Forest Protection Campaign

America's first National Forests were established over one hundred years ago. Today we have 155 of them. Stretching across 191 million acres. But sadly, the timber industry has turned our publicly owned National Forests into a patchwork of clearcuts and logging roads. Commercial logging has taken a harsh toll on the National Forests, decimating most of our nation's old growth forests, draining nutrients from the soil, washing topsoil into streams, destroying wildlife habitat and intensifying the severity of forest fires. To protect what's left of our wild forest heritage, we must stop the commercial logging of our National Forests.

Healthy forest purify drinking water, stabilize hillsides, and protect us from floods. Hillsides with clearcuts or logging roads lose their ability to absorb heavy rains. Without trees to soak up moisture and roots to hold the soil, water gushes down the slopes, muddying streams, polluting our drinking water, intensifying floods and causing lethal damage. Several U.S. Forest Service studies in the Northwest found that over 70 percent of mudslides and landslides in some areas were linked with logging roads.

Americans love to hike, camp, fish, hunt, and canoe in our National Forests. And it's no wonder: with 4,400 campgrounds, 121,000 miles of trails and 96 Wild and Scenic Rivers, our National Forests are truly America's favorite playground. Each year, National forests host 835 million visitor days. (All Disney facilities combined report only 40 million visitor days.) The Forest Service predicts that in the year 2000, recreation, hunting and fishing in National Forests will contribute 38 times more income to the nation's economy than logging, and will create 31 times more jobs. National Forests are our link with America's wild heritage. Although only 4 percent of America's old growth forests are still standing, 75 percent of them are within National Forest borders.

Unfortunately, President Bush has promised to double the timber harvest on our National Forests. Our national forests are in severe peril, and need our more than ever. So how can you help our National Forests through ECOS?

• Join our alert email list.
• Contact your Senators and Representatives and let them know you want to see our national forests protected.
• Join ECOS!