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Photo by Steve Johnson Oregon Rep. Greg Walden makes a point at a hearing on the Northwest Forest Plan, held Monday in Medford. Panel draws fire from both sides Conservationists, loggers bash feds for forest inaction By PAUL FATTIG The House Agriculture subcommittee will accept comments on the Northwest Forest Plan for 10 more days. Comments should be sent to: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Agriculture, Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight, Nutrition and Forestry, Room 1301, Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20515. Third-generation logger Francis Carter wasn't smiling at the end of a three-hour hearing Monday on the president's Northwest Forest Plan. "People are wasting too much time and money on arguing on what we should do," said the Jacksonville resident. "The people making these decisions need to get out on the land and see what's going on. These people are hired by the American people to do a job, and they aren't doing it." Doug Heiken, a field representative for the Oregon Natural Resources Council, an environmental group, was equally frustrated. "The agencies are not living up to promises made to protect habitat for all imperiled species," Heiken said. Their observations mirrored a broad range of viewpoints expressed Monday by a panel of witnesses called to testify before House Agriculture subcommittee members in Medford. Rep. Greg Walden, a 2nd District Republican and Agriculture Committee member, initiated the hearing, the first official review by Congress since the plan was adopted in 1994. He was joined by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., subcommittee chairman, and Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., a subcommittee member. President Clinton had said the plan was intended to provide a predictable and sustainable level of timber from federal forestland that would not degrade or destroy the forest environment. Most witnesses Monday said the plan has failed to live up to expectations -- either because it didn't deliver timber as promised or was not being implemented in a way that protects the environment. Walden noted Monday that the goal of providing a predictable level of timber hasn't been met largely because there is now an average of one appeal daily to federal timber sales. Although noting the plan was not perfect, Nancy Graybeal, the Forest Service's acting regional forester for the Northwest, said it has improved protection of the environment, encouraged intergovernmental cooperation and provided a stable, sustainable timber supply. But legal challenges are affecting the agency's ability to carry out many of the plan's programs, she acknowledged. "The plan is inherently unstable and will need to evolve if it is to provide long-term guidance for federal forest management in the Northwest," said Peter Green, forestry adviser to Gov. John Kitzhaber. The plan failed to bring peace to the federal forestlands of Oregon, said Jackson County commissioner Sue Kupillas. "The plan did not break the gridlock or stop the lawsuits ... the protests, appeals and lawsuits have continued," she stressed. Jeannie Weakley, representing the Western Council of Industrial Workers, echoed similar sentiments. "The plan was not based on science but on politics, and the result was economic and social devastation to hundreds of communities and tens of thousands of working families," she said. That includes families who have relied on the Rough & Ready Lumber Co. in the Illinois Valley, noted company spokesman Lincoln Phillippi. The firm had 225 employees in 1992, but now has only 160, he told the congressmen. Tom Dimitre, representing the Southern Oregon Forest Coalition, argued that one of the main problems of the plan is that it is not being faithfully implemented by federal agencies. "Because of the refusal or inability of the agencies to implement the plan, more species are being pushed to the brink of extinction, including fish, salamanders and other rare species that are still not being adequately protected," he said. Walden said the information gathered Monday will be used to guide potential congressional action regarding Northwest forests. "It was the first real checkup we've had of the plan in five years -- it's time for that," he said. "What we heard today was important for Congress to hear, to find out what is working and what is not. We need to find out what we can do to make the plan better." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA