Solo
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5/22/03
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3/25/03
The Solo and Borg Timber Sales were proposed in 1997 with the goal of clear-cutting the remaining islands of old-growth forest left in the Oak Grove Fork of the Clackamas River. Three hundred year-old giant Douglas firs, a rare remnant in the foothills of Mt. Hood, symbolize these sales. No laws protect these giants, but on one of Bark 's famous monthly hikes (always free to the public) we discovered a rare plant that is protected...except for the fact that the Forest Service had denied its existence. This discovery helped make the case in 2003 to District Court Judge Garr King that the Forest Service was ignoring its responsibility to survey for, and protect, rare plants and animals. Judge King agreed with Bark and ruled in our favor, temporarily stopping logging in the Solo, Borg, Lone, Straw Devil, Canyon East, and Clark sites.* Specifically, the Forest Service was forced to release Supplemental Environmental Assessments (SEAs) for five all these projects and prove to the court that they were properly analyzing the impacts of the proposed logging. They complied, and on February 17, 2004, these supplemental analyses were released. The lack of information in these SEAs (clearly) demonstrated that the Forest Service was unwilling to allow rare plants and animals to get in the way of logging old growth in the Mt. Hood and Willamette National Forests. Bark took this new violation to Judge King and, on August 9, he issued another ruling specifically, he suggested that the Forest Service must supplement its SEAs to consider a full range of alternatives in light of the survey and manage duties and other environmental impacts from the proposed logging including objectively considering the alternative of abandoning these projects " (emphasis added).See article at www.bark-out.orgPurchaser Info Freres Lumber bought the Solo Timber Sale on February 7th, 2003 for $347495. Freres Lumber sells their products at BMC West. You can send a Fax to BMC West asking them to change their purchasing policies at http //www.cascadiasummer.org/markets/bmcwest.html Solo would clear-cut 167 acres of native forest in the Oak Grove Watershed. The Solo EA states that Forest Service plans to turn the Oak Grove Watershed into one large tree farm. The Oak Grove Watershed drains into the Clackamas River providing the drinking water for 185,000 Oregonians. '
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General Info
- District: Clackamas
- Total Acres: 167
- Watershed: Oak Grove Fork
- Sub-Watersheds: Peavine Creek
- Basic Location: Mostly between Peavine Creek and the Oak Grove along 5730
- Driving Directions: Take Hwy 224 past Estacada and the Ripplebrook Guard Station to junction with Road 57. Turn left on 57 towards Timothy Lake and follow for 5 miles. Turn right on 5730 and follow past where pavement ends - at junction of 5730 and 5731 stay left on 5730. The first units are on the right in about a mile. However, most of the sale is off 5730, about 2 miles past the junction of 5730 and 5732, just past spur road 5730-170, which will veer to left. This route takes about 2.5 hours. Alternative routes may add 45 minutes to the drive First, JUST past Ripplebrook, the Forest Service has put DETOUR sign. Follow this sign. It 's a good gravel road any car can follow, although it narrows to 1 lane and has some tight curves so watch for oncoming traffic. This will finally spit you out back on to 57 at the end of the construction so you have to go left on 57. This will take you to Timothy Lake where you hit a paved road 5740. Take a RIGHT for a few miles until you hit the gravel 5730 and take a RIGHT. Following this for several miles will take you to the slash piles where you need to park fully off to the side of the road facing the correct direction for traffic flow so you don 't get ticketed. Walk this in for less than a mile and you 'll start seeing Solo 'units ' on your left and roads 210 and 200 where you may find campers camping and whatnot. Second way Go past Ripplebrook and skip the DETOUR sign and stay on 46 towards Bagby at the junction with 57 where the Forest Service has blocked it. Follow 46 until road 42 and take a LEFT. Soon after, take a LEFT on 4210. About 4 or so miles later, take a LEFT on 4661. When it runs head on into 5732, go straight on 5732 (perhaps this will look like the LEFT fork of 5732, which seems to do a hairpin turn as it hits 4661. About a mile or so later, you 'll hit 5730 and take a RIGHT (there 'll be a sign at a creek crossing there saying Chief Creek). Follow 5730 for a mile and a half of so and park safely off to the side, pointing the right way with the flow of traffic at the slash piles. Walk up this damn near two miles before you reach road 200 mentioned above. Pretty much all the ancient trees on your left and right as you walk up are part of the Solo sale and if you look close, you 'll see the tree sit, but this is overall a longer walk in than the above directions. Pretty much any car can make it this way too. If those ways don 't work -- take out a map. The below routes will get you there too 46 to 4640 to 5710 to 5720 to 5731 to 573046 to 4661 to 5732 to 573046 or 26 to 42 to 4210 to 4661 to 5730 42 past Summit Lake (4200-141) to 4210-350 to 5732-140 (this might require good a high clearance vehicle).
