This is a good thing. I’m glad to see the Federal government use the economic, rather than the legal stick to attempt to change behavior. Unfortunately for the forests, and the coastal streams, some of this comes too late. Would have been nice to have had boots on the ground to make sure the right decisions were made, since obviously the locals logging companies didn’t give a damn. The Oregon Department of Forestry was not created yesterday. They have had the charter to protect streams from destruction by logging for decades now, and apparently haven’t done so. Has anyone compared their regs to ours? Could we be up for such a lawsuit next? Certainly driving around the Peninsula especially out past Physt could make you think so. The logging there has dumped trees directly into the streams along the south side of the road. It hardly looks like the kind of outcome you would expect.
After warning Oregon that its rules don’t adequately protect water in coastal streams from logging, two federal agencies are denying the state $1.2 million in grant funds. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration sent a letter this week notifying the state’s natural resources director that Oregon hasn’t done enough to prevent pollution from forestry practices like logging and road building. Cassandra Profita reports. (EarthFix)
Filed under: Environmental Law, Environmental Protection, Puget Sound | Tagged: Environmental Protection, Puget Sound |
It’s ironic since I can’t agree with the way the Feds themselves manage our National Forests and other Federal Lands.