Tag: Oregon

  • Irrigation Vandalism of Deschutes River

    The Deschutes River in Bend during the summer is downstream from irrigation removal of the water is little more than a creek.  Photo George Wuerthner  In October, irrigators began the annual drawing down of the Deschutes River to the point where fish and other wildlife die or are threatened. Good people have tried to save…

  • Deschutes River Irrigators Guilty of Vandalism

    Dried-up bed of the Deschutes River upstream of Bend, Oregon. Photo George Wuerthner  This past month, irrigators began the annual drawing down of the Deschutes River to the point where fish and other wildlife die or are threatened. Good people have tried to save fish stranded in pools of water. I do not want to…

  • Holiday Farm Fire And Industrial Logging

    Clearcuts along the McKenzie River corridor east of Eugene, Oregon did little to slow the Holiday Farm Fire. Photo George Wuerthner The Holiday Farm Fire began on September 7, 2020. The fire charred 173,000 acres along the McKenzie River Valley in western Oregon’s Cascade Range, possibly due to a fallen power line. The fire destroyed…

  • Wild Rogue Wilderness Legislation Introduced

    The Rogue River cuts through the coastal Siskiyou Mountains. Photo George Wuerthner  Congressman Peter DeFazio (D) from Eugene, Oregon, has introduced into the House the Wild Rogue Conservation and Recreation Enhancement Act. It is a companion bill to earlier legislation in the Senator supported by Senators Wyden and Merkley. Rogue River. Photo George Wuerthner  The…

  • Thinning or Clearcut?

    One hears continuously that the Forest Service doesn’t clearcut anymore. Of course, what constitutes a clearcut is subject to interpretation. The following photos are all taken on the Deschutes NF in Oregon. These are “forest thinning” projects designed to reduce wildfires and “improve” forest health. How many trees do you need to leave behind so…

  • Wildfire May Benefit Spotted Owls

    Northern Spotted Owl Photo US FWS A couple of years ago, I attended a meeting of the Deschutes Collaborative. Spotted Owls and wildfire was the topic that day. The meeting was a classic example of how collaboratives selectively use science to justify more logging of our forests. The two-hour meeting featured a biologist with the…

  • Antidote For Rural Sprawl–Land Use Zoning

    Rural subdivision in Gallatin County, Montana. Photo George Wuerthner Back when I was a student at the University of Montana in Missoula, I had a girlfriend who managed to rent a house adjacent to the Bitterroot Mountains near Hamilton. All of us were very jealous of her luck in obtaining a place to live so…

  • Critique of “Fire Suppression” Mythology

      High elevation forests like the mountain hemlock seen here at Crater Lake have long intervals between fires. They only burn when there is the right combination of climate/weather. Fire suppression has had little influence on such forests. Photo George Wuerthner The recent piece published in the December 22 Guardian titled: Heat, wind, and a…

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