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Northwest Forest Plan

The Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) is a series of federal policies and guidelines governing land use on federal lands in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It covers ten million hectares within Western Oregon and Washington, as well as a small part of Northern California.[1]

History[edit]

The NWFP was adopted in 1994 by the Clinton administration as the outcome of a series of studies and hearings that began in 1993;[2] in response to over-harvesting of old growth forests, threatening northern spotted owl populations.


During the development of the NWFP, President Bill Clinton directed ten federal agencies responsible for forest management, fisheries, wildlife, tribal relations, and national parks to work with scientists on region-wide forest plans that would be "scientifically sound, ecologically credible, and legally responsible".[3]


A multidisciplinary team of scientists known as the Forest Ecosystem Management Assessment Team was assigned the task of identifying management alternatives that would meet the requirements of applicable laws and regulations, including the Endangered Species Act, the National Forest Management Act, the Federal Land Policy Management Act, the Clean Water Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act.[3]

Management[edit]

The federal lands falling under the purview of the NWFP are predominantly National Forests, but Bureau of Land Management lands, National Parks, National Wildlife Refuges, and military bases are also covered by the Plan. In addition, the US forest service holds a lot of the authority and management decision making processes within the plan area. The NWFP is highly controversial in that it called for strongly decreased timber yields within National Forests,[5] Even though the Northwest Forest Plan is implemented to conserve late succession, it is also important that there is a process in the beginning to protect in the early succession of younger trees.[6]

Management of Pacific Northwest riparian forests

Salvage Rider

Regional Ecosystem Office, August 14, 2007. (Official site)

Northwest Forest Plan

Bureau of Land Management, April 2006.

The Survey and Manage Program of the Northwest Forest Plan

Northwest Forest Plan Historic Overview

The 1930s Survey of Forest Resources in Washington and Oregon