Coast Range Radio: Recent Episodes
Coast Range Association
At Coast Range Radio, we interview folks who work to build just communities that provide for people and the natural world. We are particularly interested in the connections between Oregon’s forests, social justice, and the climate crisis.
Coast Range Radio is a radio show and podcast from the nonprofit conservation organization, the Coast Range Association. Located in Western Oregon, the Coast Range Association works to build just and sustainable communities that provide for people and the natural world. Our work focuses on the connections between Oregon’s forests, communities, and the climate crisis.
Let’s talk about something hopeful for a change!
The ongoing renewable energy revolution is probably one of the most under-reported narratives in the story of climate change, and the American west is a literal hot bed for one of the most important green energy innovations - geothermal power.
Geothermal power taps into the functionally limitless energy generated by earth’s molten core. It uses a fraction of the space that other green technologies like wind and solar require, and delivers the holy grail of renewable power - steady, 24/7 baseload capacity.
So what’s the true potential of geothermal power in the Northwest, are the environmental concerns, and what are the barriers to deploying geothermal at the speed and scale we need?
To answer all these questions and more, we reached out to Dr. Adam Schultz. Adam is a professor of earth sciences at Oregon State University, as well as the founder of Enthalpian Energy, a geothermal consulting and engineering company.
Today’s episode comes via Coast Range Radio volunteer co-host Griffin Reim, who will be leading most of the interview.
Send me your questions, critiques, book recommendations, and guest ideas at coastrangeradio@gmail.com
Show Notes:
- Enthalpian Energy: https://enthalpion.com/index.html
- https://www.opb.org/article/2025/10/06/super-hot-rocks-geothermal-technology-renewable-energy-three-rivers-mazama/
- https://www.opb.org/article/2025/05/12/oregon-washington-green-energy-bonneville/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Amidst the barrage of direct attacks that the Trump administration and their allies have been waging on public lands and the environment, you’d be forgiven for missing a potentially seismic shift in the Forest Service.
On March 31st of this year (2026), the US Department of Agriculture, the agency which the Forest Service is a part of, quietly announced a dramatic restructuring of the agency which manages almost 200 million acres of public land.
Responses have ranged from ‘Trump is destroying the Forest Service and we need to save it’, to ‘this isn’t that big a deal’, to ‘RIP and good riddance, Forest Service’!
So to understand what is actually happening with this so-called “reorganization” and the real implications it could have for public lands, I’m joined by Kevin Hood, Executive Director of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics.
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, reach out anytime and let me know what you think of the show!
Show Notes:
- FSEEE: https://nationalforestadvocates.org/
- USDA Press Release: https://www.fs.usda.gov/about-agency/newsroom/releases/usda-prioritizing-common-sense-forest-management-moves-forest
- https://www.andykerr.net/public-lands-blog/the-death-and-rebirth-of-the-forest-service
- More concerned perspective: https://morethanjustparks.substack.com/p/breaking-trump-administration-orders
- Less concerned perspective: https://wessiler.substack.com/p/the-sky-is-not-falling-on-the-forest
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Today’s show features the second half of a fascinating conversation I had with Patrick Hunnicutt, Assistant Professor of Environmental Administration at the University of Oregon.
Patrick is the co author of a yet to be published research project called Poisoning the Well: Process, recognition, and opposition to environmental policy in rural America.
His research argues that grievances rooted in procedural injustice, for instance, the perception of resource extraction dependent communities that they are excluded from meaningful participation in land management decisions affecting them, is a key and overlooked factor in rural resentment and environmental obstructionism.
This is one of my favorite conversations I’ve had in a long time, and while Patrick and I disagree in places, I think the arguments he makes are so important for environmentalists to grapple with.
Today in part two, we get into lessons the environmental community can learn from the history of the Timber Wars, why supporting rural timber workers is good strategy, and a lot more.
Patrick's Book Recommendations:
Rise of the American Conservation Movement: https://www.dukeupress.edu/the-rise-of-the-american-conservation-movement
Anatomy of a Conflict: https://www.ubcpress.ca/anatomy-of-a-conflict
Strong Winds and Widowmakers: https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/?id=p086823
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
My guest today is Patrick Hunnicutt, Assistant Professor of Environmental Administration at the University of Oregon.
Patrick is the co author of a yet to be published research project called Poisoning the Well: Process, recognition, and opposition to environmental policy in rural America.
His research argues that grievances rooted in procedural injustice, for instance, the perception of resource extraction dependent communities that they are excluded from meaningful participation in land management decisions affecting them, is a key and overlooked factor in rural resentment and environmental obstructionism.
This one of my favorite conversations I’ve had in a long time, and went a bit long. So I’m going to share the whole interview, spread out over two episodes.
In part 1, we’ll go deep on Patrick’s research, his impression of the fights around Oregon’s State Forests, and how exclusionary public processes foster divides and resentment.
As always, I would love to hear your thoughts about the show. My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime.
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Oregon forests recently got a big win in court.
Earlier this month, a US District Court Judge ruled that the Bureau of Land Management, or BLM, had broken the law during the planning of its so-called “Blue and Gold” timber sale, and threw out the entire project.
The “Blue and Gold” is a nearly 3,500 acre tract of mature and old-growth forest on the eastern slopes of the Coast Range between Eugene and Roseburg.
I actually visited the Blue and Gold forest a couple years ago. It was immediately clear that it was a special place deserving of protection, and I’m grateful to the organizers, lawyers, and activists who worked for years to do just that.
I think it’s always worth taking time to celebrate our victories.
But the details of the BLM’s behavior in pushing this timber sale were shocking, and I wanted to make sure that the details of their actions don’t get lost, especially as they prepare to radically change their management plans to maximize industrial timber harvest at the behest of the Trump administration.
So I invited Nick Cady, Legal Director for Cascadia Wildlands to talk with me about the lawsuit, why he thinks the BLM is unfit to manage public land, and why he is so optimistic about defeating Trump’s maximum logging agenda.
I would love to hear your thoughts, email me anytime at coastrangeradio@gmail.com
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Unless you frequent the same activist email listservs I do, you may have no idea that, completely aside from the Trump administration’s assault on public lands, there is a bill quietly making its way through congress that would privatize and clearcut over one hundred thousand acres Alaska’s Tongass National Forest.
Seems like a pretty obvious bill for environmentalists and allied congress people to oppose. But there’s a twist.
The bill, called the Alaska Native Landless Equity Act, or simply the “Landless Bill”, would transfer the land to Alaska Native Corporations, and is being billed as a form of Land Back by Alaska’s congressional delegation.
But is it? Or is this just a disguised form of extractivist colonialism?
I truly did not know what to make of the Landless Bill, so I invited Tlingit elder and activist Wanda Culp and Joshua Wright from the Legacy Forest Defense Coalition to talk me through why they oppose this bill, the short film they made about it, and other attempts to privatize public lands in Alaska.
I would love to hear what you think! The show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com.
https://www.wlfdc.org/land-less-film
https://www.wlfdc.org/the-landless-bill
https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/target-on-tongass-the-wildest-national-forest-may-soon-lose-its-protections/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
How did the majestic forests of the Pacific Northwest come to be?
That may seem like an esoteric question, but if we want to know how to protect and steward them as we enter the chaotic era of the climate crisis, it’s a question worth asking
New research by University of Oregon researcher James Johnston is upending a big part of the conventional wisdom around the key role fire plays in the lifecycle of our forests. James is an Assistant Research Professor in U of O’s Institute for Resilient Organizations, Communities, and Environments.
This is a surprisingly fun and fascinating dive into the ecology and politics of forest stewardship on westside forests!
Special thanks to Beth Sheppard for co-hosting today's episode.
Show Notes:
https://www.klcc.org/environment/2026-02-08/university-of-oregon-research-overturns-long-held-ideas-about-forest-fires-in-the-western-cascades
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecs2.70474
https://morethanjustparks.substack.com/p/breaking-trump-administration-orders
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
*As I’m recording this in mid-April, we are coming out of the one of the warmest and driest winters on record in the Pacific northwest, and snowpack is at catastrophically low levels.
Add in the Trump administration’s intentional sabotage and decimation of FEMA, the Forest Service, NOAA, and other federal agencies, and it is hard not to think that we are in for an unprecedented fire season.
Aside from the threat of homes and communities burning, and smoke potentially blanketing vast swaths of the country for months, we in the conservation and climate communities need to prepare for all out propaganda blitz from the timber industry and their allied politicians as they use people’s fear to open up public lands for industrial extraction.
Wildfire is a fact of nature, and we do have to learn again to coexist with it. But far too often environmentalists focus only on the science, ignoring or downplaying the lived experience and real fears the general public has.*
*It’s not enough to be right. We need to be more strategic about the stories we tell and what we focus on. And that is what today’s show is all about.
The Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance has just released a new wildfire messaging guide designed to cut through the confusion and misinformation about fire, offering simple and effective messaging to reframe the wildfire narrative in a way that centers forest health and community safety over backcountry logging interventions.
Alex Budd is an organizer with the forest climate alliance and one of the main authors of the new guide, and he joined me to talk through it.*
Links:
https://forestclimatealliance.squarespace.com/wildfire-guide
Roads increase risks of wildfires:
Home Hardening Tips: https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/hardening-your-home/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m so excited to be back with a new interview after taking a little time off.
Unfortunately, there is no shortage of bad news to come back to, but as ever, I am inspired by all the great work being done by activists and organizations to fight for a better world.
One of those people is Len Montgomery, Director of Environment America's Great Outdoors Campaign and one of the leaders of the coalition to protect the Roadless Rule.
Len has been working tirelessly to hold the line against the Trump administration’s assault on public lands, and one the the most important fights is the campaign to save the Roadless Rule, which protects tens of millions of acres from commercial extraction.
Since you are reading this anyway, please consider leaving the show a rating and review so more folks can find the show! As always, my email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com.
Show Notes:
Roadless Area Maps:
-
https://oregonwild.org/resource/oregon-inventoried-roadless-areas-interactive-map/
-
https://outdooralliance.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/basic/index.html?appid=bffb3fe5fdfb43519a84c6a0cf4f8ff5
More roads cause more fires: https://www.wilderness.org/sites/default/files/media/file/Summary%20NFS%20roads%20fire%20paper%20-%202025.pdf
Roadless Area Conservation Act: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3930/text/ih?overview=closed&format=xml
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Dr. Robert Michael Pyle is a pioneer and legend in invertebrate conservation research and advocacy, as well as an accomplished author and poet. In 1971, he founded the Xerces Society, which has grown into the most influential invertebrate conservation organization in the world.
He is also the author of many books of prose and poetry, and a great storyteller. This is part one of our conversation, part two will be out next week.
This episode was researched and co-hosted by Coast Range Radio volunteer, Griffin Reim!
Show Notes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Michael_Pyle
https://www.xerces.org/
Where Bigfoot Walks: Crossing the Dark Divide: https://www.counterpointpress.com/dd-product/where-bigfoot-walks/
The Dark Divide: darkdividefilm.com
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
The word fascism gets tossed around a lot these days, but what does that term even mean, and what does it mean to call, for instance, the Trump regime fascist as opposed to, or in addition to, authoritarian, or autocratic? And what about terms like eco-fascism or petro-fascism?
Last fall I interviewed University of Oregon Professor Sarah Wald and we touched on the term ‘eco-fascism’. That sent me down a bit of a rabbit hole on that term and the dangerous myths that many environmentalists may be unwittingly buying into.
Sarah was kind enough to connect me with the Anti-Creep Climate Initiative, a collective working to expose eco-fascism ideas and myths that permeate our culture and media.
Maybe this sounds like an esoteric subject, but I think it has real world importance, because our beliefs and actions are often shaped by stories and myths that are so subconsciously ingrained in us, they become like the air we breathe.
My guests are two of the co-founders of the Anti-Creep Initiative, co-presidents of the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment, and professors at the University of Connecticut, April Anson and Alex Menrisky.
Send me an electronic mail sometime at coastrangeradio@gmail.com and let me know what you think of the show!
Show notes:
- https://english.uconn.edu/person/alex-menrisky/
- https://april-anson.com/
- https://www.upress.umn.edu/9781517918682/everyday-ecofascism/
- https://www.asle.org/wp-content/uploads/Against-the-Ecofascist-Creep.pdf
- https://spencersunshine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/40ways.print_.pdf
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Today I’m featuring the second half of my conversation with author, speaker, entrepreneur, and wearer of many more hats, Jamie Workman.
Jamie is most recently the co-author, along with Environmental Defense Fund executive director, Amanda Leland, of the new book, “Sea Change: Unlikely Allies and a Success Story of Oceanic Proportions”, which highlights the under reported success of collaborative, rights-based management in restoring decimated oceanic ecosystems, and the human communities who rely on them, around the world.
It’s an inspiring story. and you can learn all about it in part one of our conversation.
Today in part two, we get into other aspects of his work, including so-called water credit trading systems, his experience as a wildland firefighter and how that shapes his work on bringing more fire (and chainsaws) back to forests, and whether we should, in his words, “Own The Wild”.
Show Notes:
https://www.jamesworkman.com/
https://www.edf.org/sea-change
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Of all the myriad harms modern society is inflicting on our oceans, overfishing is right up there with climate change itself as one of the biggest threats to both marine ecosystems and the billions of people who rely on seafood as a major source of nutrition and income.
The authors of the new book, “Sea Change: unlikely allies and a success story of oceanic proportions”, argue that there is a proven policy that has been working around the globe to rebuild fish populations while also creating sustainable and economically just commercial fisheries.
My guest today is Sea Change co-author, Jamie Workman. Jamie is an activist, author of multiple books, a speechwriter to U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, and an all around raconteur.
Jamie and I covered so much ground (or water??) that I am breaking our conversation into two parts.
In part one, we go deep on the devastating impacts of overfishing and why he believes that a collaborative, rights based approach is the path towards recovery and sustainability.
In part two, we’ll get into other aspects of his work, including so-called water credit trading systems, his experience as a wildland firefighter and how that shapes his work on bringing more fire (and chainsaws) back to forests, and whether we should, in his words, “Own The Wild”.
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I have been a vocal critic of the so called “Fix our Forests Act” or FOFA, that is making its way through Congress. I think it is a cynical, bad faith bill that at best, doesn’t address the wildfire issues it purports to solve, and could actually make those issues much worse.
Combined with the attempt to repeal the ‘roadless rule’, which protects vast swaths of public lands from road construction and extraction, and the Trump administration’s Executive Orders on dramatically increasing timber production on public lands, I fear we are in danger of the kind of rampant ecosystem destruction that we haven’t seen since the darkest days of the timber wars.
And I am not alone. The vast majority of environmental and conservation organizations are fiercely opposed to FOFA.
So I was really surprised to see some organizations that I respect lobby hard in support of the bill. One of those orgs is Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a non partisan climate advocacy group that I respect and have worked with before.
I think that disagreeing respectfully and really listening to conflicting perspectives is a key part of civic engagement in a pluralistic society, so I invited them to come on the show and talk through the bill and some of our differences.
Before we get started, I would love to hear from you, yes you! Send me an email sometime at coastrangeradio@gmail.com
Show Notes:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/471
https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1462
https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/fix-our-forests-name-only
Benefits of Home Hardening for Wildfire
https://grist.org/wildfires/logging-doesnt-prevent-wildfires-but-trump-is-trying-anyway/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily
https://citizensclimatelobby.org/blog/policy/our-fix-our-forests-advocacy-in-2025/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
It is plain for anyone to see that the short rotation, financialized plantation management practiced by the Wall Street investors who own the vast majority of private timberland is destroying our communities and ecosystems.
Coast Range Radio has been highlighting the need for an alternative model of forest management that sustains both economies and ecosystems for years. So when I heard about today’s guest’s research into community forests, I was all ears.
Alexander Harris is the Land and Water policy manager at the bellingham based non-profit ReSources. Alexander recently completed a graduate program in Environmental Policy at Western Washington University, where his research explored how community-driven forest stewardship can help restore watersheds.
(Originally aired 2/26/24)
Research Links/Show Notes:Restoring The Nooksak Through Community-Driven Forest Stewardship: https://cedar.wwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2151&context=wwuet
Referenced in this episode:
https://www.nwcommunityforests.org/
https://stewartmountaincf.org/
https://nisquallylandtrust.org/our-lands-and-projects/nisqually-community-forest
https://www.dnr.wa.gov/Teanaway
https://co.chelan.wa.us/natural-resources/pages/nason-ridge-community-forest
https://www.sightline.org/profile/kate-anderson/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBKlofDmdpo&pp=ygUOamVycnkgZnJhbmtsaW4%3D
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Today we’re joined by Nathan Daniel, Executive Director of the Great Peninsula Conservancy. Nathan has helped guide some of the most ambitious conservation work going on in Western Washington - specifically on Kitsap Peninsula, the forested lowlands between Seattle and the Olympic mountains.
Big thanks to Andy Shoemaker for co-hosting this episode!
https://greatpeninsula.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Are Amazon data centers fueling a water contamination crisis in Eastern Oregon
Rolling Stone recently published a major investigative piece asking that question. But Amazon is far from the only major corporation polluting the drinking water of Morrow County residents, and this crisis has been going on for decades.
Oregon Rural Action has been organizing in and advocating for communities in Eastern Oregon for years. They were heavily quoted in that Rolling Stone article, and they have been a strong voice on this, and other environmental justice issues.
So I’m delighted to be joined by Kaleb Lay, ORA’s research and policy director, and Zaira Sanchez, director of community organizing.
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Is the conservation movement being as effective as we need to be?
This is a moment in time when so much is on the line, and we need to act not just boldly and quickly, but wisely and strategically.
To discuss all of this and more, my guest today is Mitch Friedman, founder and Executive Director of Conservation Northwest, and the author of a brand new memoir: “Conservation Confidential: A Wild Path to a Less Polarizing and More Effective Activism.”
Conservation Confidential is a highly engaging story about Mitch’s activism journey and a provocative exploration of his philosophies around what effective activism and strategy looks like.
I found myself both agreeing and arguing with those philosophies, which, alongside some charismatic storytelling, made for a great read.
I’m so excited to speak with Mitch today, and I hope you’ll let me know what you think of this conversation.
Our show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime!
Show notes:
https://conservationnw.org/
https://www.latahbooks.com/conservation-confidential
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Should we be logging our drinking watersheds to protect them? That’s the question for residents of Walla Walla Washington, whose pristine drinking water comes off of National Forest land.
The Forest Service is planning to a major and multi-faceted project with the stated purpose of protecting Walla Walla’s drinking water from wildfire.
But what about the impacts of road building and commercial logging in intact, native forest?
These questions over how and whether to use so called “active management” to mitigate fire risk grow more relevant every year, and there is a growing body of evidence that, in many cases, the Forest Service is not coming up with the right answers.
My guest today is Paul Lynn, a Walla Walla based mycology business owner turned community organizer. Paul has been creatively working to bring his community together to oppose commercial logging within the Walla Walla watershed, and I’m delighted to talk with him.
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please let me know what you think of the show!
Show Notes:
https://substack.com/@wallawallawatershed
theconfluenceseries.org
https://www.fungaia.life/ethos/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
By now, many, if not most of you have heard that ICE has been secretly planning to build some kind of jail or detention facility in Newport here on the Oregon Coast.
The community pushback has been immediate, fierce, inspiring, and seemingly successful, at least so far.
This is a developing story, and only one skirmish in a wider war to protect our communities from these masked and lawless thugs.
The Newport City Council has been proactive, out front, and clear in their staunch opposition to ICE, so I invited Newport Mayor Jan Kaplan on to the show to talk through what’s going on with the facility, the huge groundswell of resistance, and what comes next.
Note: this interview was recorded on the morning on November 17th.
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, I would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, guest ideas, all of that.
