The northwest timber wars of the 1980s and early 90s came to an end--in theory--with the creation of the Northwest Forest Plan, put into effect in 1994. It called for greatly reduced logging of national forests, and greater protection for the spotted owl and other sensitive forest creatures.
Now there's a process underway to revise the plan, in part to provide even more protection for mature and old growth forests (MOG). A series of public online meetings will explain the process and proposals, and a comment period is open for a few more weeks.
The USDA Forest Service set up and advisory committee months ago to help guide the change. We talk to the co-chairs, Travis Joseph of American Forest Resource Council, a timber industry group, and Susan Jane Brown at Silvix Resources, a nonprofit environmental law firm, about the road ahead, and the reasons for it.