Mattole tree-sits under active assault

Bay Area Coalition for Headwaters

October 28, 2002

Timber Company Climbers Try to Fetch Tree-Sitters From Their Perches

Pacific Lumber (PL) has sent employees to remove activists from their tree-top perches, where they are defending trees in an active timber harvest plan (THP)in the Mattole River Watershed. This morning, reports came from forest defenders in the woods that climbers and loggers were in contact with the tree-sitters without law enforcement being on site. The 6 tree-sitters, occupying three trees in THP # 321 in the Rattlesnake area of the Mattole in Humboldt county have been
protesting the continued cutting of old growth and important wildlife habitat along the Mattole River. Timber fallers have also been falling trees in the direction of the tree-sitters, some striking branches of occupied trees as they crash to the ground.

As per an agreement signed by PL and other parties after the death of forest activist David Gypsy Chain in 1998 as a result of a logger falling a tree directly on him, timber workers are supposed to cease cutting operations when they encounter protesters and contact their supervisor, and when appropriate, the Sheriffs Dept. In any event, the loggers are not permitted to carry out law enforcement activity unless deputized. Despite this, two climbers today cut two sitters out of "lock boxes" they had attached themselves in high in a 600 year old Douglas fir tree. At last report, law enforcement had
arrived on the scene at about 12:45, but falling of trees continued.

PL is conducting current logging in blatant violation of a court ordered stay, first issued August 29 in Humboldt court by Judge John Golden. The judge has since clarified the order, explaining that all logging should cease, but plaintiffs in the case, including the
environmental group EPIC and the Steelworkers union (USWA) have been frustrated in their attempts to get the court to actively enforce the order or follow up on PL's contempt of court.
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Bay Area Coalition for Headwaters
2530 San Pablo Ave.
Berkeley, California 94702
(510) 548-3113
bach [at] igc.org
http://www.HeadwatersPreserve.org