The best way to see the extent of clear-cutting in Oregon is to take a look at the satellite imagery in Google Earth.
While the Northwest Forest Plan, enacted under President Bill Clinton in 1994, stopped massive clearcuts on most publicly managed forestland, it did little to slow down clear-cuts on private land across Oregon. Citizens in rural counties have been coming together to say these forest practices are threatening their driking water sources, as well as proving disatrous to many wildlife species.
This is the message behind Oregon Wild’s newly relaunched campaign, “Welcome to Oregon, Home of the Clear-Cut.” Throughout March, a giant image of clear-cut forests will confront Portland commuters as it rolls around the city on the side of a MAX train and on the backs of 20 buses. (Read Street Roots’ interview with Oregon Wild’s Jason Gonzales in the March 2-8 edition of the newspaper.)
According to Google, most images in Google Earth are between 1 and 3 years old.
FURTHER READING:
• Is it time for a cultural shift in how we think about logging, forests?
• How today’s timber wars are playing out in Portland’s backyard
• The thinning debate: Does logging help or hurt fire mitigation?
Street Roots is an award-winning, nonprofit, weekly newspaper focusing on economic, environmental and social justice issues. Our newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning an income with dignity. Learn more about Street Roots
This article appears in 2018-03-02.