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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 10, 2005 Logging project is off-limits By PARIS ACHEN Mail Tribune After three weeks of protests and blockades of the Hobson fire-salvage timber sale near Galice, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management closed public access to the logging project Tuesday. About 5.5 miles of Road 2411 and 4.5 miles of the Hobson Horn Trail, the only entryways to the sale, will remain closed to the public until Oct. 31. "Every other day protesters are throwing logs and boulders on the road to try to stop logging," said Patty Burel, spokeswoman for the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. "Technically, there has been two structures and one platform (erected by protesters to block logging). "The situation is unsafe for loggers, protesters, contractors and Forest Service and BLM employees, and for that reason, we issued the temporary road closures." The 577-acre sale includes 7.3 million board feet of late-successional reserve burned by the 2002 Biscuit fire, enough timber for about 560 houses. Advertisement Under the Northwest Forest Plan’s definition, late-successional reserve is generally trees 40 to 80 years old with certain characteristics, such as a full canopy, but could include some old-growth trees of 200 years or more. Protesters built two cabin-like structures across Road 2411 in July. On Monday, a 17-year-old woman from Portland perched on a platform protesters erected over the road about 50 feet in the air, said Shanna Foley, spokeswoman for Wild Siskiyou Action, the Ashland-based group largely organizing the protests. Loggers with Medford-based Greg Liles Logging Co. working the sale could not pass their vehicles through without harming the woman. They accessed the sale by constructing a makeshift road around the platform, Burel said. The protest delayed logging for about 20 minutes, she said. "If you’re having a heart attack, 20 minutes could make the difference between life and death," Burel said. The road is traveled by loggers as well as BLM and Forest Service employees and contractors to access a rock quarry used in road construction. This is the second time this year the Forest Service has closed roads to fire-salvage timber sales in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. The first closure at Eight Dollar Road happened March 14 at the 700-acre Fiddler sale six miles northwest of Kerby in the Illinois River Valley two days after protesters blocked the road with a vehicle without an engine or tires. The blockade delayed medical care for two injured loggers, who had to wait for a tow truck to remove the disabled vehicle, Burel said. Protesters condemned the Hobson road closures Tuesday and vowed to continue their demonstrations at the site. "This is a repeated action by the Forest Service to shut the public out of public lands and shut them out from seeing the destruction of our last ancient forests," said Foley. About 20 dedicated demonstrators remain in a camp at the sale, Foley said. Forest Service law enforcement officers were trying to scout out the camp Tuesday, Burel said. Those who violate the closure orders could face arrest or citations, she said. Salvage logging on the 500,000 acres in the Biscuit fire area has been at the center of a debate between environmentalists and the Bush administration about what to do with national forests burned every year by wildfires. The Forest Service maintains logging a small portion of burned trees is a way to provide jobs and wood for the country and pay for reforestation with a minimal effect on the environment. Environmentalists say burned forests should be left alone to regenerate, provide plant and animal habitat and protect waterways from sediment. Reach reporter Paris Achen at 776-4496 or e-mail Logging project is off-limits ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Online Casino Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Online Pharmacy Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Rogue Valley Travel Discount Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Casino Gambling Sites Budget Website Templates Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Advertisement s