Show Notes:
https://lincolnchronicle.org/evidence-mounts-for-possible-immigration-detention-center-in-newport-as-two-companies-advertise-for-work-there/
https://lincolnchronicle.org/my-dad-was-picked-up-sept-17-newport-girl-tells-packed-council-hearing-on-how-immigration-sweep-has-affected-her-family/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
My guest today is Britney Van Citters, Political and Organizing Director at the Oregon League of Conservation Voters.
Britney joins to discuss how the Environmental Protection Agency is being refashioned into the Environmental Destruction Agency, OLCV’s legislative Scorecard, and what we can do to push Oregon legislators to meet this moment of overlapping crises with real action.
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, I would love to hear what you think of the show!
Show Notes:
- https://www.olcvscorecard.org/2025/
- www.olcv.org/
- https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-launches-biggest-deregulatory-action-us-history
- https://www.npr.org/2025/07/29/nx-s1-5463771/epa-greenhouse-gas-regulations-cars-pollution
- https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2025/09/29/oregon-senate-votes-on-4-3-billion-transportation-package/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m joined today by filmmaker Jesse Andrew Clark, to talk about his recent documentary, “Free to Grow”.
Free to Grow uses deeply personal first person storytelling to highlight the harms of herbicide spraying on industrial timberlands in the Northwest.
Show Notes:
https://www.oldgrovefilms.com/forest-stories
https://www.opb.org/news/article/blm-investigates-after-company-sprays-pesticide-on-public-land-without-license/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
My guest today is University of Oregon professor and longtime activist, Sarah Wald. Sarah is the author of multiple books, and as you’ll hear today, a profound thinker on a wide variety of issues concerning the conservation and environmental justice communities.
This is one of my favorite conversations I’ve ever had on this show, in part because Sarah was so game to explore some really complicated points of tension within our movements. I definitely learned a lot, and was happy to have some of my beliefs and understandings challenged.
The show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime with guest ideas, feedback, your harshest criticisms, or if you’re interested in helping make this show!
Research Links/Show Notes:
Referenced:
- Tradeoff Denialism: https://scholarship.law.columbia.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4885&context=faculty_scholarship
- Bill McKibben on tradeoffs and the promise of renewables: https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/wind-and-solar-will-require-mining-but-not-as-much-as-fossil-fuels-bill-mckibben-sun-day
Sarah's Recommendations:
- The Anti-Creep Climate Initiative’s zine, Against the Ecofascist Creep.
- Olivia Aguilar, A Latine Outdoor Experience: Remembering, Resisting, and Reimagining (2025)
- Carolyn Finney, Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoors (2014)
- Jessica Hernandez, Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes through Indigenous Science (2022)
- Tao Leigh Goffe, Dark Laboratory: On Columbus, the Caribbean, and the Origins of the Climate Crisis (2025)
- Tiya Miles, Wild Girls: How the Outdoors Shaped the Women Who Challenged a Nation (2023)
- Alexander Menrisky, Everyday Ecofascism: Crisis and Consumption in American Literature (2025)
- Kyle Powys Whyte “Against Crisis Epistemology” in Handbook of Critical Indigenous Studies (2021)
- Kyle Powys White, “Our Ancestors’ Dystopia Now: Indigenous Conservation and the Anthropocene” in the Routledge Companion to the Environmental Humanities (2017)
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
As I’ve talked about on this show before, the Trump administration is using every tool available to target public lands and our mature and old-growth forests (along with, of course, democracy, basic human rights, any shred of protection against corporate oligarchy, etc etc. But this is primarily a show about northwest conservation and climate, so as much as I want to rant about all the things, I’m going to keep it focused!)
As we gear up for a new round of the Timber Wars, I’ve been thinking a lot about the elders and unsung heroes of our community. Even as the fight ahead presents new challenges, we have a lot to learn from the OGs of the environmental and forest defense movements, and aside from that, they deserve to be celebrated!
So I’m excited be interviewing some of those folks over the next few months in an occasional series I'm calling "heroes of the forest".
First up, my guest today is Francis Eatherington. Francis has been defending our northwest rainforests for decades, and I’m honored to have the chance to talk with her and learn from her wisdom and experience.
For our radio audience, you can hear the second half of our conversation on the Coast Range Radio podcast feed.
The show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime with guest ideas, feedback, or if you’re interested in helping make this show!
Francis' trailcam youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@WOWTrailCam
Francis' Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/umpquawild/page7/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I don’t have to tell anyone how bleak things look at the federal level. Here in the Pacific Northwest, if we’re being honest, there is not a lot that we can do at the moment to influence federal policy.
But when it comes to climate and the environment, I’ve always been a little ambivalent about how much can be done at the state and local level.
I want to be clear, local activism and organizing are incredibly important, and that’s where most of us can make the most difference. But even there, we run into issues. For instance, where I live in Lincoln County, voters passed a ban on aerial herbicide spraying in 2017, but that was overturned by a state court.
So how can we actually make a difference at the state and local level?
My guest today is Maya Van Rossum. Maya is, among many other things, the founder of the Green Amendment movement and the author of the book, The Green Amendment.
She makes a pretty compelling case for why passing state level constitutional rights to a healthy environment, also known as a Green Amendment, would be a powerful tool for climate and environmental justice, and I honored to have her join us.
As always, the show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime with feedback, show ideas, hot takes, or whatever else is on your mind!
Learn more about the Green Amendment: https://forthegenerations.org/
Oregon: https://www.oceraunited.org/
Washington: https://wagreenamendment.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
We’re heading East today!
Oregon’s Blue Mountains encompass some of the most beautiful landscapes and habitats anywhere. Within the Blue’s 15,000 square miles, you’ll find such Oregon gems as the John Day river, the Eagle Cap wilderness, Hell’s Canyon, and a huge percentage of Oregon’s forests.
But because they are geographically isolated from major population centers, they often don’t get the recognition they deserve.
That remoteness also makes them vulnerable to resource extraction. And right now, the Forest Service, which manages millions of acres of public land within the Blues, is revising their management plan under the most environmentally hostile administration in my lifetime.
To learn more about this special part of Oregon, and how to defend it, I’m joined today by Paula Hood, co-director of the Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project.
And as I mentioned last week, I am looking for volunteers to help with produce the show! That means help hosting, researching, editing, whatever! No experience necessary.
To learn more, or if you have feedback, guest ideas, etc, you can email coastrangeradio@gmail.com.
Show Notes:
BMBP Action Alert: https://bluemountainsbiodiversityproject.org/2025/09/06/action-alert-for-blue-mountains-forest-plan-revision-scoping-comments/
BMBP Vision for the Blues: https://bluemountainsbiodiversityproject.org/2025/08/04/an-overarching-vision-for-the-blue-mountains-forest-plan-revision/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
My guest today is author and journalist, Paul Koberstein. I spoke with Paul in 2024 about a book he co-authored called “Canopy of Titans: The Life and Times of the Great North American Temperate Rainforest”.
I recently read a great new article of his entitled “Greenwashing in the Evergreen State”, exploring how an industry funded quasi-academic entity got the Democratically controlled Washington State Legislature to endorse industrial logging as beneficial for the climate.
I’m a sucker for exposing industry greenwashing, so I’m delighted to have Paul back on the show to talk about his deep dive into the shady world of the Consortium for Research on Renewable Industrial Materials, or CORRIM, as we will be referring to them throughout the show.
Are interested in radio and/or podcasting?? I am looking for volunteers to help with produce the show! That means help hosting, researching, editing, whatever! No experience necessary.
To learn more, or if you have feedback, guest ideas, etc, you can email coastrangeradio@gmail.com.
Show Notes:
Greenwashing in the Evergreen State: https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/magazine/entry/the-logging-lobby-in-the-evergreen-state##
Canopy of Titans: https://www.orbooks.com/catalog/canopy-of-titans/?mc_cid=6d93e8f667&mc_eid=UNIQID
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
If you’re hearing this before September 19th, I need you to do me a favor: the Trump administration is attempting to eliminate a policy called the “Roadless Rule”, which would open tens of millions of acres of vibrant forests and public land to industrial logging and mining.
The Forest Service is accepting public comment on the plan to eliminate the Roadless Rule until September 19th, and it is important that we flood them with comments and petitions to leave these critical forests and ecosystems intact!
And look, I’m not going to pretend like our comments are going to stop the Trump administration.
But they serve multiple other critical functions, like strengthening resistance within the Forest Service, de-legitimizing the administration’s actions, bolstering lawsuits, and laying the groundwork for stronger protections in the future.
To learn more about the Roadless Rule and how to take action, I’m sharing a really well done presentation by the Oregon Chapter of the Sierra Club and Representative Andrea Salinas.
Thanks to Kai McMurtry and the Oregon Sierra Club for sharing this presentation, please check out the great work that they are doing throughout the state!
You can find all action links and resources in the show notes of the podcast feed, or by connecting with the Sierra Club or your favorite conservation org. I personally think that Cascadia Wildlands action page is very simple and straightforward, and you can find that at cascwild.org or bit.ly/cascadiaroadlessrule.
Show Notes:
- Interactive Roadless Areas Map: https://tetontopo-roadless-map.vercel.app/
- https://www.sierraclub.org/oregon/subscribe-oregon-climate-action-corps
- H.R.3930 - Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2025: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3930/cosponsors?r=1&s=4&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22hr+3930%22%7D
- Cascadia Wildlands Action Alert: https://cascwild.org/actions/defend-the-roadless-rule-act-now-against-trumps-reckless-plan-to-punch-roads-and-log-through-protected-public-lands/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I just got back from a really amazing backpacking trip in the wilderness of Wyoming, and I’ve been reflecting on how nature, wilderness, sacred lands, whatever you want to call them, have always been a source of refuge, spiritual rejuvenation, and healing for humans.
But a question I and so many others are grappling with right now is, how do we continue to find inspiration and healing in a world that is being so deeply harmed.
My guest today is author, travel writer, and speaker, Adam Sawyer. Adam is leading a series of facilitated discussions through the Oregon Humanities Project around grieving in nature and addiction recovery in nature.
Adam talks and writes openly and beautifully about how nature helped heal him on his journey through addiction and grieving, and I am thankful to be able to share this conversation with you all.
I love hearing feedback, guest ideas, or just a hello, and you can reach me at coastrangeradio@gmail.com or on the coast range radio instagram feed.
Show Notes:
https://adamsawyer.substack.com
https://adamsawyer.com/
https://oregonhumanities.org/programs/conversation-project/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Just keeping up with the Trump administration’s all out war against our environment is exhausting. Fortunately, we in the northwest are blessed with incredible activists, organizers, and more relevant to today, environmental attorneys to help us understand the attacks so we can fight back effectively.
One of the best of those attorneys is Brenna Bell, formerly of 350pdx and now with the Crag Law Center. This episode features a recent presentation Brenna gave along with Lauren Anderson of Oregon Wild and Grace Brahler from Cascadia Wildlands.
They covered the seismic changes happening via the Executive Branch, including to the National Environmental Policy Act, how the definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act has changed to dramatically limit protections for species, and a lot more.
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m delighted to be joined today by Rebecca Heisman, freelance journalist and the author of “Flight Paths: how a passionate and quirky group of pioneering scientists solved the mystery of bird migration”.
Flight Paths is a fascinating and engaging deep dive into the history and science of bird migration research, and how understanding bird migration matters for effective conservation efforts.
My 'emailbox' is always open coastrangeradio@gmail.com, drop me a line with show ideas, guest suggestions, scathing criticisms, or whatever :)
Research Links:
https://rebeccaheisman.com/
https://therevelator.org/trump-vs-birds/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m off this week, so you’re going to hear the second half of one of my favorite interviews, with author and activist Rand Schenk, which I first released in July of 2024.
I loved this conversation, but I feel like it needs a little context at this point, since 2024 seems like a millenia ago, and the fierce arguments forest defenders and policy makers were having about forest management now seem like friendly disagreements.
Obviously our politics have undergone a cascadia megathrust level shift since I recorded this interview, and the politics and management of public lands is very much caught up in that devastation.
Some of the topics we covered, like to what extent the forest service is acting in good vs bad faith feel like moot points, and others, like Biden’s Mature and Old Growth Rule and the Northwest Forest Plan amendment, have been scrapped entirely.
With that said, Rand’s book about the history of the Forest Service is just as relevant today, and gives some important perspective on the changing nature of how we value forests.
And I’d like to think that our conversation still holds some relevance as well, but that’s for you to judge.
Speaking of judging, let me know your verdict on the the show! My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, and all of our episodes are available for free on any podcast app.
I am also so grateful to be carried on community radio stations across Oregon and even into Washington. I make this show for free, but local media needs your support now more than ever, so please donate to your community radio station, subscribe to your local paper if you have one, and if you have any goodwill left over, tell your friends about Coast Range Radio.
Finally, stay tuned at the end of the show for a song I recorded a while back with my band, The Road Sodas. If you like it, you can download our music for free at https://www.theroadsodas.com/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
(I’m off this week, so I’m featuring one of my favorite interviews, which I first released in July of 2024. I hope you like it!)
Today’s episode is part one of a two part interview with Rand Schenk, author of a fascinating and timely new history of the Forest Service, its founder, Gifford Pinchot, and over 100 years of forest management and mismanagement in the Pacific Northwest.
The book, “Forest Under Siege: The Story of Old Growth After Gifford Pinchot”, explores the Forest Service’s progressive populist origins, how it abandoned its founding mission of conservation and drove our old growth forests to the brink of extinction, and how, or if, the agency is entering a new restoration ecology era.
Forest Under Siege is available at local bookstores throughout the northwest, and you can order a copy online by searching for Forest Under Siege.
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m recording this in the aftermath of what I consider a largely failed Legislative session in Oregon and the passage of what will likely be remembered as one of the most extreme and destructive pieces of legislation in modern history at the federal level, aka the One Big Bill.
On the state level, Democrats failed to pass their major priority, a much needed transportation funding overhaul, despite having supermajorities in both chambers, and also failed on a number of other legislative fronts.
I plan to devote multiple episodes in the coming weeks and months on Oregon (and hopefully Washington) politics, but this episode is going to focus on the disaster that is the current federal administration and ruling party.
Today’s episode is a recording of a presentation by members of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance (PNWFCA) untangling the nefarious and overlapping schemes and policies designed to privatize and clearcut our public lands.
Speakers:
- Alex Budd, Coordinator for the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance
- Lauren Anderson, Climate Forest Program Manager, Oregon Wild
- Lia Brewster, Conservation Campaign Strategist, Sierra Club
- Katie Bilodeau, Staff Attorney, Wilderness Watch
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Earlier this year, I did an episode on the Legacy Forest Defense Campaign in Washington.
Since then, that campaign has only heated up, and in May, activists took to the forests in the Olympic peninsula to set up tree sits and road blockades in protest of State Land timber sales in the Elwha Watershed.
To learn more about protecting the Elwha watershed, Earth Law philosophy, and more, I’m delighted to be joined by Elizabeth Dunne, the director of legal advocacy for the Earth Law Center.
Coast Range Radio is free on all podcasts apps, and the show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out and let me know what you think of the show!
And quick note: this conversation was recorded on June 13th, so check out elwhalegacyforests.org for timely updates!
Show Notes:
https://www.earthlawcenter.org/elwha-legacy-forests
https://elwhalegacyforests.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
One of the things I try to do on this show is get away from the binary good vs bad framing that so many of us fall into, and explore the messy complexities and grey areas within the environmental and conservation movement here in the northwest. That’s why I enjoyed today’s conversation so much.
My guest today is Tabatha Rood. Tabatha is a former Forest Service National Environmental Policy Act planner and currently leads the Wild Rivers Coast Forest Collaborative in Southwest Oregon.
As a former Forest Service project planner and collaborative leader, Tabatha brings a set of experiences and perspectives that are often missing in our broader dialogues.
As you’ll hear, Tabatha and I didn’t agree on everything in our conversation, and there were a number of topics that we didn’t have time to go as deep on as I would have liked. But I really appreciated her willingness to engage with me on some thorny topics, and I found her perspectives really valuable.
As always, Coast Range Radio is free on all podcast apps, which is a great way to share this episode.
We are also broadcast on community radio stations across the northwest. A lot of them are struggling right now, and I cannot ask strongly enough that you support local, independent media!
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, let me know what you think of the show!
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
I’m willing to bet that most Oregonians don’t know who our State Treasurer is, much less what the State Treasury does.
But we should. The office of State Treasurer, currently Elizabeth Steiner by the way, is a powerful position, and invests a huge amount of public money.
How that money is invested matters, and it really matters that our public dollars and pension funds are deeply invested in the fossil fuel industry.
The statewide coalition Divest Oregon has been calling out the treasury’s dirty investments for several years now, and they’ve also put out policy proposals, research, and legislation to shift our investments to help foster a clean energy economy.
I’m delighted to talk with two of their members today about the work they do, how it affects all Oregonians, and how to help.
As always, Coast Range Radio is free on all podcast apps, which is a great way to share this episode. My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, let me know what you think of the show!
Show Notes:
https://www.divestoregon.org/The-Pause-Act--2025
https://www.divestoregon.org/2025-climate-risk-review
https://www.green529.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
An absolute gem of a conversation with Oregon author M.L. Herring about her new book, “Born of Fire and Rain: Journey Into a Pacific Coastal Forest”.
Born of Fire and Rain is one of the best books I’ve ever read on our bioregion. It is a masterfully guided hike through virtually every aspect of the Pacific Coastal rainforests, seamlessly weaving in geology, ecology, timber politics, personal narrative, and more into a beautiful tapestry of this place we call home.
M.L. is the pen name of Oregon State University professor emerita Peg Herring, and I am so delighted have her on the show today.
Before we get started, I have to give my usual housekeeping: Coast Range Radio is free on all podcast apps, which is a great way to share this episode with a friend or two!
And the show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, reach out anytime with thoughts or show ideas!
Born of Fire and Rain is available at bookstores throughout the northwest, or check out:
https://www.mlherring.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Today’s episode is all about one of the most charismatic of all charismatic megafauna, the sea otter! Sea otters are a crucial part of nearshore marine ecosystems, but they were wiped out along the Oregon coast over 100 years ago.
The Elakha Alliance has been working tirelessly for years to bring them back, and I’m so excited to be joined by Jane Bacchieri and Chanel Hason to learn more.
As a note, we did an episode with Elakha co-founder Bob Bailey a few years ago, but I’ve been wanting to check back in with them for a while now.
As always, the show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please reach out anytime!
Show Notes:
https://www.elakhaalliance.org/
https://www.elakhaalliance.org/siletz-tribe-receives-major-grant-to-aid-tribes-in-returning-sea-otters-to-oregon-and-northern-california/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
As of this recording on May 6th, we are well into the 2025 Oregon Legislative session. And I, like many others, am still struggling to find a coherent throughline to the session.
And many climate justice advocates are increasingly wondering whether Oregon’s Democratic led government has given up on meaningful climate action. But there is still a lot that can happen in the next two months of the legislative session, and your voice really does matter.
To walk me through where things stand, and where we as citizens can make the greatest impact this session, I’m joined by my old boss, State Representative Mark Gamba.
Mark Gamba represents Oregon’s House District 41, which encompasses Milwaukie and parts of Southeast Portland. He is also one of Oregon’s most outspoken climate advocates, and one of my favorite returning guests.
As always, if you appreciate Coast Range Radio, which is now completely independent, please help me out by recommending or sharing an episode with two friends!
The show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, please let me know what you think of the show!
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
All of us in the northwest love our ocean, but we often don’t show it the love that it truly deserves.
Ocean conservation is chronically underfunded and under prioritized, but the newly formed Oregon Ocean Alliance is aiming to change that and bring much needed attention and resources to our ocean and coastal ecosystems.
