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Mendo Redwoods Corp plan for PL bankruptcy (3/15,18)
Three chances for the public to voice their ideas, ask questions and present alternatives to the Mendocino Redwoods corporation's plans for logging on (Maxxam)/Pacific Lumber land following the PL bankruptcy..
Here are three chances for the public to voice their ideas on the proposal from Mendo Redwoods Corporation to takeover logging where Pacific Lumber finishes off after their Chapter 11 bankruptcy..
From the eureka times standard;
"Mendocino Redwood comes north to air Palco plan"
John Driscoll/The Times-Standard
Article Launched: 03/11/2008 01:27:19 AM PDT
"The Mendocino Redwood Co. is coming to Humboldt to hear questions and concerns surrounding their proposal to reorganize the bankrupt Pacific Lumber Co.
Two meetings will be held Saturday and another on March 18, an effort to simplify the complex restructuring plan filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Corpus Christi, Texas.
”We hope that people can to some extent judge what we say in the context of what we've done in Mendocino County over almost 10 years,” said Mendocino Redwood Chairman Sandy Dean.
Palco's main creditor Marathon Structured Finance Fund has teamed up with Mendocino Redwood, which has proposed to invest in and operate the Scotia sawmill and continue timber operations on Palco's 210,000 acres in Humboldt County. Mendocino Redwood has promised to seek certification through the Forest Stewardship Council, eliminate traditional clearcutting and reduce logging overall.
Palco has proposed a plan to reorganize both itself and its timber-holding subsidiary Scotia Pacific -- although most parties in the case have signaled the plan is effectively dead -- and two alternative plans to reorganize the companies separately. The bondholders owed $714 million secured by Scotia Pacific's land have proposed a quick sale of the property that would achieve market value, but no plan to restructure Palco.
The Unsecured Creditors Committee has recommended that unsecured creditors vote for the Mendocino Redwood plan, and against the other plans. Dean said he hopes creditors will come to the meeting, and said they have an important vote before Judge Richard Schmidt decides in April which plan will be approved to rebuild Palco."
To download a pdf of disclosure documentation, please click here
article found @;
http://www.times-standard.com/ci_8530010?source=most_viewed
public comment times and places;
"What: Mendocino Redwood Palco plan
Three meetings
* Saturday, 10 a.m., Monday Club, 610 Main St., Fortuna
* Saturday, 2 p.m., Red Lion Hotel, 1929 Fourth St., Eureka
* March 18, 2 p.m., Wharfinger Building, 1 Marina Way, Eureka"
some background info on MRC;
"The main theme of MRC's "greenwash-ing" campaign is that the company is committed to stewardship and sustainable forestry. This is a laudable concept, but MRC isn't practicing what it preaches.
In fact, the company is cutting at twice the maximum rate recommended by Hans Burkhardt, author of Maximizing Forest Productivity and advisor to Mendocino County. Even though their forest lands have already been stripped of most trees of significant size and age, MRC is bearing down heavily on the few areas (like the Albion River watershed) that L-P hadn't completely ravaged."
above found @;
http://www.mecgrassroots.org/NEWSL/ISS32/32.05Tanoak.html
also;
Mendocino Redwoods Corporation is owned by the Fisher family, the same group of tycoons that owns the GAP clothing brand. From clearcuts to sweatshops, the Fisher family wealth is built upon corruption and greed, do we really want this corporation to replace Maxxam/PL in Humboldt? Is this lesser evilism, or nearly equal evilism??
"The Fisher family of the Gap clothing store empire (including Banana Republic and Old Navy Stores) is destroying the last of the ancient redwood forest in our area, and is driving endangered species to extinction, including the Coho Salmon, the steelhead trout, the marbled murelet and the spotted owl.
The Save the Redwoods-Boycott the Gap* Campaign was created by northern California forest activists and members of the Greenwood Watershed Association, a community environmental group in Elk, California. The purpose of the Save the Redwoods-Boycott the Gap* Campaign is to inform Gap customers about Fisher logging and to convince the Fishers to place all of their damaged redwood forests into a conservation land trust."
above found @;
http://www.gapsucks.org/
We are told to chose from three limited options following the Pacific Lumber (PL) bankruptcy, either development and sprawl, logging by MRC or continued logging by Maxxam/PL. Another option calls for the preservation of redwood groves as parks, and some vague proposals for community forestry..
Here are the three 'official' proposals on the table, listed by EPIC;
http://www.wildcalifornia.org/pressreleases/number-92
"Three New Pacific Lumber Reorganization Plans Filed With Bankruptcy"
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 31, 2008
For more information, please contact:
Sam Johnston, EPIC Private Lands Campaigner
(415) 377-0415
"January 31, 2008 - Three reorganization plans for the bankrupt Pacific Lumber Company (PL) were filed by yesterday's Court deadline. PL's two largest secured creditor entities each filed separate plans, as did PL itself, amending its earlier proposals. The review process will commence in a Court confirmation hearing in Texas on April 1, 2008.
The three plans differ from each other in significant ways, including how the PL companies will be reorganized, their financial structure, payment to creditors, ownership of the Scotia Pacific timberlands and Pacific Lumber town and mill assets.
The Reorganization Plan Proposals
#1) "EPIC's initial review shows that PL's plan would enable its ultimate parent company, Maxxam, to retain control of PL as well as to develop and sell a significant amount of forestlands (about 22,000 acres) for development. Maxxam's continued control would mean the continuation of a forest management regime that has failed to protect economic vitality, watersheds, and habitat. Further loss of timberlands to development, particularly in the areas PL has targeted, is unacceptable.
#2) Scopac's largest secured creditor, a group of lenders referred to as the Noteholders, firmly maintain that PL's proposed plan is infeasible, and have filed a plan that would eliminate any further control in the companies by Maxxam and would result in a liquidation of Scopac's lands in a bidding process."
The above listed Plans #1 & #2 are clearly the worst case scenarios and should be avoided. Already overlogged slopes of Humboldt cannot stand for additional clearcut logging, let alone permanent loss of soil from development and suburban sprawl. Ownership of PL by Maxxam has resulted in the last two decades of lost habitat for murrelets, erosion spawned flooding and stream sedimentation from clearcuts, raided worker pensions and other corporate crimes. Clearly Maxxam needs to cease and desist all their activities in Humboldt, so that excludes Plan #1 from being acceptable. Bidding on Maxxam/PL land for auction only invites corporate developers, who would attempt to fill the Humboldt hills with sprawling mansions, the effects of erosional runoff into the watershed would be someone else's problem. That leaves Plan #2 as the next best option for the discard pile..
#3) "PL's largest secured creditor, Marathon Structured Finance Fund (Marathon), has teamed with the Mendocino Redwood Company (MRC) with a plan intended to avoid a liquidation sale, keep PL and Scopac united as one company with MRC the major owner, and establish a new company owned by Marathon to manage the town of Scotia and other non-timber operational assets."
Plan #3 is the proposal by MRC that would be open to public comment on the days listed. This plan is the third worst evil as the high rates of logging, clearcuts and old growth harvesting would likely continue as under the previous owners Maxxam. No doubt we can expect the MRC public relations experts who will be present for the comment to distance themselves from Maxxam and attempt to present a face of sustainability. We should not be fooled, as this changing of the "guard" in timber terms only means more years of unsustainalbe short term profit based corporate logging..
#4) "In addition to these three proposals, an outside consortium of organizations has announced its desire to purchase the companies. This alliance of conservation groups including The Nature
Conservancy, Save-the-Redwoods League and the Community Forestry Team (a coalition of Humboldt County-based forestry, conservation and environmental advocates) has joined with several private capital investors including Atlas Holdings, Bank of America, Conservation Forestry LLC and the Redwood Forest Foundation Inc. to offer an innovative proposal.
Their plan would create a permanent conservation easement over almost 200,000 acres as part of a plan that "guarantees good, sustainable timber management in perpetuity and at the same time protects against development." Among other things, the proposal would offer the Humboldt community "the opportunity for optimum participation and the option of a level of community ownership."
"
Clearly Plan #4 is the best option for the people and ecosystem of Humboldt, as it maximizes local input and here the treatment and care of the forests will be in the hands of the community..
"EPIC's Initial Reaction to the Plans
EPIC greatly appreciates the efforts undertaken by the major creditors to present reorganization plans and the proposal by the alliance of conservation groups promoting a sustainable vision for the future of Humboldt County. These efforts highlight the ultimate importance of removing Maxxam from control of these companies. In contrast to these efforts, PL has continued pushing
the company in a downward spiral to benefit Maxxam at the expense of its creditors, the local community, and ecosystem recovery and health.
EPIC recognizes the risk going forward if an agreement cannot be reached among the non-Maxxam parties. One possible outcome of a lack of agreement is an auction sale of the PL companies, which could result in a purchase by another industrial logging firm or, worse, development interests. There is no guarantee that a favorable outcome will result from an auction sale of the companies.
EPIC is evaluating these proposals according to certain core principles that EPIC maintains must be addressed to meet the needs of the forest and the local economy, which include:
* permanent protection of remaining old-growth trees and recruitment of additional late seral forest, especially as needed for listed and sensitive species such as the marbled murrelet and coho salmon;
* use of selection/uneven-age logging and elimination of destructive silvicultural practices;
* preservation and enhancement of workers, jobs, the local economy, the Scotia mill, and community involvement in the company;
* protection of watersheds and repair of damaged watersheds to protect resources, downstream residents and other stakeholders;
* company transparency on inventory, inventory projections, and financial and debt structuring;
* permanent protection for Marbled Murrelet Conservation Areas (MMCAs) plus buffers.
Governor Schwarzenegger Weighs In
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has weighed in, stating that "... [t]hese lands and assets represent a unique public trust for the state of California" and declaring the issue to be "of paramount importance to all Californians." The Governor urges that the Headwaters Agreement and associated Habitat Conservation Plan should remain in place for any new ownership and that any reorganization plan should preserve timberlands, watershed and wildlife protection, and local economic health.
"Now can begin the hard work of evaluating these proposals to see what will work best for the forest resources and for the people of Humboldt County," EPIC's spokesman Sam Johnston commented. "As Maxxam continues to take what it can for its own benefit, the people and natural resources of Humboldt County need a new solution: an ownership that provides good jobs, local economic benefits, and much needed and overdue habitat protection and watershed restoration."
"
Additional options;
When discussing community forestry, it would be great to view other examples of community owned and operated forests, such as Sunny Brae and Weaverville. The community forests provide local people with greater job options with small scale selective logging, instead of clearcuts by corporate logging. The difference is that corporate clearcuts and industrial logging focus on short term profits and employ fewer people than selective logging that requires hand harvest and removal, thus providing additional jobs. community forests also provide local people with recreation options as unlike corporate owned forests using "private property" to deter visitors, community forests are public property and open to low impact recreation..
Here's some background from the Weaverville community forest site;
"WHAT IS A COMMUNITY FOREST?
A community forest is owned and/or managed by a local entity, whether it be a city, like the Arcata Community Forest, or another public entity. In fact, we have an excellent example of a successful community forest in Arcata. Their forest is 1100 acres, 900 acres of which are located next to the town. The forest is highly visible from Highway 101 and most parts of the town. It has been managed as a community forest for over 40 years.
With a community forest, the community gets to decide what the values are. In Weaverville, important values that have been expressed include high visual quality, fuels reduction, sustained revenue, recreation, timber harvesting, firewood collection, improved forest health and wildlife habitat. In addition, areas that are sensitive to ground disturbance, like historic resources, and unstable slopes, can be protected in the plan.
These values are not mutually exclusive. In addition, the jobs stay in the community, as well as the logs. Public input and awareness is welcomed and encouraged. As a result, the community has a stake in the forest, and can become better educated about forestry issues."
above found @;
http://www.tcrcd.net/w-ville_forest/what_is_a_cf.htm
We also need to remember the effects that Maxxam/PL's decades of corporate clearcut logging has on indigenous peoples of the region who rely on the rivers for salmon and eel. The clearcuts, soil erosion and stream sedimentation directly impact the river's fisheries and lack of salmon equals loss of culture and health for the region's indigenous populations..
When making decisions that will continue to effect the region's indigenous nations, our community needs to be inclusive and provide some of Maxxam/PL's land to the local Native American peoples as reparations for the lost salmon and potential for good stewardship forestry. Restoration and return of land to indigenous peoples is directly correlated with their autonomy, stability and self-reliance. We cannot expect the indigenous peoples of the North Coast to succeed if their landspace is decimated from corporate clearcut logging and the salmon streams choked with sediment..
The Hupa Tribal Forestry program is an example of good ecological stewardship as they avoid clearcutting and thus avoid application of herbicides. In addition value is placed upon the forest as a provider of medicinal plants and plants needed for indigenous basket weaving. This method is logging is similar to community forestry mentioned above, as the indigenous nations can decide their own future by logging selectively on their sovereign land without corporate intrusions..
Highlight from;
"Against the Odds; Re-Building Community Through Forestry on the Hupa Reservation"
"The forest plan alternative that was eventually chosen for the 1994-2003 period sets the annual allowable cut at 10.4 mm b.f., significantly lower than any prior post-WW II allowable cut. The plan prioritizes stand rehabilitation and conifer restocking of areas that were captured by brush and tanoak following previous timber harvesting activities using manual release and planting methods (herbicide application was banned by a tribal resolution in the late 1970s). It identifies a wide variety of watershed restoration activities needed to protect domestic watersources and protect and enhance salmonid habitat. In response to issues raised by tribal members concerning cultural and socioeconomic issues, the plan identifies a large number of archeological and ceremonial sites as well as eight specific cultural areas, which include mushroom gathering areas, Port Orford Cedar areas, and camps and campgrounds, in which little or no timber harvesting is allowed. These cultural areas total more than 6,000 acres. Additionally, silvicultural prescriptions for timber harvesting in areas that produce mushrooms and other non-timber forest products that are not included in those areas are developed in a manner that is sensitive to the need to maintain and/or enhance their abundance. The plan also identifies forest areas important as viewsheds, wildlife areas (riparian corridors, travel corridors, falcon activity centers, traditional species activity areas, etc.), riparian areas, etc., in which timber harvesting is also restricted or not allowed at all. In short, the current forest plan effectively maps onto the tribe’s forest ecosystem a wide variety of culturally informed and traditional forest management practices and uses. The extent to which a cultural overlay modifies, shapes, and conditions the tribe’s timber harvest operations is unprecedented in this century in the 20th Century. It represents the landscapes effects of the integration of sovereignty, technical forest management capacity, and a participatory process that encourages the expression of culturally rooted values and interests that pertain to the forest resource.iii
The Northwest Economic Adjustment Initiative (NEAI) at Hoopa: its role in strengthening community-forest relations Many of the NEAI projects at Hoopa touch or engage directly with the dense web of relations that bind together the community and the forest ecosystem. In general, these projects were advanced on the assumption that enhancing community well-being and improving forest ecosystem health are interdependent goals."
entire article found @;
http://www.sierrainstitute.us/Hoopa_case_cover.pdf
Why not provide other regional indigenous nations like Round Valley Tribes, Wailaki Wintu and the Wiyot with some portion of the Maxxam/PL land in question for their own forestry program similar to the Hupa Tribal Forestry?
Land reclamations for North American indigenous nations is a path for the U.S. to regain some credibility in the human rights realm, and it is simply the most ethical path we need to take as a community. We can begin by collectively apologizing to the displaced tribes of the Round Valley Reservation (Nome Cult Trail) and offering the forest land claimed by Maxxam/PL to be returned to their stewardship..
"Nome Cult Trail
History of the 1863 Relocation
"My grandfather got caught.....at Cherokee. An army of people and miners came to round up and drive off all Indians...the soldiers came and took women, girls, boys, everybody to a corral at Chico. There were about 400 to 500 Indians driven to Chico by soldiers on horseback."
- Leland Scott
The removal of the Indians from Chico to the Nome Cult Reservation in 1863 is one of the many forced relocations following the establishment of reservations in northern California in the 1850's. Several different tribes were moved to the Nome Cult Reservation after it was established in Round Valley in 1856. "Nome Cult" comes from the Sacramento Valley Wintun's term nome kechl or "western tribe."
Most of those removed from Chico were Maidu from the northern Sacramento Valley and adjacent foothills, but members of other tribes were also relocated. In September 1863, 461 Indians were marched under guard from Chico to the Nome Cult Reservation, nearly 100 miles across the Sacramento Valley and rugged North Coast Ranges. Only 277 Indians completed the journey. Some were killed, a few escaped, and others were left behind.
Although the path itself has disappeared, we now call this route the Nome Cult Trail. The most grueling part of the trail passed through what today is the Mendocino National Forest. The Nome Cult Trail was a tragic chapter in our state's history; it is also a story about the resilience and strength of California Indians. It is an important legacy for their descendants and for all Californians.
"....soldiers came on horse's and set the West people's [Maidu] roundhouses on fire. If anyone ran away the soldiers shot him, and if he did not run away they probably shot him anyway...."
-Coyote Man"
article found @;
http://www.covelo.net/tribes/pages/nomecult/tribes_nome_cult_history.shtml
As a community we are presented with the unique chance for a real change and restoring past wrongs during this PL bankruptcy trial. Though it may be a bit late in the day to request additional plans be put on the table, there is no time like the present to offer new ideas for the coastal forests we all share..
additional info on PL bankruptcy from overlogging;
http://www.judibari.org/
http://www.headwaterspreserve.org/
http://www.wildcalifornia.org/
http://mattolewild.blogspot.com/
http://www.treesfoundation.org/index.shtml
http://www.northcoastearthfirst.org/
http://www.fojb.org/
From the eureka times standard;
"Mendocino Redwood comes north to air Palco plan"
John Driscoll/The Times-Standard
Article Launched: 03/11/2008 01:27:19 AM PDT
"The Mendocino Redwood Co. is coming to Humboldt to hear questions and concerns surrounding their proposal to reorganize the bankrupt Pacific Lumber Co.
Two meetings will be held Saturday and another on March 18, an effort to simplify the complex restructuring plan filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Corpus Christi, Texas.
”We hope that people can to some extent judge what we say in the context of what we've done in Mendocino County over almost 10 years,” said Mendocino Redwood Chairman Sandy Dean.
Palco's main creditor Marathon Structured Finance Fund has teamed up with Mendocino Redwood, which has proposed to invest in and operate the Scotia sawmill and continue timber operations on Palco's 210,000 acres in Humboldt County. Mendocino Redwood has promised to seek certification through the Forest Stewardship Council, eliminate traditional clearcutting and reduce logging overall.
Palco has proposed a plan to reorganize both itself and its timber-holding subsidiary Scotia Pacific -- although most parties in the case have signaled the plan is effectively dead -- and two alternative plans to reorganize the companies separately. The bondholders owed $714 million secured by Scotia Pacific's land have proposed a quick sale of the property that would achieve market value, but no plan to restructure Palco.
The Unsecured Creditors Committee has recommended that unsecured creditors vote for the Mendocino Redwood plan, and against the other plans. Dean said he hopes creditors will come to the meeting, and said they have an important vote before Judge Richard Schmidt decides in April which plan will be approved to rebuild Palco."
To download a pdf of disclosure documentation, please click here
article found @;
http://www.times-standard.com/ci_8530010?source=most_viewed
public comment times and places;
"What: Mendocino Redwood Palco plan
Three meetings
* Saturday, 10 a.m., Monday Club, 610 Main St., Fortuna
* Saturday, 2 p.m., Red Lion Hotel, 1929 Fourth St., Eureka
* March 18, 2 p.m., Wharfinger Building, 1 Marina Way, Eureka"
some background info on MRC;
"The main theme of MRC's "greenwash-ing" campaign is that the company is committed to stewardship and sustainable forestry. This is a laudable concept, but MRC isn't practicing what it preaches.
In fact, the company is cutting at twice the maximum rate recommended by Hans Burkhardt, author of Maximizing Forest Productivity and advisor to Mendocino County. Even though their forest lands have already been stripped of most trees of significant size and age, MRC is bearing down heavily on the few areas (like the Albion River watershed) that L-P hadn't completely ravaged."
above found @;
http://www.mecgrassroots.org/NEWSL/ISS32/32.05Tanoak.html
also;
Mendocino Redwoods Corporation is owned by the Fisher family, the same group of tycoons that owns the GAP clothing brand. From clearcuts to sweatshops, the Fisher family wealth is built upon corruption and greed, do we really want this corporation to replace Maxxam/PL in Humboldt? Is this lesser evilism, or nearly equal evilism??
"The Fisher family of the Gap clothing store empire (including Banana Republic and Old Navy Stores) is destroying the last of the ancient redwood forest in our area, and is driving endangered species to extinction, including the Coho Salmon, the steelhead trout, the marbled murelet and the spotted owl.
The Save the Redwoods-Boycott the Gap* Campaign was created by northern California forest activists and members of the Greenwood Watershed Association, a community environmental group in Elk, California. The purpose of the Save the Redwoods-Boycott the Gap* Campaign is to inform Gap customers about Fisher logging and to convince the Fishers to place all of their damaged redwood forests into a conservation land trust."
above found @;
http://www.gapsucks.org/
We are told to chose from three limited options following the Pacific Lumber (PL) bankruptcy, either development and sprawl, logging by MRC or continued logging by Maxxam/PL. Another option calls for the preservation of redwood groves as parks, and some vague proposals for community forestry..
Here are the three 'official' proposals on the table, listed by EPIC;
http://www.wildcalifornia.org/pressreleases/number-92
"Three New Pacific Lumber Reorganization Plans Filed With Bankruptcy"
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 31, 2008
For more information, please contact:
Sam Johnston, EPIC Private Lands Campaigner
(415) 377-0415
"January 31, 2008 - Three reorganization plans for the bankrupt Pacific Lumber Company (PL) were filed by yesterday's Court deadline. PL's two largest secured creditor entities each filed separate plans, as did PL itself, amending its earlier proposals. The review process will commence in a Court confirmation hearing in Texas on April 1, 2008.
The three plans differ from each other in significant ways, including how the PL companies will be reorganized, their financial structure, payment to creditors, ownership of the Scotia Pacific timberlands and Pacific Lumber town and mill assets.
The Reorganization Plan Proposals
#1) "EPIC's initial review shows that PL's plan would enable its ultimate parent company, Maxxam, to retain control of PL as well as to develop and sell a significant amount of forestlands (about 22,000 acres) for development. Maxxam's continued control would mean the continuation of a forest management regime that has failed to protect economic vitality, watersheds, and habitat. Further loss of timberlands to development, particularly in the areas PL has targeted, is unacceptable.
#2) Scopac's largest secured creditor, a group of lenders referred to as the Noteholders, firmly maintain that PL's proposed plan is infeasible, and have filed a plan that would eliminate any further control in the companies by Maxxam and would result in a liquidation of Scopac's lands in a bidding process."
The above listed Plans #1 & #2 are clearly the worst case scenarios and should be avoided. Already overlogged slopes of Humboldt cannot stand for additional clearcut logging, let alone permanent loss of soil from development and suburban sprawl. Ownership of PL by Maxxam has resulted in the last two decades of lost habitat for murrelets, erosion spawned flooding and stream sedimentation from clearcuts, raided worker pensions and other corporate crimes. Clearly Maxxam needs to cease and desist all their activities in Humboldt, so that excludes Plan #1 from being acceptable. Bidding on Maxxam/PL land for auction only invites corporate developers, who would attempt to fill the Humboldt hills with sprawling mansions, the effects of erosional runoff into the watershed would be someone else's problem. That leaves Plan #2 as the next best option for the discard pile..
#3) "PL's largest secured creditor, Marathon Structured Finance Fund (Marathon), has teamed with the Mendocino Redwood Company (MRC) with a plan intended to avoid a liquidation sale, keep PL and Scopac united as one company with MRC the major owner, and establish a new company owned by Marathon to manage the town of Scotia and other non-timber operational assets."
Plan #3 is the proposal by MRC that would be open to public comment on the days listed. This plan is the third worst evil as the high rates of logging, clearcuts and old growth harvesting would likely continue as under the previous owners Maxxam. No doubt we can expect the MRC public relations experts who will be present for the comment to distance themselves from Maxxam and attempt to present a face of sustainability. We should not be fooled, as this changing of the "guard" in timber terms only means more years of unsustainalbe short term profit based corporate logging..
#4) "In addition to these three proposals, an outside consortium of organizations has announced its desire to purchase the companies. This alliance of conservation groups including The Nature
Conservancy, Save-the-Redwoods League and the Community Forestry Team (a coalition of Humboldt County-based forestry, conservation and environmental advocates) has joined with several private capital investors including Atlas Holdings, Bank of America, Conservation Forestry LLC and the Redwood Forest Foundation Inc. to offer an innovative proposal.
Their plan would create a permanent conservation easement over almost 200,000 acres as part of a plan that "guarantees good, sustainable timber management in perpetuity and at the same time protects against development." Among other things, the proposal would offer the Humboldt community "the opportunity for optimum participation and the option of a level of community ownership."
"
Clearly Plan #4 is the best option for the people and ecosystem of Humboldt, as it maximizes local input and here the treatment and care of the forests will be in the hands of the community..
"EPIC's Initial Reaction to the Plans
EPIC greatly appreciates the efforts undertaken by the major creditors to present reorganization plans and the proposal by the alliance of conservation groups promoting a sustainable vision for the future of Humboldt County. These efforts highlight the ultimate importance of removing Maxxam from control of these companies. In contrast to these efforts, PL has continued pushing
the company in a downward spiral to benefit Maxxam at the expense of its creditors, the local community, and ecosystem recovery and health.
EPIC recognizes the risk going forward if an agreement cannot be reached among the non-Maxxam parties. One possible outcome of a lack of agreement is an auction sale of the PL companies, which could result in a purchase by another industrial logging firm or, worse, development interests. There is no guarantee that a favorable outcome will result from an auction sale of the companies.
EPIC is evaluating these proposals according to certain core principles that EPIC maintains must be addressed to meet the needs of the forest and the local economy, which include:
* permanent protection of remaining old-growth trees and recruitment of additional late seral forest, especially as needed for listed and sensitive species such as the marbled murrelet and coho salmon;
* use of selection/uneven-age logging and elimination of destructive silvicultural practices;
* preservation and enhancement of workers, jobs, the local economy, the Scotia mill, and community involvement in the company;
* protection of watersheds and repair of damaged watersheds to protect resources, downstream residents and other stakeholders;
* company transparency on inventory, inventory projections, and financial and debt structuring;
* permanent protection for Marbled Murrelet Conservation Areas (MMCAs) plus buffers.
Governor Schwarzenegger Weighs In
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has weighed in, stating that "... [t]hese lands and assets represent a unique public trust for the state of California" and declaring the issue to be "of paramount importance to all Californians." The Governor urges that the Headwaters Agreement and associated Habitat Conservation Plan should remain in place for any new ownership and that any reorganization plan should preserve timberlands, watershed and wildlife protection, and local economic health.
"Now can begin the hard work of evaluating these proposals to see what will work best for the forest resources and for the people of Humboldt County," EPIC's spokesman Sam Johnston commented. "As Maxxam continues to take what it can for its own benefit, the people and natural resources of Humboldt County need a new solution: an ownership that provides good jobs, local economic benefits, and much needed and overdue habitat protection and watershed restoration."
"
Additional options;
When discussing community forestry, it would be great to view other examples of community owned and operated forests, such as Sunny Brae and Weaverville. The community forests provide local people with greater job options with small scale selective logging, instead of clearcuts by corporate logging. The difference is that corporate clearcuts and industrial logging focus on short term profits and employ fewer people than selective logging that requires hand harvest and removal, thus providing additional jobs. community forests also provide local people with recreation options as unlike corporate owned forests using "private property" to deter visitors, community forests are public property and open to low impact recreation..
Here's some background from the Weaverville community forest site;
"WHAT IS A COMMUNITY FOREST?
A community forest is owned and/or managed by a local entity, whether it be a city, like the Arcata Community Forest, or another public entity. In fact, we have an excellent example of a successful community forest in Arcata. Their forest is 1100 acres, 900 acres of which are located next to the town. The forest is highly visible from Highway 101 and most parts of the town. It has been managed as a community forest for over 40 years.
With a community forest, the community gets to decide what the values are. In Weaverville, important values that have been expressed include high visual quality, fuels reduction, sustained revenue, recreation, timber harvesting, firewood collection, improved forest health and wildlife habitat. In addition, areas that are sensitive to ground disturbance, like historic resources, and unstable slopes, can be protected in the plan.
