the land, and put wildlife at risk.
All four Southern California national forests face growing threats from everything from expanded oil drilling to logging, but the northern part of the Cleveland National Forest in Orange County is a beleaguered forest poster child. The 175,000-acre section of the forest faces active proposals for massive transmissions lines, toll roads, antenna tower sites, power plants, and expanded off-road vehicle usage.
The draft forest plans that the Forest Service issues this month will include the agency’s first choice, along with five other management options it has been developing over the last few years.
But the Forests Service’s preferred plan will not be the final decision, said Ron Pugh, who heads up the Forest Service team drafting the new forest plans. “The upcoming public comment period is the most critical phase of the process,” said Pugh. “We will definitely make changes based on public input before we issue the final forest plans later in the year.”

Support Sierra Club Plan
Remarkably, through the diligent work of Chapter activists and other conservationists, one of six options the Forest Service is developing is based on a plan supported by the Sierra Club.
Alternate 6, the Protect and Restore alternative, focuses on preserving forest health and valuable watersheds while enhancing opportunities for low-impact recreation. It will protect wildlife and the natural characteristics of the forests while stopping destructive development such as new roads, oil wells, and power line corridors. The alternative supports fuels reductions near communities under threat from wildfires and the reduction of nonnative plants that threaten forest health. It is a management plan aimed at restoring the forests and protecting them for future generations.
Without your help the Forest Service will only hear from those whose actions often harm the forests—mining companies, off-road vehicle groups, “open access” advocates, and others. In previous rounds of the planning process, conservationists were routinely outnumbered by the opposition. Sierra Club members need to make sure that their voices are heard since other groups will most likely be out in force.
The other options the Forest Service is working with undermine forest health, allowing for more forest open space to be devoted to off-road vehicles, oil wells, roads, and mining. One of the worst alternatives provides for reduced species and habitat protection, with less protection for the endangered Nelson bighorn sheep and the growing list of threatened species in forests.

Join the Forests Campaign
Last September Sierra Club staff and volunteers created the Southern California Forests Campaign to help make sure the Club’s voice was heard during this critical phase of the planning process. To date the campaign has signed up over 1000 Sierra Club members who have offered to attend an open house meeting.
This is a great start, but more support is needed. To sign up for the campaign and to find out more about what you can do to help, go to http://www.sierraclub.org/ca/socalforests.

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