To talk about all of that and more, I’m joined by two great guests, Annie Merrill of Oregon Shores, and Joe Liebezeit with Bird Alliance of Oregon. They are also co-chairs of the Oregon Ocean Alliance.
The show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com. Reach out anytime!
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Biomass energy, that is, burning pelletized wood for electricity generation, is a classic false climate solution. It has been devastating forests and communities in the Southeast for years, and the Biomass industry is dead set on expanding into the Pacific Northwest.
We did a deep dive into Biomass a couple of years ago, which you can find in the Coast Range Radio podcast feed.
But with the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans (along with some Democrats) attempting to gut protections for forests, now is a good time to learn from activists in the South and check in on the state of Biomass here in the Northwest.
So I’m joined by two amazing guests, Dr Treva Gear with The Dogwood Alliance, and Brenna Bell of 350PDX.
While you’re here, please make sure you're subscribed, and consider leaving us a nice review on your podcast app!
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, reach out anytime with questions, feedback, or just to say hi.
Show Notes:
https://dogwoodalliance.org/
https://350pdx.org/ax-drax/
https://www.nobigbiomasspnw.org/
"Burned: Are Trees the New Coal?" - https://burnedthemovie.com/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Note: This is the second part of the interview that didn't make it into the radio version. The podcast version includes the entire interview.
Biomass energy, that is, burning pelletized wood for electricity generation, is a classic false climate solution. It has been devastating forests and communities in the Southeast for years, and the Biomass industry is dead set on expanding into the Pacific Northwest.
We did a deep dive into Biomass a couple of years ago, which you can find in the Coast Range Radio podcast feed.
But with the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans (along with some Democrats) attempting to gut protections for forests, now is a good time to learn from activists in the South and check in on the state of Biomass here in the Northwest.
So I’m joined by two amazing guests, Dr Treva Gear with The Dogwood Alliance, and Brenna Bell of 350PDX.
While you’re here, please make sure you're subscribed, and consider leaving us a nice review on your podcast app!
My email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, reach out anytime with questions, feedback, or just to say hi.
Show Notes:
https://dogwoodalliance.org/
https://350pdx.org/ax-drax/
https://www.nobigbiomasspnw.org/
"Burned: Are Trees the New Coal?" - https://burnedthemovie.com/
Support the show
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
This show has been pretty Oregon-centric, but I’m told there is a large landmass just north of us that also has a lot of amazing people doing environmental and climate justice work.
So I’m putting my Oregon bias aside for today to learn more about one of the most exciting and effective climate forest campaigns in the Pacific Northwest - Washington Legacy Forest Defense Campaign!
To find out what a legacy forest is, and how folks are working to protect them, I’m joined by Joshua Wright with the Washington Legacy Forest Defense Coalition. I’m also joined by Lee First with Twin Harbors Waterkeeper, to learn about the great work they do to protect Washington’s coastal waterways and watersheds.
Please help me out by sharing texting the link to this show to a friend or two (or sharing any other way!). And we have a new instagram page, just in case you're into that sort of thing...
Show Notes:
https://twinharborswaterkeeper.org/
https://www.wlfdc.org/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Today, to celebrate the first independent episode of Coast Range Radio, we are going to try something new!
Sometimes its important to step back and place our work, and ourselves, in a larger context. And even amidst the relentless assaults we are currently facing, I think this is one of those times.
So I am thrilled to be joined by bestselling Oregon author, John Larison, to talk about his transcendent new book, The Ancients. It is, among many other things, a deeply moving allegory on the climate crisis, deep time, and the resilience of life.
More importantly, it is a thrilling and beautiful story, and I cannot recommend it highly enough! The Ancients is available at local bookstores and online.
The new show email is coastrangeradio@gmail.com, reach out anytime with questions, thoughts, and show ideas!
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
On March first, the president issued two executive orders designed to dramatically increase commercial logging on our public lands. These executive orders are bad news on their own, but the situation is actually even more dire.
These orders are part of a decades-long effort by industry, the ultra wealthy, and radical right wing anti-government legislators to privatize our public lands and extract maximum profit for the wealthy few.
And look, I know that there are a million attacks and assaults that are demanding your attention. I’m not here to tell you that forest policy is more or less important than anything else.
But we in the Pacific Northwest have way more agency and influence over our public lands than most of the other battles being waged. And in the age of spiraling climate chaos, any intact or recovering forest that is logged is a forest that may never come back.
Last week, Oregon Wild put on a fantastic webinar where they went into detail on the executive orders, federal legislation, agency sabotage, and other ways that this Republican government is working to destroy our public lands.
But they didn’t stop at the doom and gloom. They talked extensively about a wide variety of actions that we can take to fight back. They were kind enough to let me air clips of that webinar for today’s show.
It was too long to play in its entirety for our format, so unfortunately I wasn’t able to include the sections where they talked about strategies for contacting legislators, using social media, and other tactics. But you can watch the entire webinar here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vO35KTq3CK8
You can also find a really useful activism toolkit they put together at oregonwild.org/activist-toolkit/
What you’re going to hear today is a breakdown of what is happening at the federal level, including with these recent executive orders, and I hope you’ll feel angry and inspired to take action.
Show Notes:
- Webinar on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vO35KTq3CK8
- Oregon Wild Activist Toolkit: https://oregonwild.org/activist-toolkit/
- The public lands privatization game plan: https://www.andykerr.net/kerr-public-lands-blog/2025/2/28/the-monetization-of-public-lands
Trump Timber EOs:
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/immediate-expansion-of-american-timber-production/
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/addressing-the-threat-to-national-security-from-imports-of-timber-lumber/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
The Forest Service is using the threat of wildfires to justify a drastic expansion of commercial logging on our public lands.
That is the contention in an investigative reporting series from Nathan Gilles at Columbia Insight. Many of us in the environmental world have long thought this to be the case, and this series brings the receipts, including internal Forest Service documents, emails, and more.
The Forest Service has received billions of dollars in recent years on top of their normal budget specifically to protect communities from wildfire. If they are using those funds to push commercial logging, they are not only not making communities safer, they may very well be putting communities and forests at greater risk by using methods that increase the risk of high severity fire.
We go deep on Nathan's reporting on the scandal, as well as some of his other science reporting.
*** Quick Reminder to take action to push the Forest Service during the Northwest Forest Plan Amendment comment period. That comment period ends on March 17th, so please take just a few minutes to speak up for our forests. See below for links and resources.
Cascadia Wildlands NWFP Action Page: https://www.cascwild.org/weigh-in-on-the-future-of-northwest-public-forests/
Tribal sign on letter https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdybP5o7aSUBUaBuHV2MpZER54vX-Twmoi72DGJDPqX7jJeNA/viewform
My email is michael@coastrange.org, I love getting feedback and show ideas so drop me line!
Show Notes:
https://nathangilles.com/
USFS investigative pieces
- Part 1 https://columbiainsight.org/exclusive-the-forest-service-is-using-the-threat-of-wildlfires-to-meet-timber-targets/
- Part 2 https://columbiainsight.org/a-mount-hood-forest-fuel-break-project-could-remove-old-growth-trees/
Other Stories
- Assisted Migration Primer: https://columbiainsight.org/what-is-assisted-migration-and-what-are-the-risks/
- Fungi and Assisted Migration: https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/even-trees-need-friends
- How Hot Is Too Hot? https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/magazine/entry/between-hot-drought-and-heat-waves-climate-change-is-killing-trees#%23
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
This episode is part three of our deep dive into the Forest Service’s proposal to amend the Northwest Forest Plan, which covers 24 million acres over 17 nation forests spread across Oregon, Washington, and Northern California.
As I've said before, it is one of the primary reasons we have any intact or recovering forests left in the Pacific Northwest. So, kind of a big deal…
What we haven’t gone in depth with yet is the conservation and environmental perspective. So for a completely non-biased, totally neutral take on the good, the bad, and the “it’s complicated” of the northwest forest plan, and so much more, I’m joined by Grace Brahler, wildlands director at Cascadia Wildlands.
Before we get started, and I’m not about to ask for money, but if you appreciate Coast Range Radio, please help me grow our audience. Thank your local radio station for carrying the show, share your favorite episode with your friends, go on apple podcasts or spotify and give us a 5 star review.
All of those things really do help, and best of all, they are quick and free! And my email is michael@coastrange.org, please reach out anytime with feedback, guest ideas, or just to say hi!
(Note: this episode was produced before Trump's Executive Orders on timber production. We will talk about those in a future episode)
Action Links:
Cascadia Wildlands NWFP Action Page: https://www.cascwild.org/weigh-in-on-the-future-of-northwest-public-forests/
Tribal sign on letter https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdybP5o7aSUBUaBuHV2MpZER54vX-Twmoi72DGJDPqX7jJeNA/viewform
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
We are going to have a couple banger episodes on the Northwest Forest Plan in the coming weeks, but I’m recording this on February 24th, just over one month since Trump’s second term began, and I think we need to step back and take stock for a minute.
Don’t worry, this episode is not going to be all about the dark lord, but the administration’s actions have already had huge consequences here in the Pacific Northwest, so we need to address it.
Most of what Trump and his court of billionaires and white supremacists/facists have done so far has not surprised me, even though it has been every bit as bad as I feared.
But I have to admit, I was caught off guard by how obsessed they have been with DEI.
Since when did concepts like diversity, equity, and inclusion become radical ideas that need to be punished with the full weight of the Federal government? And how are the witchburnings affecting the environment, climate, and social justice movements?
To answer those questions, and to discuss why DEI is so important in the environmental movement, I’m joined by aparna rajagopal.
Aparna is is a self described writer, speaker, agitator, and advisor at the confluence of movements for equity and justice within the outdoor, environmental, and conservation movements.
Before we get started, and I’m not about to ask for money, but if you appreciate Coast Range Radio, please help me grow our audience by sharing your favorite episode with your friends, and go on apple podcasts or spotify and give us a 5 star review.
It really does help, and best of all, it's quick and free!
And my email is michael@coastrange.org, please reach out anytime with feedback, guest ideas, or even a great sourdough recipe!
Show Notes:
https://theavarnagroup.com/2-weeks-in-reflections-recommendations-resources-on-dei/
https://theavarnagroup.com/
https://www.aparnarajagopal.com/
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
This is part two of our series on the Forest Service’s major proposed changes to the Northwest Forest Plan.
As most of our listeners know, the 30 year old Northwest Forest Plan provides critical protections to over 24 million acres of public land in Oregon, Washington, and California.
The Forest Service has proposed sweeping changes to the Plan through their recently released Draft Environmental Impact Statement, or DEIS, and public comment is open until March 17th. The DEIS would, among other things, give them wide latitude to drastically increase industrial scale logging, including in Mature and Old Growth forests.
In part one of this series, we explored one most important, and also complex, aspects of the proposed changes - meaningful Tribal inclusion. I highly recommend you listen to that episode if you haven’t yet. You can find wherever you're listening to this episode!
We are going to focus on two other key components of the plan, fire, and the fight to protect mature and old growth forests, in upcoming episodes. And in the meantime, you can find guides on how to submit comments to the Forest Service in the links below.
Today we are going to explore an often overlooked issue in the Northwest Forest Plan, and Forestry in general - Labor. And more specifically, the exploitation of immigrant labor in our forests and timberlands.
I’m joined by Manuel Machado from Oregon State University. Manuel has done a lot of research into labor issues and exploitation of workers in the forestry sector.
Comment Writing Guides!
- Northwest Forest Plan DEIS Engagement toolkit: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MOAORP7b1YenBZsZj27qfBJiJU4b6oXAX6vXKtqdQ-w/edit?usp=sharing
- Recommendations for Tribal Sovereignty and Environmental Justice in the Northwest Forest Plan Amendment Draft Environmental Impact Statement: https://blogs.uoregon.edu/nwfpjustfutures/resource-guide-for-making-public-comment/
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The Northwest Forest Plan is one of the primary reasons that we have any forest left in the Northwest. Without it, and other protections that are now also at risk because of the Trump administration, our public lands would look no different than the industrial clearcuts and monocrop tree plantations that surround me in the Coast Range.
In December, the Forest Service released its planned amendment to the Northwest Forest Plan in what is called a ‘Draft Environmental Impact Statement’, or DEIS, and we the public have until March 17th to submit comments on their proposal.
We are going to release several episodes focusing on the good, the bad, and complexities of the Forest Service’s proposed changes, and we’ll provide as much guidance as possible for how to submit comments and get involved in other ways.
You can find guides to submit comments in the notes of the podcast version of this episode, and we will also be sharing links to comment writing guides on our website and social media very soon!
For now, I’m so excited to start this mini-series off with Ryan Reed. Ryan is from the Karuk, Hupa and Yurok tribes in Northern California, an Indigenous Fire Practitioner, wildland firefighter, co-founder of the Fire Generation Collaborative, and a member of the Northwest Forest Plan Federal Advisory Committee, among many other things! Ryan is a thoughtful, dynamic speaker, and I’ve wanted to have him on Coast Range Radio for a long time.
Real quick before we get started, I love to get feedback, questions, show ideas or whatever else is on your mind. My email is michael@coastrange.org. If you appreciate what we do, please share this show with people in your community!
Show Notes:
https://www.firegencollab.org/
https://fusee.org/
Braiding Indigenous and Western Knowledge for Climate-Adapted Forests: https://depts.washington.edu/flame/mature_forests/pdfs/BraidingSweetgrassReport.pdf
Comment Writing Guides!
- Northwest Forest Plan DEIS Engagement toolkit: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MOAORP7b1YenBZsZj27qfBJiJU4b6oXAX6vXKtqdQ-w/edit?usp=sharing
- Recommendations for Tribal Sovereignty and Environmental Justice in the Northwest Forest Plan Amendment Draft Environmental Impact Statement: https://blogs.uoregon.edu/nwfpjustfutures/resource-guide-for-making-public-comment/
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Historic LA wildfires are still smoldering, the Oregon legislature is back in session, a massively controversial plan to drastically amend the northwest forest plan governing management policies on over 20 million acres of our most precious forests barrels forward, and that little matter of he who shall not be named returning to power and confirming that, like most sequels, this one will be worse, and yes, we are in the darkest and dumbest timeline.
With so much to cover, why am I putting out a rerun?
Well, I was all set to put out a brand new episode featuring speakers from a recent University or Oregon Symposium on the hugely consequential topic of Tribal Sovereignty and tribal inclusion in the Northwest forest plan. But we had some last minute scheduling issues and I didn’t have time to arrange a backup interview.
However, the event was amazing and explored some incredibly important, thorny, and inspiring issues, and I hope to bring you a conversation with some of those Tribal voices next episode.
While I work to put together a new set of interviews on the good, the bad, and the ugly of the Northwest Forest Plan draft amendment, including how you can help protect our most treasured forests, I think this is actually a great time to revisit an episode from last year on wildfire myths, facts, and misinformation.
Even if you already listened to this conversation when it came out, it is really worth a second listen. I spend a lot of my time immersed in wildfire research, and I still got so much out of listening back to this interview.
I think you will too, so let’s get to my interview from last year with Ralph Bloemers. And I will note real quick that we discuss some proposed legislation from LAST year, which I think is still very relevant as we are dealing with all the same issues coming into the 2025 legislative session.
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This is our first episode of 2025, and while we brace for the tidal wave of insanity coming our way on the federal level, we are also preparing for Oregon’s biennial legislative session.
If you don’t know, Oregon only has full legislative sessions in odd years, meaning that 2025 will be a big year for Oregon politics and policy. Oregon’s session runs from late January through late June, but most of the important opportunities for public input happen early, in February and March.
I’ve been tracking a lot of bills as the session approaches, and I’ll do my best to highlight as many as possible as the session goes on. For instance, we’ll have an episode coming up with my partners in the Oregon Ocean Alliance focusing on ocean and estuary protections, and I will be highlighting forest and climate bills as well.
Today, I’m speaking with Linda Perrine of Oregon Coalition for an Environmental Rights Amendment, or OCERA. OCERA is a coalition of over 30 groups pushing for a constitutional amendment to enshrine the right to a healthy environment into Oregon law.
As always, my email is michael@coastrange.org. I’d love to know what you think of the show, and what you want us to cover this year.
Show Notes:
https://www.oceraunited.org/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CNYOofPtUe48ZB7qzXKk02KzJD4PTfwk/view
Montana youth lawsuit: https://grist.org/regulation/held-v-montana-youth-climate-lawsuit-supreme-court-decision/
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Today’s show is the second part of a recent talk by conservationist and author, George Wuerthner, on the failures and fallacies of some of the ingrained beliefs around wildfires and wildfire suppression.
George Wuerthner is a well-known ecologist and author who has dedicated his career to studying and advocating for wilderness and wildlife conservation. He is the author of nearly 40 books on environmental issues and natural history, including co-authoring and editing “Wildfire: A Century of Failed Forest Policy”.
If you didn’t hear part one, I would really encourage you to go back and listen to that episode first if possible. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fallacy-of-chainsaw-medicine-for-wildfire/id1510457358?i=1000680034797
You can listen for free by searching for Coast Range Radio on any podcast app, or at the Coast Range Radio page of our website, coastrange.org. I love to hear your thoughts on the show, email me at michael@coastrange.org anytime!
Research Links/Show Notes:
George’s Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbWfIM5JA58
Stop Clearcutting CA: https://www.sierraclub.org/grassroots-network/stop-clearcutting-ca/resources#fpf
George’s book, Wildfire: A Century of Failed Forest Policy
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Our last episode was a great discussion with a Forest Service scientist and a forest ecologist with the Nature Conservancy about the effects of various fire treatments on subsequent fire behavior. While I appreciated their perspective and research, I wanted to bring in a different viewpoint on fire and forest ecology.
It’s important to remember that western forests have existed and thrived long before humans arrived in North America. The impulse to “manage” the world around us is an ingrained human trait, and not even particularly unique to humans.
However, while indigenous people throughout the Americas sustainably and vibrantly stewarded their lands for millennia, Western notions of forest management and stewardship have proven disastrous everywhere they have been forced upon landscapes and communities.
So we as a society should be very cautious and humble about the idea that we can improve on nature, especially as we enter a deepening phase of the climate crisis.
I promise that coast range radio is not becoming a wildfire policy podcast, but wildfire policy is the number one factor (after profits for the 1% of course) driving massive landscape management decisions across all ownership types.
And it’s especially relevant as the Forest service seems to be going all-in on aggressive ramped up logging in the name of wildfire management in its recently released draft environmental impact statement on its plan to amend the landmark Northwest Forest Plan.
(In case you don’t know, an environmental impact statement, or EIS, is a document produced by an agency as part of a mandatory process assessing environmental impacts for a given project or policy, and a draft EIS is the public’s opportunity to weigh in on the agency’s assessment.). Some call it genuine public engagement, and some call it a farce with a predetermined outcome.
We’ll have a lot more to say about how you can engage meaningfully in the process and fight back regardless, as we’ll begin a whole series on the northwest forest plan DEIS in January.
So with all that in mind, I’m sharing a great talk that the Sierra Club’s Stop Clearcutting California Team put on with conservationist George Wuerthner, as part of their Forest Protection Forum series.
George Wuerthner is a well-known ecologist and author who has dedicated his career to studying and advocating for wilderness and wildlife conservation. He is the author of nearly 40 books on environmental issues and natural history, including co-authoring and editing “Wildfire: A Century of Failed Forest Policy”
His talk was too good to edit into one episode, so I’m breaking it in two. This is part one, and I will put out a full version in the podcast feed of coast range radio.
I love to hear your thoughts on the show, email me at michael@coastrange.org anytime!
Research Links/Show Notes:
George’s Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbWfIM5JA58
Stop Clearcutting CA: https://www.sierraclub.org/grassroots-network/stop-clearcutting-ca/resources#fpf
George’s book, Wildfire: A Century of Failed Forest Policy
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Like it or not, fire politics affects every aspect of public forest policy and the rural landscape, and that is not changing anytime soon.
