Bark Alert: Bark just got better for volunteers

Dear Barker,

When writing Bark’s year in review, I couldn’t have been prouder to say that Nestlé hasn’t gotten our water in the Columbia River Gorge. Let’s make 2013 the year that Oregon withdraws its Nestlé water transfer applications and we win the fight to keep our public water public! If you haven't already, go to Bark’s Nestlé action page and send a message to the ODFW Commission.

Sincerely,
Alex P Brown, Executive Director

PS- Don’t need more stuff this holiday season? GIVE, or GET the gift of clean water and healthy forests by supporting Bark this December. Details below.

Bark-Out: Forest Service Timber Shop targets the north side of Mt. Hood
Bark-About: Hike the Airstrip Timber Sale with the attorney heading up our Airstrip lawsuit!
Giving Tree: Perfect gifts for coffee-drinkers and Mt. Hood lovers
Bark Tales: Bark’s books are in order thanks to a great volunteer!
Bark Bites: Our office just got even better – check it out!


Bark-Out
North side of Mt. Hood threatened with 7,000 acres of logging

This year the Forest Service began planning four timber sales situated back-to-back, forming a block of proposed logging that spans the entire North side of Mt. Hood. The Horseshoe, Red Hill, Lava, and Polallie-Cooper Timber Sales span over 13 miles and 7,000 acres from Bull Run all the way across Highway 35 and the Hood River. These sales are further evidence of an out-of-control timber program that prioritizes logging over maintaining healthy and functioning forest ecosystems that support a diversity of wildlife, clean water, and quiet recreation opportunities.

The Forest Service recently released a Preliminary Assessment (PA) on the Red Hill Timber Sale, initiating an opportunity for public comment. Red Hill is the first of these four sales open to public comment, so now is your opportunity to have your voice heard. Tell the Forest Service it is irresponsible to proceed with Red Hill without considering the cumulative impacts of the swath of sales in the area, and call out the agency for utilizing logging to promote “forest health” in a 100-year-old forest that has never before been logged. Click here to take action now.


Bark-About
Hike a proposed timber sale that Bark is challenging in court

Over the past three years, Bark’s advocacy on the Airstrip Timber Sale has forced the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to reduce the logging proposal from 325 to 207 acres and eliminate 45 acres of clearcuts. We have continually fought to protect the old growth and legacy features in the sale, the last of their kind for miles around. This month join Brenna Bell, Bark’s staff attorney, and Forest Watch Committee member Matt Mavko on a trip to Airstrip to see what is at stake. Brenna and Matt will explain the ins and outs of Bark's current lawsuit on Airstrip and how this legal work and volunteer groundtruthing form a crucial component of protecting the forests surrounding Mt. Hood.

Please bring food, water, hat, rain gear, sturdy hiking boots, and be prepared to hike off trail. Bark-Abouts are led on the second Sunday of every month and are free to the public. Click here for more information about this month’s hike.


Giving Tree
Coffee beans for Bark or go stuff-free this holiday season

Bark teamed up with Marco at the Half Pint Café to create the Bark Blend, a gift package that includes specially-roasted coffee beans and three blank note cards with Ursula Le Guin’s beautiful drawing of Mt. Hood—for just $15!  All of the proceeds go to Bark. Visit the Half Pint Café (which fuels Bark staff with daily caffeine infusions and was recently featured in the Willamette Week!) at 537 SE Ash and stock up on gifts for the forest- and coffee-lovers in your life. The Bark office is across the street so stop by after you get your coffee and check out our recently expanded space (see Bark Bites below).

Prefer a 100% stuff-free holiday? You can GIVE or GET the gift of Bark! To give the gift of Bark to a friend, visit Bark’s secure donation page and fill in the “in honor of” field. Bark will send the recipient a special Ursula Le Guin Mt. Hood card letting them know that you gifted them a legacy of clean water and healthy forests.

Or, for the first time ever, we’ve made it fun and easy to invite friends and family to give YOU the gift of a protected Mt. Hood National Forest. We will create a personalized online donation page with text and a photo of your choosing, so that you can direct friends and family to a cause you support and stay stuff-free this holiday season. Just click here to create your special page, or email [email protected] with your message and/or photo. Check out Christine’s page for an example. How fun!

The fine print: Bark will NOT add your friends and family to any contact lists. They can opt in if they want.



Bark Tales
Thanks for five fantastic years, David!

For more than five years David Askwith has been Bark’s volunteer bookkeeper. His contribution to the organization, while inconspicuous to most, has been monumental. By plugging his skill into the needs of Bark he has enabled Bark staff to put our time, energy, and money into protecting the forest instead of bookkeeping. David will be moving on at the end of this year after contributing more than 750 volunteer hours to Bark, but before he goes we want to give him a howl for five years of dedication to defending Mt. Hood National Forest. Thanks, David. HHHAAAAOOOOO!!!



Bark Bites
Our office space just got better – especially for volunteers!

Since we moved into our current office two years ago, we’ve been working toward establishing a space that maximizes our potential to share Bark’s many resources with our community. This month our efforts came to fruition! We recently expanded our office space, and now our extensive resource library enjoys a central location in our office. We have more room than ever for volunteers to spread out maps, pour over scientific documents, and connect with other Barkers. Our library includes dozens of binders covering everything you’d ever want to know about the timber sales Bark has groundtruthed and stopped, as well as thousands of pages of scientific studies, field guides, and more. Whether you’re a long-time volunteer or have never set foot in our office, this is a great time to swing by and check out our better-than-ever space! Our office is located in Portland at 205 SE Grand Ave, on the second floor in Suite 207. Hope to see you!