The northern spotted owl, a species listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act and whose numbers are in great decline, mainly due to logging, are being further jeopardized in Klamath National Forest in California. They have a target on their back thanks to 14 timber sales approved by the USDA Forest Service in February that have received permission from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to kill up to 103 northern spotted owls, and we need your help to stop this slaughter.
Called the Westside Fire Recovery Project, it proposes extensive post-fire salvage logging, 70 percent of which is in forest reserves designated by the Northwest Forest Plan as areas for wildlife conservation and forest restoration.
“USFWS’s approval of additional logging and habitat destruction is particularly distressing in light of Friends of Animals’ ongoing litigation with the agency regarding its experiment to kill barred owls under the guise of protecting northern spotted owls,” said Jennifer Best, associate attorney for Friends of Animals Wildlife Law Program. “USFWS has tried to divert attention from the real problem; what the spotted owls need more than anything is protected habitat. The approval of additional logging in northern spotted owl habitat further shows that USFS does not have the best interest of the owls in mind.”
According to analysis by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, habitat will be removed from up to 57 areas where northern spotted owls are known to nest.
The logging would take place in a 187,000-acre area in northern California affected by wildfires in 2014, but government research indicates that the owls will often continue nesting in burned forests. And they continue to hunt for prey in these areas as well. So these large standing dead trees are important for the species recovery plan. More than 6,500 acres of burned trees would be clear-cut if the plan goes forward. It’s critical this assault on the owls be removed from the Westside Fire Recovery Project.
Take Action
Please contact Patricia A. Grantham, Forest Supervisor of Klamath National Forest and urge her to rescind the Westside decision to log the Northern Spotted Owl’s critical habitat. Call her directly at 530.841.4502 and e-mail her at pagrantham@fs.fed.us
Contact California Gov. Jerry Brown and urge him to take a stand to protect the northern spotted owls in the Klamath National Forest and the future of the species. The 14 logging permits must be revoked.
Phone: 916. 445.2841
Fax: 916.558.3160
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