Document text
67 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, September 16, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend July 13, 2004 Tree-cutting leads to investigation Chainsaws were used illegally in a roadside hazard project near the Kalmiopsis boundary By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune The U.S. Forest Service has launched an investigation into the illegal use of chainsaws in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness Area during removal of hazardous roadside trees following the Biscuit fire. Between 10 and 20 trees were cut with chainsaws along Bald Mountain Road where it borders the wilderness in the Siskiyou National Forest, according to Judy McHugh, spokeswoman for the Biscuit Fire Recovery Project. The problem is that it’s illegal to use motorized equipment in a wilderness area, she said. "You can cut hazard trees in the wilderness but you can’t use motorized equipment," she said. The area is in the Galice Ranger District about 24 miles southwest of Grants Pass. Advertisement The trees were cut about a year ago but were recently discovered by a forest employee who immediately reported it to Pam Bode, ranger in charge of the Galice and Illinois Valley districts, McHugh said. "This was a mistake that had occurred on our roadside hazard tree sales," McHugh said. "Some trees were marked and cut on the side towards the wilderness. We know that chainsaws were used to fell those trees." However, the wilderness area is not well marked in that region, she said. "But it’s definitely an error," she said. Work by contractor Silver Creek Timber Co. of Merlin has been suspended until the illegal cutting is thoroughly checked out, McHugh said. "We’re going out to investigate it," she said, adding that it’s unknown at this point what penalties, if any, the contractor may face. Silver Creek owner John West told the Mail Tribune that the trees had been marked for cutting by the Forest Service. "It was an honest mistake on our end," he said. "We didn’t know the boundary was there. One of our cutters saw the blue-marked trees and cut them." The trees, which had been killed by the fire, weren’t very large, he said, adding that his firm had informed the agency of the problem. The firm is taking steps to ensure something like that doesn’t happen again, he said. As part of the hazardous roadside tree removal following the half-million-acre Biscuit fire in 2002, more than 6 million board feet of timber were cut along forest roads in the burned area, McHugh said. Those sales are not part of the three records of decision signed last week by forest supervisor Scott Conroy to allow timber salvage to proceed. The first five timber salvage sales are scheduled to be sold at auction Friday. Those salvage sales total 54 million board feet of fire-killed timber. All told, the agency plans to salvage 370 million board feet of timber on about 19,400 acres. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities