'Privatizing' Elliott State Forest a consequence of environmental law, litigation

'Privatizing' Elliott State Forest a consequence of environmental law, litigation: Editorial

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'Privatizing' Elliott State Forest a consequence of environmental law, litigation: Editorial

Protesters from Earth First! and Cascadia Rising Tide wait for transport the Douglas County Jail in Roseburg after they were arrested in 2009 for blocking access to an 80-acre parcel in Elliott State Forest. (The Oregonian/Thomas Boyd)

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By The Oregonian Editorial Board 
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on May 15, 2014 at 11:00 AM, updated May 15, 2014 at 11:01 AM

The Elliott State Forest, covering about 90,000 acres in the Coast Range near Coos Bay, provides a large and dependable stream of cash for the Common School Fund, which in turn sends millions of dollars to the state's public schools every year. Well, that's the theory, anyway. In reality, timber harvests have been constrained so severely by environmental litigation and Endangered Species Act restrictions that the Elliott cost the Common School Fund about $3 million in 2013.

That's bad news for schoolchildren, sure. But at least it's good news for the marbled murrelet and the environmentalists who've sued to protect the threatened seabird, right? Only if their definition of good news includes the sale of large chunks of the forest.  Two timber companies bid successfully last month for about 1,400 acres of the Elliott.

A handful of environmental groups, including Cascadia Wildlands and the Audubon Society of Portland, sued to stop one of the sales, which would transfer 788 acres to the Seneca Jones Timber Co. But last Friday, a Lane County judge denied a request for a preliminary injunction. The sale isn't a done deal yet, says Seneca co-owner Kathy Jones, but if it goes forward the company will manage the former Elliott acreage for harvest, just as it manages the 165,000 acres of forestland it already owns.

Meanwhile, additional pieces of the Elliott are likely to be sold later this year, says Department of State Lands spokeswoman Julie Curtis, continuing what environmentalists like to call the "privatization" of state forestland.

In retrospect, this outcome shouldn't surprise anyone. The primary purpose of the "Common School" land within the Elliot is revenue generation. Reduce the land's money-making capacity severely enough, and unloading acreage begins to make a lot of sense. That's true even though the land may sell for a relative pittance thanks to the presence or likely presence of murrelets. Last month's winning bids for three parcels covering about 1,450 acres amount to only $4.3 million, but the cash could be enough to delay further losses to the Common School Fund.

"That's something that's not sustainable," says Curtis of the red ink, noting that theState Land Board "is concerned about it because they're the trustees" of the Common School Fund. Those who consider selling off state land an extreme response should consider the composition of the State Land Board, which made the call. Gov. John Kitzhaber, state Treasurer Ted Wheeler and Secretary of State Kate Brown are not the Clear-cut Club. They're responding reasonably to an extreme situation brought about by federal policymakers and by litigious environmental groups.

The selling will continue, at least in the short term. The state plans to unload another 1,300 acres or so later this year and, perhaps, even more in the future. "Privatizing" the Elliott in this fashion may continue to encounter resistance, but barring the appearance of a better solution, the state should keep right on selling. If timber companies want to buy the property with the expectation of logging it, that's fine. Their management will sustain jobs and provide tax revenue, and the new owners will be required to follow state and federal laws protecting threatened species.

It's also fine if bits and pieces of the Elliot are snapped up by conservation interests who don't want to touch a twig. This, in fact, is something the Department of State Lands would like. Among the criteria it established for selecting parcels to sell is a requirement that they "be of a size, configuration, and in a location that will solicit the greatest diversity of potential buyers." The state included this requirement "to see if we could attract conservation buyers for some or all of the parcels," says Curtis, who notes that officials hope to find such buyers for the remaining parcels to be sold this year.  

In the end, what matters most is that the State Land Board remain focused on the primary purpose of the Elliott, which is to make money for public schools. If the best way to honor that purpose is to sell the forest, piece by piece, then sell it to the highest bidder. Oregon needs teachers far more than it needs underperforming public land.

Seabirds Threaten School Funding

Quiet meetings turn intense

The usually calm Oregon State Land Board, SLB, meetings have produced a lot of attention since environmental lawsuits brought forest management activity to a screeching halt on the Elliott State Forest.

Over 50 protesters set up outside of the SLB meeting on December 10, 2013 as Governor John Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Kate Brown and State Treasurer Ted Wheeler decided to take competitive bids on 2,700 acres of the 93,000 acre Elliott State Forest, ESF.

Constitutional Requirement

Historically, the ESF has supported the state’s Common School Fund, as directed by Oregon’s Constitution. However, due to the litigation over the Marbled Murrelet, a small seabird that may use a tree on the ESF for a nest, incoming revenue has ground to a halt. In fact, so far in 2013 the Common School Fund has paid over $3,000,000 to support the ESF! This is something the Treasurer’s Office and school funding advocates loathe.

A DEMOCRATIC Process

Governor John Kitzhaber allowed all of the protesters a try at testifying before the SLB. Many of the commenters were disgusted by the notion that Oregon would cut trees to help fund schools. Historically, public forests at the national and state level have always supported schools, not to mention roads and public safety.

Forest management activities were not the only thing that confounded the protesters, several that spoke decried the fact that the three Democrats, Governor Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Brown and State Treasurer Wheeler that compose the State Land Board were adopting a strategy that puts a price on the ESF. “It’s a LIE that Democrats protect the environment!!!”

What it used to be

Making a return visit to the SLB was former Elliott State Forest Manager Jerry Phillips. As he told the SLB, Phillips spent 33 years on the ESF, 19 as Manager.  During his time on the ESF, the forest brought in $300 million for the Common School Fund.

Phillips spent much of his time on the Elliott working out land exchanges, which needed State Land Board approval, to increase the size of the 93,000-acre forest. The 2,700 acres that were approved for the initial bidding process included tracts that Phillips added.

News Coverage of the State Land Board Decision

Kitzhaber, Oregon officials approve exploring Elliott State Forest land sale

Oregon board OKs controversial forestland sale

As Oregon weighs Elliott State Forest sale, marbled murrelet habitat raises financial questions

State Land Board agrees to sell off parcels in Elliott State Forest

SW Oregon Logging Plan Moves Ahead

Elliott forest sale only alternative

Proposed Elliott State Forest land sales pit school funding against environmental conservation

Proposed Elliott State Forest land sales pit school funding against environmental conservation

By Yuxing Zheng, The Oregonian 
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on August 15, 2013 at 6:00 AM, updated August 15, 2013 at 9:35 AM

Environmental activists previously staged sit-ins, road blockades and protests at Elliott State Forest. A bill passed in the Oregon Senate Monday targets tree sitters and others who interfere with state forestland management. (Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian)

A threatened sea bird that nests in coastal forests could impact funding for schools across the state.

Environmental activists are protesting against the proposed sale or exchange of three parcels in the Elliott State Forest, which they say are prime nesting grounds for the marbled murrelet. Three environmental groups in May 2012 filed a lawsuit that said logging in the forest would threaten the bird.

The lawsuit largely tied up logging in the forest, which state officials had originally estimated would net $25.2 million for the state's Common School Fund over the next two years. Now, officials say the sale of the three parcels, if completed, would fetch enough to manage the forest in the current biennium without raising any money for the school fund.

"It just means the Legislature has to draw more on the general fund because it doesn't have as much Common School Fund money to use," said Jim Paul, assistant director of the Department of State Lands for the land management division.

Interest earned from the fund goes to the state's K-12 school districts through the Oregon Department of Education. Last year, the fund paid about $48 million to Oregon schools. The $4.1 million that Portland Public Schools received from the fund last year paid for the equivalent of 48 teachers, according to a state fact sheet.

State officials originally planned to harvest 40 million board feet in Elliott State Forest in the next two years, Paul said. The lawsuit forced officials to revise their projections to 15 million board feet, estimated to fetch $8 million this biennium to cover forest management costs.

The Department of Forestry already laid off seven full-time employees in the Coos Bay office who work on timber sales as part of budget cuts, Paul said.

The three parcels proposed for sale amount to 2,714 acres in Coos and Douglas counties and are not areas included in the lawsuit from environmentalists, said Julie Curtis, spokeswoman for the Department of State Lands. The department is accepting public comments on the proposed sale until 5 p.m. Sept. 3.

The State Land Board is scheduled to meet Dec. 10 to consider final approval of a land sale. Gov. John Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Kate Brown and State Treasurer Ted Wheeler comprise the State Land Board.

The state owns about 700,000 acres of land, from which mineral and timber proceeds help pay for schools.

Environmental activists fear the three parcels in Elliott State Forest will be sold to a logging company.

Activists affiliated with Cascadia Forest Defenders and Cascadia Earth First!staged road blockades, tree sits and protests at Elliott State Forest in recent years andat the Oregon State Capitol in May and June 2012, which led to arrests. The groups oppose an October 2011 decision to increase logging in the forest.

"In a time when the State Land Board should be taking responsibility for the mismanagement of the Elliott State Forest, they are going over the heads of the public and the courts and finding ways to manage our public lands for profit instead of conservation," Erin Grady, a Cascadia Forest Defenders member, said in a press release.

The Elliott protests in recent years spurred the Oregon Legislature this spring to passa law allowing forest contractors to sue environmental activists. A companion bill that would've created the crime of interference with state forestland management passed the House but died in the Senate.

If state succeeds in selling the three proposed parcels, officials would consider selling more, said Paul, of State Lands.

"If the forestlands look like it's no longer going to be a revenue-generating land type, we're looking at possibly divesting in those lands," he said. "Since these are the first parcels, I would still call this a due-diligence phase. The potential is there for us to continue down this path and look at the sale of additional forestlands in the Elliott."

-- Yuxing Zheng

Enviro Lawsuit May lead to sale of State Forest

Oregon’s State Treasurer Ted Wheeler is troubled that he is not meeting the financial responsibility of managing one of the most valuable assets of the Common School Fund. Wheeler, along with Governor John Kitzhaber and Secretary of State Kate Brown are charged with overseeing the 95,000-acre Elliott State Forest in Southwestern Oregon.

Cascadia Wildlands has filed an Endangered Species Act lawsuit challenging the ESF’s plan for protection of the marble murrelet, a seabird that spends most of it’s life at the ocean. This has led to the cancellation of most of the timber sales from the ESF.

State Land Board (Kitzhaber, Wheeler and Brown) staff told a legislative budget committee on March 21st that timber revenues from the Elliott State Forest have dropped from $11 million in Fiscal Year 2012 to $2.5-3.0 million for the first six months of Fiscal Year 2013.

The Common School Fund benefits all of the public schools in Oregon. As trustees for the CSF, the State Land Board has a legal responsibility to return revenue to the CSF. The current lawsuit does not eliminate the responsibility to the CSF.

If a school district challenged the state for not meeting the trust’s financial duties, selling the ESF to a private forest landowner might be the only option available.

In other words, should Cascadia Wildlands continue with their suit, they might find that the Elliott State Forest will be sold to a private forest landowner in order to return revenue to the Common School Fund.

Top Dem defends Elliot State Forest logging

Top Dem defends Elliot State Forest logging

By Daniel Simmons-Ritchie, The World |

BANDON -- Oregon's Secretary of State is defending a decision to increase logging on the Elliot State Forest, despite continued cries by environmentalists that endangered species will lose valuable habitat.

Kate Brown, speaking after a political fundraiser Saturday night, said she made the decision knowing that it would provide more revenue for Oregon and more local forestry jobs.

'I knew from every million board feet we harvested from the Elliot, we put 20 to 30 people back to work in Coos and Douglas County," Brown said.

Brown, along with the governor and the state treasurer, voted to increase logging on state land in October. The three officials manage the state's 153-year-old system of harvesting timber to support funding for Oregon schools.

But increasing the annual harvest from 500 acres to 850 acres on the Elliot, northeast of Coos Bay, has drawn stiff opposition from environmental groups. Members sat in trees last summer and launched legal challenges to protest the risk to the marbled murrelet, a threatened seabird. Last month, the new director of one group, Cascadia Wildlands, vowed he would continue to fight logging in the Elliot.

Brown counters that the state's new management plan would sufficiently protect species while generating badly-needed revenue for schools.

'I can totally understand the perspective that the protesters have, and, for me, it's about achieving a balance," Brown said.

The new forest management plan employs a system called 'take avoidance" used by private loggers. The state spends two years surveying an area of forest for threatened species before making a decision to log.

The Oregon Department of Forestry estimates the plan will increase the annual harvest from 25 million board feet to 40 million -- bolstering revenue from $7.5 million to as much as $13 million.

Those funds are re-invested into the principal of the Common School Fund. That $1 billion dollar trust, invested in the stock market, pays out about $50 million annually to Oregon's 197 school districts.

That's only a tiny sliver of the $6 billion the state spends on schools each year.

Reporter Daniel Simmons-Ritchie can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 249, or at dritchie@theworldlink.com.

Copyright 2012 The World. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Read more: http://theworldlink.com/news/local/top-dem-defends-elliot-state-forest-logging/article_1d18a8a4-5130-5c17-a48b-c576e1dac458.html?mode=story#ixzz1usDPzxAc

New Elliott State Forest management plan will significantly increase logging, clear-cutting and revenue

Published: Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 9:04 PM     Updated: Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 9:04 PM

By Eric Mortenson, The Oregonian

Enlarge Motoya Nakamura, The Oregonian SALEM, OREGON -- October 11, 2011 --People protest against the Oregon Land Board's approval of increased logging for Elliott State Forest in front of the Department of State Lands building in Salem, OR. On the left is Tre Arrow, singing and playing the guitar. Motoya Nakamura/ The Oregonian Protesters at Elliot State Forest management vote hiss and chant gallery (5 photos)

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SALEM -- With hisses and jeers from protesters providing the background, the Oregon Land Board on Tuesday unanimously approved a management plan for the Elliott State Forest that significantly increases logging, clear-cutting and revenue flowing to the Common School Fund.

The land board members -- Gov. John Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Kate Brown and Treasurer Ted Wheeler -- acknowledged the plan isn't popular with environmentalists, who believe management of the Elliott is deeply flawed. Board members said they want to review the plan annually.

"This is not a black and white issue," Kitzhaber said. The land board is constitutionally mandated to manage the Elliott to produce the greatest amount of revenue for the school fund, he and others noted, and less than one percent of the 93,000 acre forest will be logged in a given year.

The Elliott, in the Coast Range near Coos Bay, is a tiny slice of the 30 million acres of public and private timberland in Oregon, but has become the focal point for the heated arguments over how we use our natural resources. Protesters perched in trees and blocked roads last summer in an attempt to halt a timber sale.

About 50 people chanted and sang outside the Department of State Lands building Tuesday as board members discussed the management plan with staff from the Oregon Department of Forestry. Protesters filed into the meeting room as the board approved the plan, standing at the back holding signs such as "CLEARCUTTING FOR SCHOOLS IS BAD BUSINESS." Some said "Sell out, sell out," and "liar," before chanting "Kitzhaber lies, forests die." Oregon State Police troopers ushered shouters from the room without incident.

Afterward, Wheeler defended the board's action with protesters outside the building. "We'll see you in the forest," they chanted as he left.

Under the plan, the Elliott's annual timber harvest will increase to 40 million board feet, compared to 25 million board feet under a plan implemented in 1995. The new plan increases the targeted annual harvest to 1,100 acres with up to 850 acres for clear-cutting; up from 1,000 acres, half for clear-cutting.

Oregon Land Board unanimously approves a new management for the Elliott State Forest as protesters yell during vote The Oregon Land Board unanimously approved a  new management for the Elliott State Forest at its meeting in Salem this morning. Protesters hissed during the vote and yelled out: "Sellout, sellout" and " liar." Watch video

The new plan will produce annual net revenue of up to $13 million, compared to up to $8 million currently.

The plan requires foresters to survey for northern spotted owls and marbled murrelets on proposed timber sales. Surveys replace long-term habitat conservation plans. State foresters estimate the plan will make 28,000 acres of timber off limits for logging, compared to 22,370 acres now reserved for owls, murrelets and riparian management areas.

Josh Laughlin, campaign director for the Eugene-based Cascadia Wildlands, said the Elliott represents the "worst of the worst" in forest management. The state's work harms threatened wildlife such as northern spotted owls, marbled murrelets and coho salmon, he said, and damages watersheds.

He and other environmentalists believe the Elliott can be managed in a way that produces money for schools while avoiding clear-cuts. Thinning younger trees and aggressively seeking markets for the Elliott's ability to store carbon dioxide provide a "new way forward," he said.

To date in 2011, loggers have cut 28 million board feet of timber in the Elliott, 29 percent more than 2010. Its produced $8.1 million for the school fund, about $1 million more than 2010.

The approval by the land board, which owns 91 percent of the Elliott, concludes its action on the management plan. The state Board of Forestry, which owns the remaining 9 percent, votes on the plan Nov. 3.

-- Eric Mortenson

Leaders Offer Oregon Loggers Encouraging Words

Newly elected officials, Speaker of the House, Rep. Bruce Hanna, R-Roseburg, and State Treasurer Ted Wheeler, D-Portland, had encouraging words for Oregon’s independent loggers at Associated Oregon Loggers 41^st Annual Meeting in Eugene over the weekend.

Treasurer Wheeler addressed more than 400 attendees on Friday, January 15.  Wheeler is part of the State Land Board along with the Secretary of State Kate Brown and Governor John Kitzhaber.  The SLB oversees Southern Oregon’s Elliott State Forest for the Common School Fund. 

Financially, the Elliott State Forest is the SLB’s poorest performing asset.  Previously, the Elliott used to be the quintessential model for sustained-yield forest management, while still being a popular destination for a wide array of forest recreation activities.  The timber produced on the Elliott commanded a high price from Oregon’s timber industry.  Since 1995, the Elliott has been managed under an ultra-conservative strategy that has reduced timber output by 60%.

Wheeler spoke forcefully about getting more money from the Elliott for financially strapped public schools.  State foresters have spent 10 years trying to negotiate a more productive management plan with federal fish & wildlife officials.   The Treasurer called on his negotiating experience outside the forestry world to claim, “Negotiating for 10 years isn’t a negotiation…it is a Stalemate!!!”

Wheeler wants to get more money from the Elliott “because I am the Treasurer…not the Parks Commissioner!!!”  The overflow audience interrupted Wheeler three times with spontaneous applause.  Wheeler finished his comments with “You’ve got a friend in the Treasurer!”  Time will tell if this was an early campaign speech.

Saturday, Republican House Speaker Bruce Hanna, pleased the loggers with the message that Oregon’s budget problem is really a “Jobs problem!!!”  Hanna wants to adopt the Main Street Plan, job-creating legislation that Republicans developed in the 2009 legislature but failed to gain any traction from Democrats.  The evenly divided House (30-30) and the narrowly split Senate (16-14) offers Hanna hope that the Main Street Plan or similar legislation can be enacted in 2011.

Speaker Hanna is encouraged by Governor John Kitzhaber’s inclusiveness toward Hanna and other Republicans with his transition teams and has sought their “input and ideas”.  The Governor “has done everything he said” that he said he would.

Despite the lumber market sinking to levels not seen since the Great Depression, the over 900 members of AOL should be encouraged by the optimism provided by Treasurer Wheeler and Speaker Hanna.