But is science or politics guiding the policy? Are management decisions being made with forest ecology and community resilience as the top priorities, or are certain actors using fire as a smoke screen to score political wins, enrich wealthy mill owners, and prop up an outdated ideology that wants to turn public forests into tree plantations?
More relevant to today’s conversation, what is the best available science actually telling us about fire and forest health? About how, if, when, and why to take an active role in shaping forest landscapes with fire, healthy forest ecology, and fire resilient communities in mind?
I’m joined today by Dr Kimberley Davis from the Forest Service’s Missoula Fire Sciences Lab, and Dr Kerry Metlen, Senior Forest Scientist for The Nature Conservancy in Oregon.
They are two of the lead co-authors of a meta-analysis published this year examining the effects of thinning, prescribed fire, and wildfire on subsequent wildfire severity in dry type conifer forests of the Western US.
They are an absolute wealth of knowledge and I was so appreciative of their ability to get into the complexities of their research in a way that was engaging and understandable.
Research Links/Show Notes:
- Tamm Review: https://research.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/67659
- Summarized version with graphics: https://www.fs.usda.gov/rm/pubs_journals/rmrs/sycu/2024/sycu_photos_2024_10_treatments.pdf
- Alternative Take on the Paper from Andy Kerr: https://www.andykerr.net/kerr-public-lands-blog/2024/8/30/rethinking-commercial-thinning-as-a-tool-to-ecologically-restore-frequent-fire-forest-types-part-2-burn-baby-burn
- Storymap mentioned by Kerry: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/64f55848f690452da6c58e5a888ff283
Coast Range Radio fire episodes:
- Is the Forest Serviec Falsifying the Scientific Record, w Chad Hanson: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1046044/episodes/13024030
- Taxing Big Timber to Protect Communities from Wildfire: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1046044/episodes/14354418
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As we all collectively live through the unfolding trauma of the 2024 election results, I am going to share a conversation I had yesterday with two of my colleagues in the climate justice world that I found really helpful in starting to process what this election could mean for climate justice and our movement, and how to engage in these early stages.
I’m joined today by Brenna Bell from 350pdx and Forest Climate Alliance Organizer Alex Budd.
And quick disclaimer, this conversation does not necessarily represent the views of our respective organizations.
If you find this show helpful, or unhelpful, or if you just want to let me know what’s on your mind, please email me anytime at michael@coastrange.org.
And please consider sharing or recommending this show to other folks in your circles. Coast Range Radio is on all podcasts, on community radio stations throughout Oregon, and at coastrange.org.
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“We are on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster. This is a global emergency beyond any doubt. Much of the very fabric of life on Earth is imperiled. We are stepping into a critical and unpredictable new phase of the climate crisis”.
Those are the opening sentences of the 2024 State of the Climate Report, led in part by scientists at Oregon State University. I’m willing to bet that not a single person listening to this needs to be convinced that fossil fuel caused climate change is a global emergency.
I think the questions that we’re all asking are, how bad is it? Are we too late to act? And if not, what can we do to force real action?
My guest today is Dr Jillian Gregg, one of the co-authors of the State of the Climate report. Dr Gregg is also the CEO Terrestrial ecosystems research associates.
This was a great conservation, and I hope you come away angry and inspired like I did. Get in touch with your thoughts at michael@coastrange.org!
2024 State of the Climate: https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/advance-article/doi/10.1093/biosci/biae087/7808595?login=false#485024408
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Oregon Rural Action and Food and Water Watch recently conducted a rare flyover of Threemile Canyon Farms, one of Oregon’s most notorious factory cattle farms, also known by the simultaneously anodyne and horrifying technical name: confined animal feeding operation, or CAFO, in Morrow County.
In conjunction with that, both organizations have released detailed, interactive maps highlighting the extent of factory farms and associated pollution in Oregon. These maps, and the accompanying reports, show that factory farms are expanding in Oregon, even as the public awareness of the devastating impacts grow.
I’m joined today by Kaleb Ley from Oregon Rural and Aimee Travis-Stone with Food and Water Watch to learn about their efforts to confront and expose factory farms.
We covered a lot more than we could fit into 30 minutes, so if you want to listen to the entire interview, or any of our episodes, you can find Coast Range Radio on any podcast app or at coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Oregon Rural Action Network: https://www.oregonrural.org/
ORA Pollution Map: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1ukX5PtNPEJOnN6UwiM6mUmilxRV95Sc≪=45.839986808522895%2C-119.6917593922625&z=9
FWW Oregon Mega-dairy fact sheet (2022): https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/FSW_2205_ORMega-Dairies.pdf
FWW Oregon Factory Farm Fact Sheet: https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/FSW_0924_FFMap_OR.pdf
FWW Ineractive FF National Map: https://foodandwater.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/filtergallery/index.html?appid=571800658574445b9295f1aa8817e8aa
Event page for Food and Water Watch webinar, Oct 24th, 6:30-7:30: Mobilize Event Page
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Freshwater, i.e. non-salinated water, is arguably the most precious resource on earth, and in Oregon, by law, all water belongs to the public. However, if you examine who actually controls water usage in Oregon, you might come away with a very different impression.
Water rights, and the laws that govern them, are incredibly consequential for both humans and ecosystems, and will only become more so in the coming years and decades.
A few months ago, I attended a talk by Christopher Hall, executive director of The Water League, focused on Oregon’s push to modernize our water code in the 2025 legislative session.
I came away from that talk fired up about water rights, and I’m excited to be joined by him today to talk about The Water League’s efforts to reform Oregon’s water codes
https://www.waterleague.org/
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Today’s episode is part two of my interview with Rand Schenk, author of a great new book on history of the Forest Service, its founder, Gifford Pinchot, and over 100 years of forest management and mismanagement in the Pacific Northwest.
The book, “Forest Under Siege: The Story of Old Growth After Gifford Pinchot”, chronicles the Forest Service’s progressive populist origins, how it abandoned its founding mission of conservation and drove our old growth forests to the brink of extinction, and how, or if, the agency is entering a new restoration ecology era.
In part one of our interview, which you can find on the podcast feed of Coast Range Radio or at coastrange.org, we covered the story of the forest service from its humble beginnings through the era of hubris and destruction, and ended that episode with the creation of the Northwest Forest Plan.
On today’s episode, we really get into the big questions around how the Forest Service wants to manage National Forests for the next generation, whether they can be trusted, and how we can protect our public lands right now.
On that note, I’ll be joined by Coast Range Association’s Executive Director, Chuck Willer, for an update on our campaign to protect Mature and Old Growth in the Siuslaw National Forest, so stick around for that! Learn more at https://coastrange.org/actnow/
Forest Under Siege is available at local bookstores throughout the northwest, and you can order a copy online by searching for Forest Under Siege.
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Today’s episode is part one of a two part interview with Rand Schenk, author of a fascinating and timely new history of the Forest Service, its founder, Gifford Pinchot, and over 100 years of forest management and mismanagement in the Pacific Northwest.
The book, “Forest Under Siege: The Story of Old Growth After Gifford Pinchot”, explores the Forest Service’s progressive populist origins, how it abandoned its founding mission of conservation and drove our old growth forests to the brink of extinction, and how, or if, the agency is entering a new restoration ecology era.
Forest Under Siege is available at local bookstores throughout the northwest, and you can order a copy online by searching for Forest Under Siege.
Rand will be giving a book reading at Powell’s Books in Downtown Portland at 7pm on Wednesday, July 31st.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Powell's Link:
https://www.powells.com/book/forest-under-siege-9781638640257/1-1
https://www.instagram.com/coastrangeradio/
Whether you live in a city, a small town, or even if you get your water from a well like I do, one of the biggest threats to drinking water in the Pacific Northwest is industrial logging.
(A hugely notable exception is portland, which as my guest will touch on in the interview, does not allow logging in its drinking water source, the Bull Run watershed. Portland’s water also happens to be famous for its purity and taste, probably a coincidence though…)
However, by law, Oregon’s drinking watersheds have no special protections to safeguard them from being polluted or destroyed by industrial logging, and many watersheds are in the hands of large timber corporations whose executives could not care less about our drinking water.
One of the worst examples of this dynamic is Jetty Creek, which is the sole source of drinking water for Rockaway Beach on Oregon’s North Coast.
We at the Coast Range Association have long supported and assisted the work of North Coast Communities for Watershed Protection, and I’m excited to be able to highlight their work fighting to safeguard drinking water for their communities.
They are a great example of a grassroots organizing campaign based around a local issue that also connects their struggle to the broader justice movement.
Before we get to that, I wanted to give a very quick update on our campaign to protect the Siuslaw National Forest, or as some folks have called it, the Siuslaw Strategic National Carbon Reserve.
Many of our listeners already know that the Coast Range is the most productive temperate rainforest in the world in terms of its carbon sequestration potential. Basically, the trees grow really big, really fast, and can live for a very long time if we don’t cut them down.
As the only National Forest in the Coast Range, the Siuslaw not only provides critical habitat for endangered species, it can either serve as a carbon sink or a carbon bomb, based on the management practices of the Forest Service.
And as we’ve discussed in depth on previous episodes, the Forest Service is in the middle of dual processes amending its management practices. So what could possibly go wrong, right?
The Coast Range Association is engaged in a summer of action to protect the Siuslaw, and we need your help. Whether you can come out into the woods with us, help organize events, table at farmers markets, or don’t know what to do, we can use your help!
We’ll have more updates as our campaign progresses, but for now, go to coastrange.org and click the Siuslaw National Forest Action Page to learn more and sign up, and you can email me at michael@coastrange.org anytime.
Show Notes:
Siuslaw National Forest Action Page: https://coastrange.org/coast-range-association/siuslaw-action/
North Coast Communities For Watershed Protection: https://healthywatershed.org/
Save Mothball Hill campaign: https://www.change.org/Save-MothballHill-DavisRidge-SloughHill-from-Clearcutting
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The Coast Range Association is a founding member of the brand new Oregon Ocean Alliance, which has formed to more effectively advocate for Oregon’s ocean and coast ecosystems. In a future episode, I’ll be talking with some of the other founding members about our mission and goals and all of that good stuff.
The reason I bring it up today is that one of our top ocean priorities is protecting and restoring Kelp forests. And no one in Oregon is doing more to help kelp than the Oregon Kelp Alliance.
The Oregon Kelp Alliance, also known as ORKA, recently launched a major new project called The Oregon Kelp Forest Protection and Restoration Initiative, aimed at protecting and restoring critical kelp forests off of Oregon’s Coast.
I’ve invited the director of ORKA, Tom Calvanese, to talk about the new initiative, the global Kelp Forest Challenge and all things kelp. Tom is a scientist, urchin diver, manager of the OSU field station in port orford, and an inspiring and passionate advocate for Oregon’s Marine ecosystems, and I am so excited to talk with him today.
If you’re inspired by our show today, you can learn more about everything we’ll discuss today, including how to help save our kelp forests, by going to the show notes of the podcast, at our show page on the coastrange.org website, or go straight to the source: Oregonkelp.com.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Oregon Kelp Alliance: https://www.oregonkelp.com/
Kelp Forest Alliance Roadmap: https://kelpforestalliance.com/roadmap
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About a year and half ago, we did an episode on a Bureau of Land Management, or BLM, timber sale in Southern Oregon called Poor Windy, as part of our Worth More Standing series highlighting some of the biggest threats to mature and old growth forests on public lands.
Recently, community activists set up a tree sit in an old growth grove that was targeted for logging within the Poor Windy sale, and within weeks, they were able to get the BLM to withdraw part of that sale! To talk about the tree sit and the victory, I’m joined by Grace Warner of Siskiyou Rising tide.
But first we’ll hear a short excerpt of my interview with George Sexton from Klamath-Siskiyou Wild from that previous episode, which helps set the scene and context of the issues I’ll be discussing with Grace.
You can find the earlier Poor Windy episode, and our entire catalogue, for free on any podcast app or at our website, coastrange.org.
Links and Further Exploration:
- Worth More Standing Report
- https://www.instagram.com/siskiyou_risingtide/
- https://www.instagram.com/treesittersunion
- https://itsgoingdown.org/in-win-for-community-forest-defenders-stop-old-growth-logging-after-three-week-blockade-in-oregon/
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Today, we’re going to go deep on an incredibly important subject, albeit one with a somewhat less than stirring name if you aren’t already familiar: The northwest forest plan
The northwest forest plan sets the overall management strategy for 17 National Forests across a staggering 24 million acres of federal lands in Washington, Oregon and northwestern California, and the forest service is in the process of changing that plan in a significant way for the first time in its 30 year history!
Those changes could have absolutely massive consequences for the future of some of our most iconic forests, the human and non-human communities that rely on them, and even for the planet.
So it is vitally important that we make sure that the Forest Service amends the northwest forest plan in a way that strengthens forest protections, prioritizing ecosystem health and carbon sequestration.
Sadly, the higher ups in forest service may very well try to use this process as a way to weaken environmental protections and increase logging, even on mature and old growth!
We can’t let that happen. This is a once in a generation opportunity and threat, and it is going to take massive public pressure and engagement to prevail over the Timber industry machinations that would seek to re-open these forests for wholesale liquidation.
To talk about all this I’m joined by the Coast Range Association’s Director, Chuck Willer. We’re going to go through our campaign to educate, activate, and empower local grassroots groups to protect these forests, and why we are focusing our efforts on the Siuslaw National Forest here in the Coast Range.
You can learn more about everything we’ll be talking about today on the home page of our website, coastrange.org.
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It is important to celebrate our victories, and today we get to talk about two of them!
The Oregon Board of Forestry (BoF) recently voted to approve its first ever Habitat Conservation Plan on State Forests, and a bill to fully fund and strengthen Oregon’s Marine Reserve Program sailed through the recent legislative session.
To talk about these victories and get updates on what’s ahead for both of these campaigns, I’m joined today by one of the leaders of each of these efforts. Charlie Plybon from Surfrider Foundation will discuss the OMRP legislation and what's next for ocean conservation, and Michael Lang from the Wild Salmon Center will give us an update on the BoF's historic vote.
We have done deep dives into both of these campaigns on previous episodes, so if you want to learn more, check out our free archive on the Coast Range Radio podcast feed or at our website, coastrange.org.
And as always, my email is michael@coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife - Marine Reserves: https://oregonmarinereserves.com/
Oregon Marine Reserves Partnership: https://omrp.org/
State Forest Campaign
https://standtalloregon.org/
https://www.oregon.gov/odf/aboutodf/pages/stateforestsfmp.aspx
Oregon Department of Forestry- Forest Management Plan Homepage: https://www.oregon.gov/odf/aboutodf/pages/stateforestsfmp.aspx
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We often think of the land and the sea as separate worlds that have little to do with each other. But that barrier is much more fluid and interconnected than many people realize.
We’ve talked on this program before about what folks call the ‘Land-Sea Connection’, and today we’re going to talk about the ‘connection’ piece of that equation, estuaries! Estuaries are where the land and sea meet and intermingle, and are some of the most productive ecosystems in the world.
To talk all about the campaign to protect and restore Oregon’s estuaries, I’m joined by Annie Merrill of Oregon Shores.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Oregon Shores Estuary Hub: https://oregonshores.org/programs-campaigns/campaign-for-oregons-estuaries/
Port of Coos Bay Container Port Project: https://www.portofcoosbay.com/pacific-coast-intermodal-port
Channel modification: https://www.portofcoosbay.com/channel-modification-project
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On today’s show, Canopy of Titans: the Life and Times of the Great North American Temperate Rainforest!
Canopy of Titans is a new book written by journalists Paul Koberstein and Jessica Applegate which shines a light on the critical importance of protecting the temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest.
Paul and Jessica spent years reporting and researching for this book, traveling from the redwoods all the way up to alaska, and interviewing dozens of scientists, activists, experts, and even a few industry shills. The result is a truly moving celebration of the incredible forests we fight for, and a major contribution to that fight.
Canopy of Titans has just been announced as a finalist for the 2024 Oregon Book awards, and I am thrilled to be joined by one of the authors, Paul Koberstein.
Cascadia Times: https://times.org/
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Where I live in the coast range, I am surrounded in all directions by industrial timber plantations for miles in all directions.
Now, I have no problem with logging. I think silviculture is a good and noble profession. But it is plain for anyone to see that the short rotation, financialized plantation management practiced by the Wall Street investors who own the vast majority of private timberland is destroying our communities and ecosystems.
The Coast Range Association has been highlighting the need for an alternative model of forest management that sustains both economies and ecosystems for decades. So when I heard about today’s guest’s research into community forests, I was all ears.
Alexander Harris is the Land and Water policy manager at the bellingham based non-profit ReSources. Alexander recently completed a graduate program in Environmental Policy at Western Washington University, where his research explored how community-driven forest stewardship can help restore watersheds.
Research Links/Show Notes:Restoring The Nooksak Through Community-Driven Forest Stewardship: https://cedar.wwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2151&context=wwuet
Referenced in this episode:
https://www.nwcommunityforests.org/
https://stewartmountaincf.org/
https://nisquallylandtrust.org/our-lands-and-projects/nisqually-community-forest
https://www.dnr.wa.gov/Teanaway
https://co.chelan.wa.us/natural-resources/pages/nason-ridge-community-forest
https://www.sightline.org/profile/kate-anderson/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBKlofDmdpo&pp=ygUOamVycnkgZnJhbmtsaW4%3D
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For those of us who work to make a positive impact on the world, there is often a default towards focusing on big national and international level issues.
Between the rapidly worsening climate crisis, national campaigns to preserve Mature and Old growth forests, decarbonization and electrification fights, never-ending election cycles, on and on, it’s easy to forget that there are important local, grassroots struggles happening in communities everywhere that deserve our support and attention.
Local campaigns are, for a variety of reasons, overlooked and underappreciated. But that's where a small number of dedicated people can have an outsized impact, and cumulatively, these local fights can translate into big wins..
I am going to work to highlight some of those campaigns this year, and we’ll learn about two of them today.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Winchester Dam
- https://winchesterdam.com/
- Feb 17 Roseburg Protest: https://winchesterdam.com/saturday-february-17-2024-at-100-pm-protest-to-remove-winchester-dam-in-front-of-fred-meyer-in-roseburg/
Pipe Fork Creek/Williams Community Forest Project
- http://williamscommunityforestproject.org/
- https://www.williamscommunityforestproject.org/save-pipe-fork/
- https://www.change.org/p/permanently-prevent-the-clearcutting-of-pipe-fork-mature-forest-in-josephine-county
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I don’t have to tell anyone reading this that here in the west, wildfires are a fact of life. I’m also sure that most folks are already aware that the climate crisis, combined with more and more homes being built in and around forest lands is creating an escalating cycle of devastation in fire prone communities.
There is a tremendous amount of pressure on politicians and agencies to act, or at least to be seen to be acting, but right now, too many people, including many key decision makers, are looking at the problem backwards.
To talk about the real solutions to protecting communities from wildfires, as well as an exciting piece of legislation making its way through Salem, I’m joined by Ralph Bloemers. Ralph is the Director of Fire Safe Communities for the Green Oregon Alliance, producer of the award winning wildfire documentary Elemental, and has worked on forest conservation issues for decades.
He is a wealth of information on wildfires, the right and wrong way to protect communities and homes, and current legislative efforts to address these issues.
You can also email me anytime with feedback, questions, or show ideas at michael@coastrange.org
Show Notes:
https://www.opb.org/article/2023/12/23/jeff-golden-preps-proposals-wildfire-preparedness-funding/
https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2024/01/03/oregon-needs-more-money-to-fight-big-wildfires-who-should-pay-for-it/
https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2024/01/10/timber-industry-tied-to-proposal-shifting-wildfire-protection-costs-from-landowners-to-public/
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This is our first episode of 2024, and I can’t think of a better guest to start the year off with than State Representative David Gomberg.
Representative Gomberg represents House district 10, which encompassess Lincoln County, as well as parts of western Benton and Lane counties, and happens to be my State Representative.
Among many other positions, he serves as co-vice chair of the powerful Ways and Means budgeting committee and co-chair of the subcommittee on Transportation and Economic Development, and is the Chair of the bipartisan Coastal Caucus.
Before we get started, if you want to learn more about the Oregon Legislature, how it works, how to meaningfully engage, how to contact your representatives, and more, oregonlegislature.gov is a pretty great resource for a government run website. There are also links to resources and tutorials in our show notes below.
You can also email me, michael@coastrange.org, with questions, comments, or suggestions about this episode, or anything else.
Show Notes:
David Gomberg Legislative Webpage https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg
https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/
https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023I1#
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It’s dark, it’s cold, and it’s very rainy. We may be a couple weeks from the solstice as of this recording, but for my money, we’ve definitely entered another coast range winter.
I love to use this time of year to reflect and take stock, so I figured it was a great time to invite the Coast Range Association’s Executive director, Chuck Willer back for our annual year in review episode.
You can find out more about everything we’ll be discussing today at our website, coastrange.org, and I really want to encourage everyone listening to go to the website and subscribe to our email newsletter. We only send out a few emails a year, and I can promise that Chuck always has something to say that’s worth reading!
Research Links/Show Notes:
https://coastrange.org/sign-up-for-our-newsletter/
https://coastrange.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Wealth-Income-and-Rural-Communities-sm.pdf
NW Forest Plan Amendment One-pager: https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1151261.pdf
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I recently had a great interview with Brenna TwoBears from the Indigenous Environmental Network, but I couldn’t fit our whole conversation into our last full episode.
Brenna came on to talk about IEN’s ongoing fight to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline, and how you can take action by submitting comments to the army corps of engineers by December 13th. But we also covered a lot more ground, and I really appreciated what Brenna had to say on the broader context of an indigenous just transition, the proposed Thacker Pass lithium mine, and more!
I think anyone who likes this show will too, so I’m putting out an extended version of our conversation.
If you like what we’re doing here on Coast Range Radio, please help us out by sharing this episode with your friends, and consider leaving us a nice review on whatever podcast app you use.
Ps- if you don’t know how to do that, feel free to email me at michael@coastrange.org and I’ll send you directions.
As always you can find all episodes of Coast Range Radio on apple podcasts, spotify, or any other podcast app, and at coastrange.org .
And, last plug I promise, it would mean a lot to us at the coast range association for you to become a monthly donor at coastrange.org, or click this donate link. We are a small outfit, but we’re extremely passionate about this work, and your support is critical to our ability to be effective.
Research Links/Show Notes:
- Indigenous Environmental Network: https://www.ienearth.org/
- IEN’s DAPL action alert: https://www.ienearth.org/dapl-deis-public-comment-period-extended/
- Register for Dec 7th virtual comment writing party: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYrcuusqjIiHNSQqFH0ID1davrVIBxBkAs1#/registration
- Further reading on DAPL:
- https://truthout.org/articles/5-years-after-standing-rock-native-tribes-still-fight-dakota-access-pipeline/
- https://www.npr.org/2023/09/08/1198492185/dakota-access-pipeline-river-crossing-environmental-review
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Today, we have not one, but two amazing guests talking about two important and timely topics: the Dakota Access Pipeline fight, and the recent Elliot State Forest drama.
Bob Sallinger joins to walk me through the bombshell that Oregon State University just dropped on the Elliott State forest process, and why them walking away might actually be good news.
But first, we’ll hear a short excerpt of my conversation with Brenna TwoBears from the Indigenous Environmental Network about their ongoing fight to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline, and how you can take action by submitting comments to the army corps of engineers by December 13th.
My conversation with Brenna was really fun and we covered way more ground than I could fit into this episode, so I’m releasing the extended interview as a bonus podcast. I hope you give that a listen, I think fans of this show will really appreciate the full conversation!
Speaking of our podcast feed, we have very few reviews and ratings, and it would mean a lot to me if a few more listeners gave us a rating and review.
And, last plug I promise, it would mean a lot to us at the coast range association for you to become a monthly donor at coastrange.org, or click this donate link. We are a small outfit, but we’re extremely passionate about this work, and your support is critical to our ability to be effective.
As always, my email is michael@coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
- Previous CRR interview w Bob Sallinger on the Elliot: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1046044/10000241
- Bird Conversation Oregon: https://www.birdconservationoregon.org/
- Oregon Dept of State Lands Elliott page: https://www.oregon.gov/dsl/Land/Pages/Elliott.aspx
- Indigenous Environmental Network: https://www.ienearth.org/
- IEN’s DAPL action alert: https://www.ienearth.org/dapl-deis-public-comment-period-extended/
- Register for Dec 7th virtual comment writing party: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYrcuusqjIiHNSQqFH0ID1davrVIBxBkAs1#/registration
- Further reading on DAPL:
- https://truthout.org/articles/5-years-after-standing-rock-native-tribes-still-fight-dakota-access-pipeline/
- https://www.npr.org/2023/09/08/1198492185/dakota-access-pipeline-river-crossing-environmental-review
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This is part three of our Forests Over Profits series, featuring selected presentations from the Forests Over Profits Conference that the Coast Range Association helped organize this September.
I’m so excited for you to hear this talk by John Brush of the Cedar Moon Collective and Tryon Life Farm, entitled, "Should Anyone Own The Forest?".
From the "Rights of Nature" legal movement, to community forestry, and resurgent indigenous sovereignty, Brush shared a diverse and creative set of approaches that seek to undermine capitalist extraction as the primary human relation with land.
I really appreciated how Brush’s approach made me think about forest ownership and relation to the land from a completely different perspective.
If this show helps give you a different perspective or inspires you, please consider subscribing to Coast Range Radio on apple podcasts, spotify, or any podcast app, and I would be so grateful if you would leave a good review.
You can also learn more about the Coast Range Association at coastrange.org and my email is michael@coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
- ‘Should anyone "own" the forest?’, by John Brush, brush@riseup.net, (includes research links in the endnotes)
https://tryonfarm.org/who.owns.forest.pdf
- New Zealand forest and river given rights of “legal person”
http://maorilawreview.co.nz/2014/10/tuhoe-crown-settlement-te-urewera-act-2014/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/16/new-zealand-river-granted-same-legal-rights-as-human-being
This episode is dedicated to the memory of Sean Jacobson. Sean was an incredibly passionate activist, permaculture practitioner, and an active member of many many different organizing efforts. I knew Sean through our work with the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance, which put on the Forests Over Profits conference.
I know how bleak the world can often feel, and it can be hard not to feel hopeless sometimes. But there is always beauty in the world, and there is always something to keep living and fighting for.
If you’re struggling, it’s not your fault and you are not alone.
Please reach out to someone, whether it’s a friend or family member, a therapist, or as comedian Maria Bamford says, any random stranger who will listen. Speaking of, again, my email is michael@coastrange.org, and I’ve always got a willing ear to lend.
https://988lifeline.org/
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This episode is part two of our Forests Over Profits series, featuring excerpts from our Forests Over Profits conference and protests this past September. If you’re not familiar with this series, here’s what you need to know:
This September, the Coast Range Association, in partnership with many other amazing organizations, organized a series of protests and a day long Forests Over Profits conference in response to a corporate timberland investment conference called, and this is their title, “Who Will Own the Forest”.
Who Will Own The Forest brings together some of the world’s biggest climate polluters, corporate clear-cutters, finance giants, and false climate solutions peddlers, to network and scheme on how to extract maximum short-term returns from while devastating our communities and the climate.
If you want to learn more about the Who Will Own The Forest conference, I would highly encourage you to go back and listen to the episode I did a few weeks back called, “Who Will Own the Forest, with Brenna Bell”, which you can find on the Coast Range Radio podcast feed.
You can also learn more at forestsoverprofits.org.
Ok, back to this episode. Today, we’ll hear from Coast Range Association executive Director Chuck Willer. Chuck spoke about the groundbreaking work Coast Range Association has done highlighting the devastating role that wall street style capitalism has played in northwest forests, his Green New Deal for Northwest Forests proposal, and new directions his research is taking him.
You can learn more about everything discussed here today, and a lot more, at coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Coast Range Association: https://coastrange.org/
- Green New Deal for NW Forests: https://coastrange.org/gnd-proposal/
- Wealth, Income, and Rural Communities: https://coastrange.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Wealth-Income-and-Rural-Communities-sm.pdf
Forests Over Profits:
- Forestsoverprofits.org
- https://www.worldforestry.org/who-will-own-the-forest/
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Hopefully, you’ve already heard our last two episodes on the Who Will Own The Forest conference, or maybe you attended the Forests Over Profits protest or counter-conference that We helped organize in response.
If not, I would highly encourage you to go back and listen to the episode I did a few weeks back called, “Who Will Own the Forest, with Brenna Bell” so you can have some context for this episode. You can also go to forestsoverprofits.org to learn more.
As everyone who attended our counter-conference can attest, it was a packed day of inspiring and enraging presentations, and I am working to get as many of them as possible uploaded as bonus episodes in the coming weeks.
This episode features one of my favorites, a panel presentation with Brenna TwoBear and Thomas Joseph of the Indigenous Environmental Network Panel (IEN). They were also joined by IEN interns Elisa Soto-Danseco and Joshua Witchger, who actually went inside the Who Will Own The Forest Conference and gave a reportback on what they saw from the inside.
See Below for links and further reading, and learn more about the Indigenous Environmental Network at IENearth.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
CRR #65: Who Will Own The Forest, with Brenna Bell:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/who-will-own-the-forest-with-brenna-bell/id1510457358?i=1000627598597
https://coastrange.org/
Forestsoverprofits.org
Indigenous Environmental Network
https://www.ienearth.org/
https://www.puebloactionalliance.org/no-false-solutions
https://www.ienearth.org/nature-based-solutions/
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This September, The Coast Range Association, along with partners like 350pdx, Indigenous Environmental Network, Rainforest Action Network, the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance, and many more, organized a major protest and counter conference in response to the Who Will Own The Forest timber investor conference.
If you aren’t familiar with the Who Will Own the Forest Conference, I’d encourage you to listen to the episode with Brenna Bell of 350pdx, which you can find on this pod feed or at our website, coastrange.org.
The short version is that Who Will Own The Forest is an annual “timberland investment conference” bringing together some of the world’s biggest climate polluters, corporate forest clear-cutters, finance giants, and false climate solutions peddlers. Just to name a few, JP morgan-Chase, weyerhauser, BP, the list goes on and on, but you get the idea. Attendees come from all over the world to scheme on ever more efficient ways to exploit communities and natural resources, sabotage efforts to decarbonize, and extract maximum profits for the 1%.
So in response, we staged a day long protest outside of the conference which drew around two hundred people, and the next day, we held a day long, Forests Over Profits counter conference which was attended by roughly the same number of folks!
There is clearly an appetite for taking on Wall St’s exploitation of forestlands, and I’m so excited to see where this movement goes from here. If you want to learn more or get involved, email me at michael@coastrange.org.
For today’s episode, I’m going to be airing a few clips from our Forests over Profits Conference, and I will be putting out another episode or two highlighting different presentations from the Forests Over Profits Conference soon.
I’m releasing this episode on Indigenous People’s Day, October 9th, So in honor of that, today’s episode will focus on clips from some of our conference’s Indigenous presenters, including an Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) panel discussion and a talk on the commercialization of Huckleberries and other sacred foods.
The Indigenous Environmental Network panel in particular was really powerful and inspiring, but I only have time to air a few clips for our radio edition. I really encourage you to listen to their entire presentation, so I’ll be putting out the full discussion as a bonus episode on this feed.
Links and resources:
CRR #65: Who Will Own The Forest, with Brenna Bell:
More about our campaigns:
https://coastrange.org/
Forestsoverprofits.org
https://www.ienearth.org/
The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative
False Solutions Alliance
Huckleberry commercialization
Fairy Creek campaign:
-Amazing documentary https://rematriationthefilm.com/
-About Grandma Losah
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We talk a lot on this show about the devastation wrought on our environment and communities by invasive capitalism, and today we get to talk about something tangible we can do to fight back!
On September 26-28, Wall Street investors will join timber corporations, big oil, carbon offset & biomass companies in Portland for their annual “Who Will Own the Forest?” conference.
With tickets costing over two thousand dollars apiece, this “timberland investment conference” brings together some of the world’s biggest climate polluters, corporate forest clear-cutters, and false climate solutions peddlers.
For anyone who’s watched the Godfather movie’s, I liken this conference to the scene where the mafia bosses are all gathered around a cake with an image of Cuba on the top, divvying up the pieces of the island and deciding who gets control over what.
But instead of Who WILL Own the Forest, we should be asking, who should own the forest? Should forests even be owned? And should the greatest value of our forests be reduced to quarterly returns for wealthy investors?
A coalition of groups, including 350, Indigenous Environmental Network, Rainforest Action Network, the Coast Range association, and many more, think these are some of the questions that should be asked at the Who Will Own the Forest Conference.
And even though we weren’t invited to this event, we’re going anyway, and you are invited to join us!
To talk about “Who will own the forest”, our response, and how to get involved in disrupting invasive capital’s plans, I’m joined by Brenna Bell, the Forest Climate Manager for 350PDX. She has been deeply involved in forest defense for over two decades, and is co-founder of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance.
Links and Resources:
https://forestsoverprofits.org/
https://www.worldforestry.org/who-will-own-the-forest/
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One of the most important questions in the drive to rapidly decarbonize our society is how to replace fossil fuel generated electricity with clean, renewable sources
And one of the key questions there is, what counts as clean and renewable?
Today’s episode is all about biomass energy, which is essentially the burning of pelletized wood for electricity. The Biomass industry is valued at over 100 billion dollars per year and growing, and many countries count biomass as renewable and carbon neutral.
But is it really? Or is it one more false solution which is polluting communities, exploiting natural resources, and worsening the climate crisis? And with the Biomass industry looking to expand into the Pacific Northwest, what does that mean for our timberlands and rural communities?
To answer these questions, I’m joined by Rita Frost and Peter Riggs
Rita Frost is a forest advocate with the Natural Resources Defense Council. Born and raised in the Southern US, she lives on unceded Kalapuya land in the Willamette Valley. Rita has worked with communities confronting the biomass manufacturing industry in the Southern U.S. for the past 8 years.
Peter Riggs is the director of Pivot Point, which works on a variety of land use and climate change issues in Washington state, nationally, globally. He is based on Harstine Island in the southern Salish Sea.
Research Links/Show Notes:https://environmentalpaper.org/the-biomass-delusion/
Drax in Longview: https://www.kttn.com/v2-energy-market-for-wood-pellets-globally-threatens-u-s-forests/
https://naacp.org/resources/resolution-wood-pellets-opposition
https://www.southernenvironment.org/news/new-study-confirms-harmful-impacts-of-biomass/
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North Coast Land Conservancy, or NCLC, has been working to conserve land along the northern Oregon coast and coast range for nearly 40 years, and Katie Voelke has been its Executive Director since 2008.
In this interview, she discusses NCLC's conservation philosophy, Oregon's land-sea connection, reckoning with the ownership model of conservation on stolen indigenous lands, and more.
Learn more about North Coast Land Conservancy at https://nclctrust.org/
Learn about our organization, the Coast Range Association at https://coastrange.org/ , and my email is michael@coastrange.org
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This episode is part two of my conversation with State Representative Mark Gamba, breaking down the good, the bad, and the ugly of the 2023 legislative session
Mark Gamba represents house district 41, which encompasses Milwaukie, Oak Grove, and parts of Southeast Portland. I knew I could trust him to give an honest assessment of his first year in Salem, and he really delivered.
You don’t need to listen to episode one before jumping into the second half of our conversation, but I highly recommend listening to both episodes. Find the first episode in our podcast feed or HERE.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Representative Mark Gamba’s legislative website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/gamba
Some of our allied organizations’ 2023 Session recap:
- https://oregonwild.org/about/blog/assessing-wreckage-2023-oregon-leg-session?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=062823_orleg&emci=43ed9420-da15-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&emdi=d077785f-0d16-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&ceid=12095021
- https://www.olcv.org/session-is-over-heres-how-we-did/
- https://www.beyondtoxics.org/2023-legislation/
- https://standuptofactoryfarms.org/
About the Oregon Forest Resources Institute:
https://www.opb.org/article/2020/08/04/oregon-forest-resources-institute-osu-timber-industry-investigation-lobbying/
https://www.propublica.org/series/the-cutting
Polluted By Money Series:
https://projects.oregonlive.com/polluted-by-money/
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As the dust settles on another chaotic legislative session, I wanted to look back, revisit some of the bills we dug into on previous episodes, and explore how we can keep pressure on our legislators between sessions.
I couldn’t think of a better person to guide us through the good, the bad, and the ugly of this legislative session than one of oregon’s most tireless climate champions, State Representative Mark Gamba.
I’ve known Mark since I worked as the field director for his 2020 congressional bid, so I knew I could trust him to give a no BS account of his perspective on the session.
However, I didn’t realize just how honest and unfiltered he was prepared to be. He had a lot to say about how business gets done in Salem that I think people need to hear, and I think his perspective is one that you don’t often hear from a politician, regardless of party affiliation.
We covered a lot of ground, and I just can’t bear to edit it down to thirty minutes, so I’m breaking our conversation into two episodes. I will release the second half in two weeks. Make sure to subscribe to Coast Range Radio wherever you get podcasts so you can be sure to catch the full conversation.
Feedback, questions, suggestions? My email is michael@coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Representative Mark Gamba’s legislative website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/gamba
Some of our allied organizations’ 2023 Session recap:
- https://oregonwild.org/about/blog/assessing-wreckage-2023-oregon-leg-session?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=062823_orleg&emci=43ed9420-da15-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&emdi=d077785f-0d16-ee11-a9bb-00224832eb73&ceid=12095021
- https://www.olcv.org/session-is-over-heres-how-we-did/
- https://www.beyondtoxics.org/2023-legislation/
- https://standuptofactoryfarms.org/
About the Oregon Forest Resources Institute:
https://www.opb.org/article/2020/08/04/oregon-forest-resources-institute-osu-timber-industry-investigation-lobbying/
https://www.propublica.org/series/the-cutting
Polluted By Money Series:
https://projects.oregonlive.com/polluted-by-money/
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As we head into fire season, I wanted to revisit an episode from last year about an amazing documentary film called Elemental: Reimagine Wildfire.
After a nationwide theatrical release and over a dozen awards, Elemental has just come out on streaming on Amazon, Apple TV, Google play, and Vimeo.
Fire is, and always has been, a permanent part of our western landscapes and ecosystems, but the debate and policy prescriptions around how to protect our communities is shockingly disconnected from the science and and on the ground reality.
On this episode, we spoke with the director of “Elemental: Reimagine Wildfire” to learn about the realities of how we can co-exist with wildfires.
Trip Jennings is the Principal & Founder of Balance Media, a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, and has won dozens of awards for his past films. His new film, ‘Elemental’, has been met with rave reviews, and is changing the narrative around wildfires.
“Elemental: Reimagine Wildfire” is available to stream on Amazon, Apple TV, Google Play, Vimeo, or at Elementalfilm.com
Show Notes:
Elemental: https://www.elementalfilm.com/
https://www.elementalfilm.com/streaming
Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology: https://fusee.org/
Oregon Department of Forestry Risk Assessment Explorer: https://tools.oregonexplorer.info/oe_htmlviewer/index.html?viewer=wildfire
ODF Senate Bill 762 Homepage: https://www.oregon.gov/odf/Pages/sb762.aspx
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As regular listeners may know, the Coast Range Association is a member of the Forest Climate Coalition, which is pushing for strong and durable protections of mature and old growth forests on our federal lands.
As you probably also know, mature and old growth forests are absolute superstars for preserving biodiversity and sequestering carbon. Both of those ecosystem services are desperately needed in the face of the twin crises of climate chaos and ongoing mass species extinction.
As an added bonus, they generously offer these services free of charge, and give us cold clean drinking water to boot! What’s not to love??
Well, the timber industry has long viewed our public lands as an extension of their own fiefdoms, and many of our public lands managers remain fully bought into an outdated and destructive model of "forest management" that prioritizes plantation style tree stands and harvest quotas above all other values.
And that’s where we come in!
After years of pressure from the conservation community and in the face of mountains of scientific research, the Biden administration issued an executive order on earth day on 2022(*) aimed at inventorying and protecting mature and old growth trees and forests on federal lands.
This could, and I am underlining could with a giant metaphorical sharpie here, be an absolute game changer, and everyone listening should be incredibly excited about the potential of that executive order.
Buuut - the devil is in the details, and the only way to get from Biden’s well meaning but vague executive order to actual lasting protections for our most important forests is massive public pressure and engagement towards the federal agencies tasked with implementing that order.
Enjoy the show, get inspired, and take action at https://coastrange.org/blmaction/
Show Notes:Coast Range Association BLM Comment Page: https://coastrange.org/blmaction/
Climate-Forests Action Page (for both the Forest Service and the BLM: https://www.climate-forests.org/take-action
CRR #45- “Fighting for Mature and Growth With Lauren Anderson”: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1046044/11295389
White House fact sheet on President Biden's Executive Order on Forests: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-signs-executive-order-to-strengthen-americas-forests-boost-wildfire-resilience-and-combat-global-deforestation/
(*) Note: I incorrectly stated the year of the executive order in the episode, sorry!
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Wildfires are a fact of life in the American west. They have played a major role in our western ecosystems for millenia. But as the climate crisis deepens, and more people move into wildfire country, fires loom larger and larger in the public consciousness. Wildfires are reshaping everything from our landscapes to our politics, and the implications of how we respond to them will play a huge role in shaping our future.
In the midst of this, a scientific debate is raging over what the science tells us about how to protect communities and live with fire. At the heart of that debate is the Forest Service. As the manager of almost 200 million acres of land, there is a tremendous amount at stake in how the US Forest Service interprets that science and implements management policy.
So I’m excited to be joined by one of the authors of a new scientific paper alleging that the forest service has been falsifying the scientific record around wildfires in order to justify more logging on federal lands.
Chad Hanson is the director and principal ecologist for the California based John Muir Project, which he co-founded in the 90s.
Show Notes:
Countering Omitted Evidence of Variable Historical Forests and Fire Regime in Western USA Dry Forests: The Low-Severity-Fire Model Rejected
Chad's book, Smokescreen: https://www.kentuckypress.com/9780813181073/smokescreen/
https://johnmuirproject.org/
Protect Mature and Old Growth Forests on Federal Land: https://www.climate-forests.org/take-action
Protect Oregon's State Forests: https://coastrange.org/stateforests/
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Oregon manages over half a million acres of state forest land. That land is every bit as public as national forests, but historically, the state and the timber industry has treated it as just another timber plantation.
But that’s finally changing, and right now, the Oregon Board of Forestry is considering a Habitat Conservation plan which would set aside almost half of that land for long term stream and forest habitat conservation in the most critical areas of the forest.
This would be a huge win for salmon, steelhead, and other endangered species, and provide a major source of temperate rainforest carbon sequestration when we need it the most.
Unsurprisingly, the timber industry has launched an all-out misinformation campaign to stop this habitat conservation plan, even though it would still allow for logging in much of the state forest.
That’s where you come in. Your voice is needed, and there are many ways big and small for you to use it! If you’re inspired by this conversation today, please go to forestlegacy.org to learn more and get involved. And share this episode with your friends!
Ok, to break all of this down, I am so excited to be joined by Bob Rees. Bob is a 6th generation Oregonian who has worked for decades as a professional fishing guide, and serves as the executive director of the Northwest Guides and Anglers Association.
Show Notes:
State Forest Campaign Website: https://forestlegacy.org/
https://wildsalmoncenter.org/2020/10/19/a-70-year-conservation-plan-for-the-tillamook/
Bob Rees: https://nwguidesandanglers.org/contact-us/
Coast Range Association State Forest Page: https://coastrange.org/forests/
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Coast Range Radio’s interview with Timothy Ingalsbee, Ph.D. We discuss a new messaging guide - Incendiary Rhetoric: Climate Change, Wildfire, and Ecological Fire Management from Tim’s organization, Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics & Ecology. To find the guide and to learn more visit their website, fusee.org.
Tim is a leading expert in fire ecology and provides many insights to the large fires impacting Oregon and the west in 2020. Our conversation reveals several inconvenient truths about fire in Oregon. Tim tells a tale of two fires and offers many solutions to protect our homes and communities while storing large amounts of carbon in our forests, an imperative for our warming planet.
This episode originally aired September, 2020.
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We’ve already done a couple shows this spring on Oregon’s 2023 legislative session, and I would highly recommend you give those episodes a listen if you haven’t already.
But today we’re going to talk about the bill I’m most excited about this year - Senate Bill 530, aka the Natural Climate Solutions bill
Amid all of the other pressing issues worthy of our time and energy, climate change stands alone as the singular crisis where we have no second chances if our society does not act now.
It’s like a ticking time bomb, except it’s already exploding. But there is still time to defuse the bomb, and some of our most important tools are Oregon’s forests and farmlands.
I’m so excited to be joined by Teryn Yazdani of Beyond Toxics to talk with me about SB 530, Natural Climate Solutions, and what we can do to help pass this critical legislation.
Before we get started, if you want a great primer on all the environmental and climate legislation we’re tracking this year, as well as how to engage in the legislative process, check out my conversation with Catherine Thomasson from a couple months ago (click HERE).
Please do me a favor and share this episode with at least one friend, or maybe blast it out to everyone you know on facebook or instagram!
Finally, consider donating to the Coast Range association at coastrange.org or click the donate link below.
Resources:
SB 530 text: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Downloads/MeasureDocument/SB530/Introduced
Beyond Toxics's SB 530 page: https://www.beyondtoxics.org/work/pesticide-reform/resilient-forestry/natural-climate-solutions/
Official Oregon Legislature website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/
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We talk a lot on this show and in the Coast Range Association work more broadly, about the invasive plague of global capital into our timberlands, all just about all other aspects of our world.
One of the key frontlines in the fight against that invasion is mega factory farms, and the pacific northwest is a huge land grab target for Big Ag.
I want to say right up top, this episode is not about eating meat or not. No matter where you stand on eating meat, factory farms are an indefensible way to raise animals for all the reasons we’ll get into today, and many more.
Like most issues, when we make it about personal choice and personal responsibility, we let the true culprits off the hook, in this case, the agribusiness giants who control our food systems.
Real progress requires systemic change. That’s why I’m so excited to speak with three representatives of the Stand Up to Factory Farms coalition about their campaigns to change policy, and what we can all do to help. The guests for this show are:
- Tarah Heinzen, Food & Water Watch Legal Director
- Amy Van Saun, Center for Food Safety Senior Attorney
- Alice Morrison, Friends of Family Farmers Co-Director
If you are inspired to get involved in this fight, their website is standuptofactoryfarms.org.
Before we get to the interview, please consider sharing this episode with a friend, leaving us a review on your podcast app, subscribing if you haven’t already, all of these things that really help us reach a broader audience.
And finally, you can donate at https://coastrange.networkforgood.com/projects/172942-support-coast-range-association or click the donate button in the show notes. Your support, in any and every form, truly helps, thank you.
Show Notes:
- OR Factory Farming Moratorium Factsheet-SB85.pdf
- Stand Up to Factory Farms Coalition website
- Food & Water Watch research on the pollution and greenhouse gas emissions of Oregon’s mega-dairy factory farms
- SB 85-1 bill language
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Today’s topic is something I’ve been interested in learning more about for a while now. Many of you may be familiar with the amazing carbon sequestration potential of mature and old-growth forests, and I hope our listeners are familiar with the Coast Range Association’s groundbreaking land reform work focusing on private timberlands.
But forests aren’t the only ecosystem heroes in our fight against climate change. Our oceans and nearshore environments hold enormous potential as well.
Blue Carbon refers to the carbon stored in coastal and marine ecosystems. The Nature Conservancy has just released a Blue Carbon State of the Science Report focusing on Oregon, and I am excited to be joined by one of the authors of that report, Joanna Lyle.
Joanna is a Oregon Sea Grant Fellow, working with the Nature Conservancy to explore the carbon sequestration potential of Oregon’s coastal and near shore environments.
We are also joined by Sylvia Troost from the Pew Charitable Trust. Sylvia’s work focuses on incorporating Blue Carbon into Pew’s marine based climate action plans.
I want to encourage you to share this podcast with your friends, and leave us a rating and review on your podcast app. I have ambitious plans for this year’s shows, and we need your help to spread the word.
I also love hearing feedback, guest ideas, or anything else! My email is michael@coastrange.org, and our website is coastrange.org.
Links
Blue Carbon State of the Science Report: https://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/sites/seagrant.oregonstate.edu/files/tnc-bluecarbonsynthesis-20221017.pdf
https://www.thebluecarboninitiative.org/
https://www.oregonkelp.com/
Joanna Lyle Sea Grant Blog: https://blogs.oregonstate.edu/seagrantscholars/author/sea_lyl/
PEW Blue Carbon page - https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2021/09/24/blue-carbon-a-natural-ally-in-the-fight-against-climate-change
PEW Estuary mgmt article: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/fact-sheets/2022/05/9-ways-estuaries-enhance-oregons-coastal-communities
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The 2023 legislative session is underway, and a LOT of interesting Bills have been introduced.
Speaking from experience I think the legislative process can be pretty daunting and somewhat byzantine if you’re not already familiar with it.
So I wanted to make an episode to help folks understand some of the most important climate, forestry, and conservation focused bills that have been introduced, and how to meaningfully engage with the process
To help me unpack what we should all be paying attention to this session, I’m very happy to be joined by Catherine Thomasson.
Catherine is a retired physician, former executive director for Physicians for Social Responsibility, the current lobby coordinator for the Metro Climate Action team, and a lot more.
Before we get started, I want to encourage you to share this podcast with your friends, and leave us a rating and review on your podcast app. I have ambitious plans for this year’s shows, and we need your help to spread the word.
I also love hearing feedback, guest ideas, or anything else! My email is michael@coastrange.org, and our website is simply coastrange.org.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Legislative Bill lookup tool: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/listbills/2022R1SessionBills.html
KGW Legislative Engagement Guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WI100VFzQN0
Metro Climate Action Team: https://www.olcv.org/metro-climate-action-team/
https://www.taxfairnessoregon.org/timber-tax-fairness/
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Aquaculture is the intentional cultivation of aquatic organisms like fish, mollusks, and aquatic plants, and humans have been practicing it in various forms for thousands of years.
If I asked you to picture what aquaculture looks like, there’s a good chance that if anything comes to mind, it would be environmentally destructive salmon farms, which are basically the underwater equivalent to confined factory animal farming operations.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Aquaculture can be not only sustainable, but environmentally regenerative.
The Pacific Northwest is ripe for a boom in aquaculture, but we need to do it right.
So I reached out to Megan Considine of The Nature Conservancy and Steve Rumrill with the Oregon Department of fish and wildlife to learn more about the potential and risks with this burgeoning industry.
Quick note: we had some technical difficulties with Steve’s audio, but he is a wealth of knowledge and experience, so I felt that it was important to leave in.
As always, I love hearing feedback and guest ideas! My email is Michael@coastrange.org.
If you like the show, please leave a rating and review, share this episode with at least one friend, and please consider a donation of any amount to Coast Range Association at coastrange.org.
Links and Resources:
- TNC restorative aquaculture document: https://www.nature.org/content/dam/tnc/nature/en/documents/TNC_PrinciplesofRestorativeAquaculture.pdf
- Greenpeace Article on Aquaculture: https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/wp-content/uploads/legacy/Global/usa/report/2008/3/challenging-aquaculture.pdf
- Oregon Kelp Alliance: https://www.oregonkelp.com/
- Hakai Magazine Series on Aquaculture: https://hakaimagazine.com/features/big-fish-the-aquacultural-revolution/
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Today’s show is a perfect start to the new year - celebrating a win!
We’ve talked extensively in past episodes about the vital role that intact and recovering western forests play in carbon sequestration and preserving biodiversity. We’ve also talked about the threats to those forests.
Even as the climate emergency deepens and President Biden has issued executive orders to preserve mature and old growth forests, the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have proposed timber sales of those endangered forests all across the country.
Well, the Coast Range Association has been proud to be a part of a broad coalition fighting back, and a couple weeks ago, the Forest Service suspended it’s proposed Flat Country Timber Sale in the Mckenzie River Ranger District east of Eugene.
To talk about the timber sale, this victory, and the next steps for the Climate Forests campaign, I’m joined by Madeline Cowen. Madeline is the grassroots and digital organizer for the Eugene based, Cascadia Wildlands, and she is a leader in the Flat Country campaign.
Email me with show ideas, guest suggestions, or just to say hi, michael@coastrange.org.
Please leave us a rating and review, and share this episode with at least one friend!
Links and ResourcesCoast Range Association: https://coastrange.org/
Climate Forests Campaign: https://www.climate-forests.org/
Worth More Standing Report: https://www.climate-forests.org/_filesx/ugd/73639b_03bdeb627485485392ac3aaf6569f609.pdf
Climate Forests Flat Country Page: https://www.climate-forests.org/post/willamette-national-forest-oregon-flat-country-timber-sale
Cascadia Wildlands 42 Divide Campaign page: https://www.cascwild.org/cancel-bureau-of-land-management-plans-to-log-coast-range-forests-200-years-old/
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On today’s show, we’re heading south to California to learn about the groundbreaking Tribal Marine Stewards Network.
The Tribal Marine Stewards Network, or TMSN, is an alliance of Tribal Nations working collaboratively to reclaim their right to protect and restore coastal and marine ecosystems in California.
Even in the modern era, government agencies have historically been either resistant, or outright hostile to, Tribal co-management and sovereignty, (google northwest fishing wars for just one modern example) and so I was really excited to see the State of California changing course and supporting a co-management strategy.
Of course, that is not the way it started. Tribes had to work for years to bring State agencies around to a collaborative approach, and I think there is a lot to learn from their success.
So I’m joined today by Chairman Valentin Lopez of the Aham Mutsun Tribal Band, which is one of the founding tribes of the TMSN.
There is way more to the Tribal Marine Stewards Network, and the history of colonizers and indigenous peoples in California in general, than we were able to get into in this conversation. So I highly recommend that you check out our show notes for links and resources.
And since all non tribal land in this country is stolen land, if you want to learn more about the history of whose land you’re on, a good place to start is https://native-land.ca/.
As always, email me with feedback, show ideas, or anything else at michael@coastrange.org.
And if you like what we do, please leave us a review in your podcast app and click the donate link in the podcast show notes. Your support really matters.
Research Links/Show Notes:
Tribal Marine Stewards Network website: https://tribalmsn.org/
Aham Mutsun Tribal Band: http://amahmutsun.org/
Aham Mutsun History: http://amahmutsun.org/history
Californian Native American Holocaust Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwgopN9lFpg
More California Native History: https://nahc.ca.gov/resources/california-indian-history/
California tribal map: https://www3.epa.gov/region9/air/maps/pdfs/r9-california-tribal-lands-reservations-air1100040_3.pdf
Native Land Map: https://native-land.ca/
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2022, like the last several years, has been quite a ride! And we at the Coast Range Association have been hard at work all year, providing the kind of inter-sectional analysis that no other organization brings to western Oregon and the coast.
So as we enter into the reflective days of December, I thought it would be a good idea to have our Executive Director, Chuck Willer, back on the show to discuss what we've been up to, and what 2023 might have in store for CRA.
If you want to learn more about anything we talked about today, see the show notes or go our website, coastrange.org.
And register for our webinar "Connecting Forests, Climate, and Divestment: a Webinar about Wall Street Timberlands Exploitation " (Thursday, Dec 8th, 6-7pm)!
Registration link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qd-CgrTIqGdZEKknLNPnUXRtSUowtCpNS
Show Notes:
(Draft) Coast Range rural population study map: https://coastrange.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Pop-Poster-sm.pdf
CRA Land Reform Proposal: https://coastrange.org/gnd-proposal/
Western Oregon Corporate Ownership Maps: https://coastrange.org/challenging-wall-street-forestry/ownership/
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Today’s episode is part of an ongoing semi- monthly series i’m putting together on Threatened Mature and Old Growth Forest in the united states. Mature and oldgrowth forest are vital resources for carbon sequestration, biodiversity resilience, watershed protection, air purification, and so much more.
some studies show that old growth counts for as little as seven percent of our remaining forestlands. Yet mature and old growth forests, which by definition take generations to regenerate, are being logged right now.
Literally, if you’re listening to this during daylight hours, these heroes of our world are on the chopping block. And it’s not just about the trees, it’s about the entire ecosystems that they anchor.
That’s why the Coast Range Association is proud to be a part of the Climate Forests campaign. Over the next few months, every couple episodes or so, I’ll be profiling a different threatened forest and some of the organizations working to protect them.
These episodes are stand alone, but I suggest checking out episode 45 with Lauren Anderson to get a good overview of the Climate Forests campaign. You can find that, and all episodes of Coast Range Radio, wherever you get your podcasts or at Coast Range dot org.
Speaking of our website, quick note: Most of the forests I’ll be profiling are on public land, but private timberland reform is an absolutely critical piece of the puzzle as well, and I’d encourage anyone listening to go to coast range dot org and check out our Green New Deal for Industrial Forests Proposal.
Today, I’m bringing you excerpts from two interviews I did looking at Forest on Bureau of Land Management land threatened by a pair of timber sales called ‘Poor Windy” and Evans creek
I spoke with Sangye Ince-Johannsen, staff attorney with the Western Environmental Law Center, or WELC, and George Sexton, conservation director for the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center, also known as KS Wild.
I really enjoyed my conversations with George and Sangye, and there was a lot I couldn’t fit into the radio episode, so I’ll be releasing bonus episodes of the separate conversations into the podcast feed over the next week or so. Let me know what you think of the format!
If you like what we do, please consider becoming a monthly donor to the coast range association, at https://coastrange.networkforgood.com/projects/172942-support-coast-range-association.
Whatever the amount, your support goes a long way with a small but mighty organization like CRA!
Research Links/Show Notes:
Worth more standing report: https://www.climate-forests.org/worth-more-standing
Poor Windy: https://www.climate-forests.org/post/medford-district-bureau-of-land-management-oregon-poor-windy-project
https://westernlaw.org/court-approval-of-old-growth-sales-in-northern-spotted-owl-habitat-violated-endangered-species-act/
https://www.invw.org/2022/09/09/in-the-northwest-and-beyond-mature-and-old-growth-trees-remain-under-threat-in-spite-of-bidens-move-to-protect-them/
https://www.kswild.org/staff-board-1/2017/6/13/george-sexton
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Join us TOMORROW (or today, depending on when you're listening), Thursday, November 17th, 11:30am, at Terry Schrunk Plaza in Downtown Portland, as we rally to say that Mature and Old Growth Forests are Worth More Standing!
Preserving our mature and old-growth forests is one of the best ways we can fight climate change, as well as preserve wildlife habitat and drinking water. Join us and other activists rallying across the country to make sure the Forest Service (and the President!) know our forests are worth more standing!
We'll start gathering between 11:30 AM and noon at Terry Schrunk Plaza (directly across from the regional Forest Service office) for live music and hot drinks, to make art together, and deliver a petition signed by over 100,000 forest lovers from across the US to make our message loud and clear that we need a lasting, durable rule that protects these climate forests from destructive logging projects.
Bring a mug and a sign that says what you love most about Oregon's public forests! Carpools are currently being organized from Eugene as well. Sign up for more details and updates on this important event.
https://www.climate-forests.org/events
Learn more about the Coast Range Association's work on private and public forests, and our groundbreaking Green New Deal for Oregon's Forests at https://coastrange.org/
And please consider donating to support us at: https://coastrange.networkforgood.com/projects/172942-support-coast-range-association
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We're hard at work on some ambitious new episodes! In the meantime, we're re-visiting one of our most popular episodes:
Andrew interviews award winning and prolific author, essayist, and commentator Robert Leo Heilman from Myrtle Creek, Oregon. Bob is the author of several books including Overstory Zero: Real Life in Timber Country, Children of Death, and The World Pool: A Literary Variety. He has also been a prolific contributor to guest columns in the News Review in Roseburg.
Bob has recently been the target of violence for his recent writings in his local paper that call out rightwing extremism. We discuss the duty Bob feels as a writer to speak openly about the dangers of the extremism and fear he sees in his community. Bob describes the changes he's seen living in Myrtle Creek for over four decades and the impacts of declining material living conditions on rural people and communities.
https://robertheilman.wordpress.com/
Find his book Overstory Zero: Real Life in Timber Country to read his direct experience living in timber country.
Daily Yonder Article: https://dailyyonder.com/commentary-broken-glass-broken-trust/2021/07/22/
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Ballots are out for the 2022 general election, and it is no exaggeration to say that this is the most consequential election for Oregonians in years if not decades.
Three out of six of Oregon’s seats for the US house of representatives are considered tossups where either the Democrat or Republican could win, and the race for Governor is anyone’s game. To put that into perspective, Republicans haven’t held the Governor’s seat since 1986, and our federal delegation to the US House could swing from a 4-1 Democratic majority to a 4-2 Republican majority.
We at the Coast Range Association don’t make candidate endorsements, but I want to help listeners understand the choices we have and the stakes of this election.
Whether we are looking at climate action, forest management, environmental and wildlife protections, women’s rights to control their bodies, investments in our rural communities, or any other issues you care about, the choices we make in this election will have real, tangible impacts.
There is a lot of great reporting and trustworthy organizations out there to help you understand your choices, and though we’ll mainly be talking about the governor’s race today, our local elections are deeply impactful to our lives as well.
However you vote, your choice really matters. That’s true with every election, buy more so this year than in a long time here in Oregon.
So with that in mind, I reached out to Hillary Borrud from The Oregonian to learn more about the Governor’s race, and then I spoke with Sidra Pierson from the Rural Organizing Project about their non-partisan voter guide.
I hope you enjoy the show, and if you know folks that don’t plan to vote or are undecided about who to vote for, talk with them!
As always, I love hearing feedback and show ideas. My email is michael@coastrange.org.
Official State Voter Pamphlet: https://oregonvotes.gov/voters-guide/english/votersguide.html
Hillary Borrud Articles: https://www.oregonlive.com/staff/hborrud/posts.html
Governor Candidates on Climate Action: https://www.opb.org/article/2022/09/16/oregon-governor-race-candidates-elections-2022-climate-change-crisis/
https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2022/10/oregon-governor-candidates-what-would-they-do-to-tackle-climate-change.html
Rural Organizing Project STAND Election Guide: https://rop.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/2022-STAND-election-guide-English.pdf
Republican Money in Statehouse Races: https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2022/10/republicans-pour-astounding-money-into-races-for-oregon-legislature-hoping-to-flip-state-senate-to-gop-for-1st-time-in-20-years.html
Measure 113: https://ballotpedia.org/Oregon_Measure_113,_Exclusion_from_Re-election_for_Legislative_Absenteeism_Initiative_(2022)
VoteSmart- Non-partisan website showing candidate funding, positions, endorsements, and more: https://justfacts.votesmart.org/election/2022/G/OR/?stageId=G
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Today’s show is about a topic that is near and dear to my heart - Wild and Scenic rivers! We in Oregon are so fortunate to have not only amazing waterways, but also a history of elected officials who have been willing to fight for them, and for public access.
Without Wild and Scenic protections, many of our most special and important places in Oregon would not exist as we know them. What most folks don’t know is that only about 2% of our waterways are protected with this designation.
Last year, Senator Ron Wyden introduced the River Democracy Act, which would triple the mileage of waterways in Oregon with Wild and Scenic status. The River Democracy Act, which is co-sponsored by Senator Merkley, has drawn widespread praise from conservation groups and public land advocates
If you’re not familiar with river protection lingo, The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by Congress in 1968 to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free-flowing condition for the enjoyment of present and future generations.
The Act is notable for safeguarding the special character of these rivers, while also recognizing the potential for their appropriate use and development. It encourages river management that crosses political boundaries and promotes public participation in developing goals for river protection
To learn more about the bill, I’m joined today by Oregon Wild’s Public Lands Campaigner, Jamie Dawson.
Show Notes:
Contact Your Elected Official: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials
Senator Wyden one-pager: https://www.wyden.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/River%20Democracy%20Act%20of%202021%20One%20Pager.pdf
Oregon Wild RDA webpage: https://oregonwild.org/rivers
Oregon Wild factsheet: https://oregonwild.org/sites/default/files/1-Uploads/Documents/2021/River%20Democracy%20Act%202021%20Factsheet.pdf
Cool Short Video: https://vimeo.com/534234263
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Fire is, and always has been, a permanent part of our western landscapes and ecosystems, but the debate and policy prescriptions around how to protect our communities is shockingly disconnected from the science and and on the ground reality.
That’s why I’ve asked the director of an inspiring and powerful new film called ‘Elemental’ onto the show to talk about the realities of how we can co-exist with wildfires and create fire safe homes and communities.
Trip Jennings is the Principal & Founder of Balance Media, a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, and has won dozens of awards for his past films. His new film, ‘Elemental’, has been met with rave reviews, and is changing the narrative around wildfires.
Resources
Elemental: https://www.elementalfilm.com/
Oregon Department of Forestry Risk Assessment Explorer: https://tools.oregonexplorer.info/oe_htmlviewer/index.html?viewer=wildfire
ODF Senate Bill 762 Homepage: https://www.oregon.gov/odf/Pages/sb762.aspx
Firewise Home Hardening Toolkit: http://forestfirefacts.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Firewise-Toolkit_2016.pdf
Why Thinning Doesn't Make Communities Safer:
https://www.westernwatersheds.org/gw-poor-wildfire-strategy/
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/billions-in-feds-spending-on-megafire-risks-seen-as-misdirected
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Preserving mature and old growth forests across the US is a critical piece of the puzzle in fighting climate change, and on Earth Day of this year, President Biden issued an executive order to "strengthen America's forests, boost wildfire resilience, and combat global deforestation".
Great news, right? Not so fast. To learn more about the good, the bad, and the ugly of Federal forest and climate policy. I spoke with Oregon Wild’s Forest Climate Policy Coordinator, Lauren Anderson. Lauren joined Oregon Wild in 2020 after several years in Washington, D.C. working on energy, climate and wildlife policy issues.
Among other roles, Lauren helps coordinate the Climate Forests Campaign, a coalition of environmental organizations across the country, working to protect mature and old-growth forests.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Let me know what you thought, send suggestions, or just say hey at michael@coastrange.org.
Show Notes:
Climate Forests: https://www.climate-forests.org/
Worth More Standing Report: https://www.climate-forests.org/_filesx/ugd/73639b_03bdeb627485485392ac3aaf6569f609.pdf
White House fact sheet on President Biden's Executive Order on Forests: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-signs-executive-order-to-strengthen-americas-forests-boost-wildfire-resilience-and-combat-global-deforestation/
Good overview of the climate provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act: https://earthjustice.org/brief/2022/what-the-inflation-reduction-act-means-for-climate
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This is part three of our series celebrating 10 years of Oregon’s Marine Reserve Program. For those who aren’t familiar, a Marine Reserve is an area within coastal waters dedicated to scientific research and conservation.
Think of it as a combination of an underwater State Park, a wildlife preserve, and a living laboratory!
Here in Oregon, we have five designated Marine reserves. From North to South, they are located offshore of Cape Falcon, Cascade Head, Otter Rock, Cape Perpetua, and way down South near Port Orford, Redfish Rocks.
In part one, we got a great high level overview of Oregon's Marine Reserve System with former Marine Reserve Program Leader, Cristin Don.
In part two, we heard from Nadia Gardner with Cape Falcon on the North Coast, and Duncan Berry with Cascade Head near Lincoln City.
You can find those episodes, along with all of our shows, at coast range dot ORG.
We’re also on all the podcast apps at Coast Range Radio, and we’d be grateful if you would subscribe to the show, and leave a rating and review. If you’re listening on your community radio station, please make sure to support them!
Ok, back to today’s episode! For part three of our Marine Reserve series, we’ll hear from folks representing community groups supporting Otter Rock (Roy Anderson), Cape Perpetua (Katy Bear Nalven), and Redfish Rocks (Tom Calvanese).
If these episodes inspire you to get involved with any of the community groups, or learn more about the science and research happening at the reserves go to omrp.org for more information and web links.
If you have feedback or suggestions for future shows and guests, my email is michael@coastrange.org.
Show notes:
Oregon Marine Reserve Partnership: https://omrp.org/
Friends of Otter Rock Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/FriendsofOtterRockMR/
Cape Perpetua Collaborative: https://capeperpetuacollaborative.org/
Redfish Rocks Community Team: http://www.redfishrocks.org/
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Marine Reserve Site: https://oregonmarinereserves.com/
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This is part two of a three part series celebrating the 10th anniversary of Oregon’s Marine Reserve Program! A Marine Reserve is an area within coastal waters dedicated to scientific research and conservation, where all ocean development and removal of marine life is prohibited.
Think of it as a combination of an underwater State Park, a wildlife preserve, and a living laboratory!
Here in Oregon, we have five designated Marine reserves. From North to South, they are located offshore of Cape Falcon, Cascade Head, Otter Rock, Cape Perpetua, and way down South near Port Orford, Redfish Rocks.
In part one, we got a great high level overview of Oregon's Marine Reserve System with Oregon Fish and Wildlife's former Marine Reserve Program Leader, Cristin Don. You can find that episode, along with all of our shows, wherever you are listening to this.
For parts two and three of our Marine Reserve series, we’ll be talking with our community partners from each Reserve up and down the coast. We're heading North to South, and today we’ll be hearing from Nadia Gardner from Cape Falcon and North Coast Land Conservancy, and Duncan Berry with the Cascade Head Biosphere Reserve.
If you have feedback or suggestions for future shows and guests, my email is michael @ coast range dot ORG.
Links and Resources:
Oregon Marine Reserve Partnership: https://omrp.org/
Cape Falcon: https://nclctrust.org/cape-falcon-marine-reserve/
Cascade Head: https://www.cascadehead.org/
https://www.4castproject.org/
iNaturalist App
https://www.inaturalist.org/
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On the show today, we’re diving into the exciting and choppy waters of offshore wind!
Floating Off-shore wind energy is relatively a new technology with huge potential. The federal Bureau of Oregon Energy Management estimates up to 3 gigawatts in near-term commercial potential off of the Southern Oregon coast alone. That’s enough power for over 200,000 homes.
I’m excited for today’s topic, because it really encapsulates a lot of the complexity and messiness around what it looks like to actually transition quickly away from fossil fuels. How do we move with the speed necessary to scale into a post-carbon energy society without creating collateral and unforeseen damage? What is the real economic and energy potential of projects like this, and what level of ecological disturbance is acceptable in the name of rapid decarbonization?
To explore these questions, I’m joined by two guests - Joe Leibezeit and Shannon Souza.
Joe Leibezeit has worked for Portland Audubon since 2013 as the staff scientist and leads Audubon's Community Science and Coastal Conservation Programs. Full disclosure - we work together as part of the Oregon Marine Reserves Partnership.
Shannon Souza is the Policy Director for Pacific Ocean Energy Trust, co-founder of Oregon Coast Energy Alliance Network, and owns Sol Coast Companies, a renewable energy design, construction, and consulting business based in Coos Bay.
I'd love to hear from you! Send shows ideas and feedback to michael@coastrange.org, and please rate and review the show!
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Links and Resources Mentioned in the Show:
Audubon action alert, with links: https://audubonportland.org/take-action/help-ensure-new-coastal-wind-energy-projects-avoid-wildlife-conflicts/
Pacific Ocean Energy Trust (POET): https://pacificoceanenergy.org/
Oregon Coastal Energy Alliance Network (OCEAN): https://www.oregonenergyalliance.org/
Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition Youtube panel presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjNZpbmLm20
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Selected studies: https://www.boem.gov/sites/default/files/documents/regions/pacific-ocs-region/environmental-science/Selected-BOEM-Research-Renewable-OR_4.pdf
Oregon Department of Energy - Oregon Renewable Energy Siting Assessment (ORESA): https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/ORESA.aspx
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Joe Seamons is a musician and educator based in the Pacific Northwest and dedicated to helping people connect with their heritage through music and storytelling.
Born and raised in Northwestern Oregon, Joe has made a living interpreting the songs and stories of the local sawmill, logging, and fishing ballads composed by elder working people and folklorists. Many of these songs are included on the 2016 album, Timberbound,In the same vein, Joe directed and served as executive producer for a Smithsonian Folkways album entitled, "Roll, Columbia: Woody Guthrie's 26 Northwest Songs."
As director of The Rhapsody Project, he works with youth in Seattle to explore the influence of regional and personal history through the lens of American blues and folk songs. He also serves as board chair of the Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center.
This was a fun conversation, and gave me a lot to think about. I hope you enjoy it, and check out Joe's music at the links below!
Links to Joe's projects:
https://www.joebanjo.net/
https://www.therhapsodyproject.org/home
https://www.maxvilleheritage.org/our-story
I'd love to hear from you! Send shows ideas and feedback to michael@coastrange.org, and please rate and review the show!
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Hello! I'm Michael Gaskill, your new host for Coast Range Radio. I'm hard at work putting together brand new episodes for the show, and we have some great guests lined up.
I'm also always looking for feedback, show ideas, and guest suggestions! Email me at michael@coastrange.org.
In the meantime, I wanted to replay on of my favotire epsiodes from the past couple years of the show. This is actually part one of a great two-part conversation between Andrew and Levi Van Sant (@LeviVanSant), an Assistant Professor at George Mason University in Fairfax County Virginia whose work focuses on environmental (in)justice, particularly issues surrounding food, agriculture, and land use. I highly recommend checking out part two of their conversation as well.
Levi wrote a formative piece in Dissent on Land Reform and the Green New Deal that influenced the Coast Range Association’s recent Climate & Oregon’s Industrial Forests: A Green New Proposal. Andrew and Levi discuss agricultural land transitions, the history of the First National Conference for Land Reform and the unifying opportunities that could come from including rural justice and land ownership solutions in the just transition mandate of the Green New Deal.
Resource Links:
https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/land-reform-and-the-green-new-deal
https://agriculture.auburn.edu/research/aers/alabama-timberland/
https://coastrange.org/challenging-wall-street-forestry/ownership/
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Outgoing Coast Range Radio host and producer, Andrew, introduces Michael Gaskill. Michael will be the new host and producer of Coast Range Radio and is the new communications staff for the Coast Range Association.
Michael and Andrew interview Cristen Don who oversees the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife's Marine Reserve Program. Over the past 17 years Cristen's work has spanned a variety of ocean related topics including marine protected areas, ocean renewable energy, and fisheries. Cristen has worked on the planning and implementation of Oregon’s marine reserves since 2007. She has a Bachelor’s degree in marine biology from UC Santa Cruz and a Master’s degree in marine and environmental affairs from the University of Washington.
They discuss the five beautiful marine reserves in Oregon, the research ODFW does at the reserves, the community groups who support the reserves, and how to get involved. To learn more visit - oregonmarinereserves.com.
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Coast Range Radio interviews Chuck Willer on how to build equitable rural forest economies in Western Oregon. Chuck describes how social benefit and community centered forest solutions can revitalize rural Oregon communities and economies. Chuck’s vision and analysis comes from 30 years of work addressing the underlying causes of social and environmental problems in Western Oregon. To learn more and support this work visit www.coastrange.org.
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This episode is an edited broadcast of a presentation given to the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance by Dr. Dominick DellaSala. DellaSala is the Chief Scientist at Wild Heritage, a project of Earth Island Institute, and former President of the Society for Conservation Biology, North America Section. He is an internationally renowned author of over 200 science papers on forest and fire ecology, conservation biology, endangered species management, and landscape ecology.
DellaSala describes the nuts and bolts of forest carbon accounting, the importance of mature and old-growth forests as carbon reserves, his most recent US primary forest mapping research, and the unique carbon and biodiverse characteristics of the Tongass Rainforest.
To learn more and take action, visit the multi-stakeholder campaign page for protecting US mature and old-growth forests as a cornerstone of US climate policy.
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Andrew interviews Bob Sallinger, Conservation Director at Portland Audubon, on the history and current conservation efforts for the Elliott State Forest in Oregon. Bob details the public process over the past three years to separate the Elliott State Forest from the Common School Fund and turn the Elliott State Forest into a publicly owned research forest. Learn more here. 2022 is a turning point for the Elliott State Forest, and there is a bill in the Oregon 2022 short session that makes this transition possible. Learn more about the bill here.
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Andrew interviews Deb Fant. Deb is a retired nurse and 30 year Oregon resident. She is a leader at Lincoln County Community Rightsand was actively engaged in the work to enact the Lincoln County Aerial Spray Ban in 2017.
We discuss the history of this local aerial spray ban, the work of Lincoln County Community Rights, the challenge to the overturned ban in the Oregon Supreme Court in 2021, and her work to build a broad network in Oregon to protect community rights and the rights of nature.
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Sam Krop and Andrew interview Dr. Betsy Herbert, an environmental scientist and published author who has expertise in researching how forest management impacts drinking water. She is also an active volunteer for North Coast Communities for Watershed Protection and Forest Waters Watch.
Betsy describes how she started in this work, the importance of forests for providing quality drinking water and what is happening in Oregon drinking watersheds that are dominated by short rotation industrial forestry. Betsy also provides nine excellent examples of policy changes to Oregon’s Forest Practices Act that would increase protections for drinking water.
You can get involved by providing public comment that asks for increased protection for drinking water coming off Western Oregon State Forests through the Department of Forestry’s Companion Western Oregon State Forest Management Plan and Implementation Plans project.
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Andrew interviews Dr. Melissa Ward, PhD post-doctoral researcher working out of San Diego State University, and Ryan Hasert, public policy analysis graduate student at Oregon State University. They are part of the research project “Assessing Community Vulnerability to Ocean Acidification Across the California Current Ecosystem”.
The project looks at Ocean Acidification on the West Coast and specifically the impacts and adaptive capacity strategies employed by shellfish farmers and other shellfish fisheries. We learn about Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia, the impacts to coastal communities and ecosystems and important policy opportunities.
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Andrew interviews Andrew Bogrand, volunteer Communications Director for the Divest Oregon Campaign. Andrew is a human rights campaigner and policy advocate who supports nonprofits, coalitions, and communities fighting injustice.
They discuss why a diverse coalition of Oregonians have come together to demand the Oregon Treasury, managing $120 Billion in investments, divest from the climate warming fossil fuel industry. Andrew provides great economic and environmental justice arguments for why the state should divest from fossil fuels. He then provides details on opportunities for individuals and organizations to get involved in the campaign.
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Sam and Andrew interview Rita Frost, Campaigns Director at the Dogwood Alliance. The Dogwood Alliance advances environmental justice and climate action by mobilizing diverse voices to protect southern forests and communities from industrial logging.
Rita outlines the threats of biomass as a false climate solution that threatens southern forests and the importance of bringing communities most impacted by industrial logging to the decision making table. The conversation then turns to the importance of ensuring environmental justice and forest protection as key components to a holistic response to the climate crisis.
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Andrew interviews award winning and prolific author, essayist, and commentator Robert Leo Heilman from Myrtle Creek, Oregon. Bob is the author of several books including Overstory Zero: Real Life in Timber Country, Children of Death, and The World Pool: A Literary Variety. He has also been a prolific contributor to guest columns in the News Review in Roseburg.
Bob has recently been the target of violence for his recent writings in his local paper that call out rightwing extremism. We discuss the duty Bob feels as a writer to speak openly about the dangers of the extremism and fear he sees in his community. Bob describes the changes he's seen living in Myrtle Creek for over four decades and the impacts of declining material living conditions on rural people and communities.
Find his book Overstory Zero: Real Life in Timber Country to read his direct experience living in timber country.
Support the show (https://coastrange.org/donate/)
In part two, we continue our conversation with Levi Van Sant (@LeviVanSant), an Assistant Professor at George Mason University in Fairfax County Virginia whose work focuses on environmental (in)justice, particularly issues surrounding food, agriculture, and land use.
Levi wrote a formative piece in Dissent on Land Reform and the Green New Deal that influenced the Coast Range Association’s recent Climate & Oregon’s Industrial Forests: A Green New Proposal. In this episode, Andrew and Levi discuss alternative land ownership models such as Frannie Lou Hamer's Freedom Farm Cooperative and the history of colonization in the U.S. and indigenous calls for land back and how it relates to this conversation on land reform.
Resource Links:
https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/land-reform-and-the-green-new-deal
http://therednation.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Red-Deal_Part-I_End-The-Occupation-1.pdf
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/fannie-lou-hamer-freedom-farm-cooperative
Support the show (https://coastrange.org/donate/)
In part one, Andrew interviews Levi Van Sant (@LeviVanSant), an Assistant Professor at George Mason University in Fairfax County Virginia whose work focuses on environmental (in)justice, particularly issues surrounding food, agriculture, and land use.
Levi wrote a formative piece in Dissent on Land Reform and the Green New Deal that influenced the Coast Range Association’s recent Climate & Oregon’s Industrial Forests: A Green New Proposal. Andrew and Levi discuss agricultural land transitions, the history of the First National Conference for Land Reform and the unifying opportunities that could come from including rural justice and land ownership solutions in the just transition mandate of the Green New Deal.
Resource Links:
https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/land-reform-and-the-green-new-deal
https://agriculture.auburn.edu/research/aers/alabama-timberland/
https://coastrange.org/challenging-wall-street-forestry/ownership/
Support the show (https://coastrange.org/donate/)
Sam Krop interviews Bethany Cotton, Conservation Director at Cascadia Wildlands, on the connections between rivers, salmon and communities with a look at the proposal to remove the four lower dams on the Snake River.
Sam and Bethany discuss the history and cultural significance of the Columbia and Snake Rivers salmon runs, the current impacts of the dams on salmon and communities, the flaws in Representative Simpson’s concept for removal of these dams, and a vision of the future for our rivers and communities.
Resource Links:
Environmental Implications for Simpson Concept for Snake River Dams Removal
Snake River Dams Principles Statements
NW Energy dam replacement study summary flyer
Full NW Energy dam replacement report
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Chuck Willer, Executive Director of the Coast Range Association, and Andrew discuss the release of the Coast Range Association's recent report, Climate & Oregon's Industrial Forests - A Green New Deal Proposal.
They highlight the need for Western Oregon's private industrial forests to store large amounts of carbon. The need for this important natural climate solution is put into context by analyzing industrial forest ownership by Wall Street investment firms and the economic hardships faced by rural Oregonians. Issues like Wall Street ownership and the economic disparities in rural Oregon are central to the call for a Just Transition in the Green New Deal.
They then discuss voluntary land reform with a transition of industrial forests to democratically managed cooperative, municipal and tribal forest ownership models. They end with discussing how a land ownership and justice analysis of forest issues has the potential to bridge the rural/urban divide, offering solutions that build carbon in forests while improving rural wellbeing.
https://coastrange.org/gnd-proposal/
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In part two, Andrew and Abel discuss the ecoforestry practices used at Aprovecho to manage the forest there towards an old growth character forest. They discuss how this type of intentional land management connects to indigenous and climate justice. They also go into the history of indigenous genocide in Oregon and its connection to the landscape change from oak savanna to primarily Douglas fir forest at the site.
Article Abel references on Kalapuyan enthnohistory:
QUARTUX | Journal of Critical Indigenous Anthropology | David G. Lewis, PhD https://ndnhistoryresearch.com/tribal-regions/kalapuyan-ethnohistory/
Through Resilience Permaculture Design, LLC, Abel specializes in Forest Stewardship Planning as a consulting forester for ODF and a Technical Service Provider for the NRCS.
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Andrew interviews Abel Kloster. Through Resilience Permaculture Design, LLC, Abel specializes in Forest Stewardship Planning as a consulting forester for ODF and a Technical Service Provider for the NRCS. We talk on site about the ecoforestry work he stewards at Aprovecho outside of Cottage Grove, OR. We discuss the lessons he has learned in this work and the opportunities he has found in cooperative ownership and management of forests.
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Andrew interviews Bob Bailey, President of the Elakha Alliance. The Elakha Alliance is an Oregon nonprofit working towards a vision for an Oregon Coast 50 years from now where our children and grandchildren enjoy and benefit from a healthy sea otter population, a robust marine ecosystem, and a thriving coastal economy.
Bob and Andrew discuss sea otter ecology, why sea otters are absent from the Oregon Coast, the process for reintroduction and how individuals can get involved.
To support the Elakha Alliance and learn more, visit https://www.elakhaalliance.org.
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The second of a two-part series featuring visions of the future of forests and communities read by members of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance’s Green New Deal Working Group.
These visions are interspersed with a conversation about how a Green New Deal framework creates inspiring opportunities for building carbon storage and protecting PNW forests while improving the lives of frontline communities.
Both Sam Krop and Andrew Collins-Anderson are members of this working group. They interview other members, Matt Stevenson of the Sunrise Movement PDX, Chandra LeGue of Oregon Wild and Dylan Plummer of Cascadia Wildlands.
You can take action and learn more by visiting bit.ly/gndforpnwforests. What is your vision for the future of forests and communities? Record yourself reading your vision and share on social media using #forests4future.
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This episode is the first of a two-part series featuring visions of the future of forests and communities read by members of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance’s Green New Deal Working Group.
These visions for the future of PNW forests are interspersed with a conversation about how a Green New Deal framework creates inspiring opportunities for building carbon storage and protecting PNW forests while improving the lives of frontline communities.
Both Sam Krop and Andrew Collins-Anderson are members of this working group. They interview other members, Matt Stevenson of the Sunrise Movement PDX, Chandra LeGue of Oregon Wild and Dylan Plummer of Cascadia Wildlands.
You can take action and learn more by visiting bit.ly/gndforpnwforests. What is your vision for the future of forests and communities? Record yourself reading your vision and share on social media using #forests4future.
Support the show (https://coastrange.org/donate/)
Sam and Andrew interview Paula Hood from the Blue Mountains Biodiversity Projecton the Trump administration's rollback of the 21" Screens for Oregon's Eastside forests. Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project, Earthrise Law Center, Greater Hells Canyon Council, Oregon Wild, and Central Oregon Landwatch have been working closely to oppose the rollback of protections for large trees on eastside forests. In addition, 29 conservation groups and 115 scientists have joined in voicing their unified opposition to the Trump administration's rollback of the 21" Screens. For a more in-depth look at some of the ecological issues and science behind why protecting large and old trees in eastern Oregon is important, please check out this expert report by Dr. Dominick DellaSala and Dr. Bill Baker.
You can take action to help defend large and old trees in eastern Oregon at https://bluemountainsbiodiversityproject.org/
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in this episode, Andrew interviews Dawn Villaescusa, President of the Audubon Society of Lincoln City on their Rocky Habitat Campaign. Dawn describes the ecological and social values of the rocky habitat on Oregon's coast. She describes the two community-based proposals that the Audubon Society of Lincoln City has submitted to Oregon's Ocean Policy Advisory Council’s (OPAC’s) Rocky Habitat Working Group for Cape Foulweather and Cape Lookout.
To support the campaign and learn more, visit http://www.lincolncityaudubon.org.
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Sam Krop takes the lead on this interview with two inspiring climate justice activists about their work supporting the city of Eugene, Oregon in achieving a just transition away from so-called “natural” or fracked gas.
Avery Temple is a student, community organizer and Latina activist working on racial justice and climate justice issues. Avery currently works for Cascadia Wildlandsand is a co-lead on the Fossil Free Eugene campaign.
Ana Molina is a Latina environmental justice activist and advocate, wanting racial and climate justice for our BIPOC communities. Ana is also the Statewide Environmental Justice Manager for Beyond Toxics.
Ana and Avery discuss the campaign, the issues with fracked gas, why this is a racial justice issue, the shady tactics of the fracking industry, what an exciting and visionary just transition looks like and how people can get involved.
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In this episode, Sam Krop and Andrew Collins-Anderson interview Allie Rosenbluth who is the Campaigns Director for the Southern Oregon-based climate justice organization, Rogue Climate. Allie shares her experiences working with the powerful grassroots coalition resisting the Jordan Cove Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) export terminal and fracked gas pipeline. If built, the Jordan Cove LNG export project would be the largest single source of climate pollution in Oregon.
Allie recounts the history of the grassroots fight to stop the project, the recent win with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) upholding the ODEQ’s denial of a key Clean Water Act permit and how folks can engage in current actions to stop the project.
Allie shares moving stories from experiencing industry funded state surveillance to this project’s connections to pipeline resistance movements across the US. In addition, Allie recounts how Rogue Climate experienced the climate crisis firsthand when their office burned along with 3,000 other structures in the Almeda Fire this September. Learn more and support Rogue Climate as they work towards a just rebuilding of the communities impacted by the Almeda Fire while confronting the climate crisis.
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Coast Range Radio interviews community organizer and steering committee member of the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance, Sam Krop. Sam discusses her work to resist post-fire logging in Oregon. We also introduce Sam as a new regular contributor and host on Coast Range Radio. Sam will be helping to expand and diversify the voices heard on the program.
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Coast Range Radio interviews troublemaker and writer Carol Van Strum. Carol has spent decades documenting and fighting the atrocities perpetuated on the rural communities of the Pacific Northwest through wanton pesticide use by massive chemical corporations, the timber industry and the federal government. Carol is the recipient of the David Brower Lifetime Achievement Award. She is the author of A Bitter Fog: Herbicides and Human Rights, No Margin of Safety, The Oreo File and other works. Carol was also instrumental to the creation of the Poison Papers.
In 2017, her work was instrumental in Lincoln County’s voter-approved first ever ban of aerial pesticide spraying in the nation. The ban was overturned, and that decision is being appealed. Carol is featured in the new documentary film, The People vs. Agent Orange. To find local screenings and to learn about the film visit www.thepeoplevsagentorange.com.
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Coast Range Radio interviews Kai Huschke of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund and Oregon Community Rights Network. We discuss the community rights movement and Kai provides exciting examples of Oregon communities leading efforts to protect their local environment and community health by confronting corporate power. To learn more visit, https://orcrn.org
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Coast Range Radio interviews Laura Anderson owner of the restaurant, Local Ocean, based in Newport, OR. Laura has a master's degree in marine resource management from Oregon State University. Laura is also the director of the Oregon Ocean Science Trust, a board member of the Oregon Coast Aquarium, and a trustee of The Nature Conservancy of Oregon. Laura brings a wealth of knowledge and experience about Oregon’s major fisheries to our conversation. We discuss these fishery’s importance to Oregon's communities and outline important conservation concerns and opportunities.
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Coast Range Radio interviews Catherine Thomasson and Jody Wiser about timber tax fairness for Oregon’s counties. Catherine has worked on climate change issues for the past 25 years and is a former Executive Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility. Jody is a Tax Policy expert with Tax Fairness Oregon. We discuss the hardships Oregon’s counties are facing with reduced timber tax revenues and the impacts to rural water providers. Learn how to become engaged in restoring economic vitality for Oregon's rural communities. Join a community presentation at www.facebook.com/TaxFairnessOregon/.
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Coast Range Radio interviews Chuck Willer on the Green New Deal and a just transition for western Oregon’s corporate-owned industrial forests. Oregon’s forests play an important role in addressing the climate crisis. Chuck describes how land reform would revitalize rural Oregon communities while storing vast amounts of carbon. Chuck’s vision and analysis comes from 30 years of work addressing the underlying causes of social and environmental problems in western Oregon. To learn more and support this work visit www.coastrange.org.
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Coast Range Radio interview with Charlie Plybon. Charlie is the Oregon Policy Manager for the Surfrider Foundation. We discuss his work on Oregon’s marine reserves, rocky habitats, ocean plastic pollution, climate change impacts to the Oregon Coast, updates on ocean and climate policy and opportunities for coastal communities to engage in climate change activism.
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Coast Range Radio’s interview with Timothy Ingalsbee, Ph.D. We discuss the new messaging guide - Incendiary Rhetoric: Climate Change, Wildfire, and Ecological Fire Management from Tim’s organization, Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics & Ecology. To find the guide and to learn more visit their website, fusee.org.
Tim is a leading expert in fire ecology and provides many insights to the large fires impacting Oregon and the west in 2020. Our conversation reveals several inconvenient truths about fire in Oregon. Tim tells a tale of two fires and offers many solutions to protect our homes and communities while storing large amounts of carbon in our forests, an imperative for our warming planet.
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Coast Range Radio interviews John Borowski. John is a long time marine and environmental science educator in Oregon. In our discussion, John draws from his years of experience to describe the power timber and fossil fuel companies have in influencing science education. Of specific interest, John outlines how the Oregon Forest Resources Institute’s (OFRI) timber focused materials enter Oregon’s schools and influence environmental education.
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Coast Range Radio's interview with Joel Iboa. Joel is the coalition manager for Causa Oregon—Oregon’s immigrant rights organization. Joel currently serves as chair of the Eugene Human Rights Commission. Joel is also the youngest person to be elected chair for the Oregon governor's Environmental Justice Task Force.
We discuss Joel's work at Causa during the Covid-19 pandemic, environmental justice in Oregon, rural justice organizing, justice for immigrant forest workers and the opportunities of a Green New Deal for Oregon.
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Coast Range Radio’s interview with Stan Petrowski on beaver ecology and protection in Oregon. We discuss the interesting history of beavers in Oregon, their ecological importance, and the current efforts to protect beavers for the benefit of streams, forests, salmon and climate.
Stan is a leader in restoration ecology in Oregon. He is the founder and President of the South Umpqua Rural Community Partnership. He is on the Board and was past president of Umpqua Watersheds, and was a past Board member of Partnership for the Umpqua Rivers - Douglas County Watershed Council. Stan has been a resident on his ranch in the Tiller area of the Umpqua National Forest for 25 years.
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Coast Range Radio interview with Oregon based natural resource economist, Ernie Niemi. Ernie is the co-founder and co-director of the Forest Carbon Coalition, and founder of Natural Resource Economics, INC. This show highlights the important findings from Ernie's 2020 working paper “Bigger Than Expected: Climate-Change Costs & Emission-Reduction Benefits”. We discuss the range of economic impacts Oregonians should expect as the climate warms.
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In this episode we speak with Andrea Rodgers, Senior Attorney at Our Children’s Trust. We discuss environmental law in the age of coronavirus and the non-profit public interest law firm, Our Children’s Trust. Andrea then provides updates from the climate justice case, Juliana vs United States.
Andrea Rodgers is the Senior Attorney at Our Children’s Trust where she serves as co-counsel on the constitutional youth climate lawsuit against the federal government, Juliana v. United States, and as lead counsel on the constitutional youth climate lawsuits against the state of Washington, Aji v. State of Washington, and the state of Florida, Reynolds v. State of Florida.
She has served as an Honors Attorney for the U.S. Department of Transportation, In-House Legal Counsel for the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe, and Staff Attorney for the Western Environmental Law Center. Her environmental law practice focuses on reducing pollution from industrial agricultural operations, protecting and enhancing instream flows for people and fish, and fighting climate change on behalf of young people and future generations. Andrea is licensed to practice law in Washington and Oregon and is admitted to practice in the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Tenth Circuit, U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Northern California, the Snoqualmie Tribal Court, the Lummi Indian Nation Tribal Court and the Muckleshoot Tribal Court.
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Our conversation with organizer and forests activist, Courtney Kaltenbach. Courtney is the Forest Defense Campaign Coordinator with the University of Oregon Climate Justice League and a Field Checking Intern with Cascadia Wildlands. We discuss the joy in bringing students to field check forests to ground truth logging proposals, and the importance of Oregon's forests to fighting climate change. We also discuss her experience standing up to timber industry propaganda equating clear cut forestry to climate responsible land management.
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In episode 3 we speak with Dan Pennington of Myrtle Glen Farm (an organic farm and B&B nestled in the foothills of the southern Oregon coast range mountains) and Coast Range Forest Watch (a grassroots organization of community members concerned about the health of forests and watersheds in Oregon’s coast range) in Coos County. We discuss the important forest protection and anti-aerial spray work of Coast Range Forest Watch, farming during covid-19, and the interconnected nature of forests, water, and climate change.
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In this episode we introduce the important work of the Coast Range Association and discuss Oregon's private forestland ownership and taxation issues identified through the CRA research program, Challenging Wall St. Forestry. We are speaking with Chuck Willer, Executive Director and Principle Researcher of the Coast Range Association.
To learn more visit www.coastrange.org.
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Hi y’all, welcome to Coast Range Radio!
Coast Range Radio is a monthly radio show and podcast from the nonprofit conservation organization, the Coast Range Association. Located in Western Oregon, the Coast Range Association works to build just and sustainable communities that provide for people and the natural world. Our work focuses on the connections between Oregon’s forests, communities, and the climate crisis.
On Coast Range Radio we share conversations with forest advocates, scientists, farmers, lawyers, climate organizers and many others to share tools and inspiration as we all work to make a better world possible. We share the truths of corporate control of Oregon’s private forests, providing analysis of the political-economic issues that drive forest degradation, water pollution, and the unravelling of rural lives and landscapes. We also focus on the connections between forest management and climate change, sharing the many benefits and opportunities a Green New Deal would bring to Oregon through a just transition to a more regenerative society. We know that climate change disproportionately impacts the most vulnerable among us. We share stories that speak out against this injustice.
Tune in, subscribe and contact us. You can reach me at andrew@coastrange.org. We are on all podcasting platforms and hosted on radio stations across Western Oregon. A special thanks goes to KEPW 97.3 FM PeaceWorks Community Radio in Eugene, OR for helping to incubate Coast Range Radio.
To learn more and to get involved visit www.coastrange.org. Thanks for listening.
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This is the second episode of Coast Range Radio. We continue our conversation about private forestlands in Oregon with Chuck Willer, Executive Director and Principle Researcher of the Coast Range Association.
We dive in deep on the transition of private forestland ownership, taxation, and what this means for Oregon’s forests, rural communities, and our fight against the climate crisis. We then outline future discussions on Oregon’s forests and climate and the good news of how a Green New Deal would benefit rural Oregon communities.
To learn more visit coastrange.org. Email us at andrew@coastrange.org.
Support the show (https://coastrange.org/donate/)