- Legal Description: T6S, R8E sections 4-9, 17-20
- Northwest Forest Plan Classification: matrix
- LMRP (Forest Plan) Land Management Classification: C-1
- Old Growth Units: 14, 10, 7, 8, 12, 11
- Total MMBF: 3.8
- Total CCF: 7328
Timber Sales
- Solo (167 Acres, 3.8 MMBF, 7328 CCF)
Sold on Feb-07-2003 to Freres Lumber
Status: Cancelled!
Prescriptions
- Total Regeneration Acres: 167
- "Purpose & Need:" 'These stands are past their mean annual increment. Tree growth and vigor are declining due to a high level of disease, some insect infestation, and blow-down scattered through-out the area. In some cases, all or portions of the crowns of the larger trees are breaking out. Without treatmentgrowth potential of the site and the desired aggregated vegetation pattern will not e realized ' (EA 7). '
- Bark's Comments: In the original bid the sale was 159 acres. Accoding to the EA, the sale is 216 acres. There is an unbuffered stream in Unit 12.
Roads
- Road Comments: In the original bid, the sale had 2.83 miles of road reconstruction. The sale will obliterate .75 miles of road 5732 from the junction of 5730 to just past the BPA power line right-of-way. Also obliterate .25 miles each of 5732-011 and 5732-013 from junction with 5732 to power lines. 5732 would be replaced with .75 miles of new road from 4661143 that would travel under the power line, follow a ridge east of Chief Creek and tie into Forest road 5730 .25 miles east of current junction. Additionally, 5730044, 5730047, 5730063, 1/2 of 5730168 and other unnumbered spurs along 5730 will be obliterated. Roads 4661143, 5730037, 5730039, 5730041, and 5730045 would be closed.
- New Road miles: 1
- Reconstruction Miles: 2.73
- Temporary Miles: 1
- Obliteration Miles: 1.25
Habitat & Species
- S&M Species: Malone Jumping SlugPsuedocyphellaria Rainierensis
- T&E Species: NSO 1998 Bi-Op
- Other Species: orchidscandystickwoodpeckers
- Additional Species Info: If protections for the malone jumping slug were not removed, units 4,7, 10, and 12 would be dropped. Units 11 and 14 would be modified. Psuedocyphellaria Rainierensis has been found in units 14 and 12 by activists. lichen (psuedocyphellaria rainierensis) #2 found at unit 12 N45 04.083, W121 50.902, accuracy - 31 ' Isolated stands to be treated are approximately 150 to 250 years of age. Stands of this condition do not meet the desired future conditions of the Forest Plan. '
Restrictions
- 4/1-7/30 : no activities. Restricted Units: 6 acre parcel
- 3/1-6/30 : no road obliteration. Restricted Units: Roads 5732, 5732011, 5732013, 5730047, and 57300168.
- 11/1-5/30 : no ground based equipment operation. Restricted Units: all
Updated 5/7/09