These values are not mutually exclusive. In addition, the jobs stay in the community, as well as the logs. Public input and awareness is welcomed and encouraged. As a result, the community has a stake in the forest, and can become better educated about forestry issues."
above found @;
http://www.tcrcd.net/w-ville_forest/what_is_a_cf.htm
We also need to remember the effects that Maxxam/PL's decades of corporate clearcut logging has on indigenous peoples of the region who rely on the rivers for salmon and eel. The clearcuts, soil erosion and stream sedimentation directly impact the river's fisheries and lack of salmon equals loss of culture and health for the region's indigenous populations..
When making decisions that will continue to effect the region's indigenous nations, our community needs to be inclusive and provide some of Maxxam/PL's land to the local Native American peoples as reparations for the lost salmon and potential for good stewardship forestry. Restoration and return of land to indigenous peoples is directly correlated with their autonomy, stability and self-reliance. We cannot expect the indigenous peoples of the North Coast to succeed if their landspace is decimated from corporate clearcut logging and the salmon streams choked with sediment..
The Hupa Tribal Forestry program is an example of good ecological stewardship as they avoid clearcutting and thus avoid application of herbicides. In addition value is placed upon the forest as a provider of medicinal plants and plants needed for indigenous basket weaving. This method is logging is similar to community forestry mentioned above, as the indigenous nations can decide their own future by logging selectively on their sovereign land without corporate intrusions..
Highlight from;
"Against the Odds; Re-Building Community Through Forestry on the Hupa Reservation"
"The forest plan alternative that was eventually chosen for the 1994-2003 period sets the annual allowable cut at 10.4 mm b.f., significantly lower than any prior post-WW II allowable cut. The plan prioritizes stand rehabilitation and conifer restocking of areas that were captured by brush and tanoak following previous timber harvesting activities using manual release and planting methods (herbicide application was banned by a tribal resolution in the late 1970s). It identifies a wide variety of watershed restoration activities needed to protect domestic watersources and protect and enhance salmonid habitat. In response to issues raised by tribal members concerning cultural and socioeconomic issues, the plan identifies a large number of archeological and ceremonial sites as well as eight specific cultural areas, which include mushroom gathering areas, Port Orford Cedar areas, and camps and campgrounds, in which little or no timber harvesting is allowed. These cultural areas total more than 6,000 acres. Additionally, silvicultural prescriptions for timber harvesting in areas that produce mushrooms and other non-timber forest products that are not included in those areas are developed in a manner that is sensitive to the need to maintain and/or enhance their abundance. The plan also identifies forest areas important as viewsheds, wildlife areas (riparian corridors, travel corridors, falcon activity centers, traditional species activity areas, etc.), riparian areas, etc., in which timber harvesting is also restricted or not allowed at all. In short, the current forest plan effectively maps onto the tribe’s forest ecosystem a wide variety of culturally informed and traditional forest management practices and uses. The extent to which a cultural overlay modifies, shapes, and conditions the tribe’s timber harvest operations is unprecedented in this century in the 20th Century. It represents the landscapes effects of the integration of sovereignty, technical forest management capacity, and a participatory process that encourages the expression of culturally rooted values and interests that pertain to the forest resource.iii
The Northwest Economic Adjustment Initiative (NEAI) at Hoopa: its role in strengthening community-forest relations Many of the NEAI projects at Hoopa touch or engage directly with the dense web of relations that bind together the community and the forest ecosystem. In general, these projects were advanced on the assumption that enhancing community well-being and improving forest ecosystem health are interdependent goals."
entire article found @;
http://www.sierrainstitute.us/Hoopa_case_cover.pdf
Why not provide other regional indigenous nations like Round Valley Tribes, Wailaki Wintu and the Wiyot with some portion of the Maxxam/PL land in question for their own forestry program similar to the Hupa Tribal Forestry?
Land reclamations for North American indigenous nations is a path for the U.S. to regain some credibility in the human rights realm, and it is simply the most ethical path we need to take as a community. We can begin by collectively apologizing to the displaced tribes of the Round Valley Reservation (Nome Cult Trail) and offering the forest land claimed by Maxxam/PL to be returned to their stewardship..
"Nome Cult Trail
History of the 1863 Relocation
"My grandfather got caught.....at Cherokee. An army of people and miners came to round up and drive off all Indians...the soldiers came and took women, girls, boys, everybody to a corral at Chico. There were about 400 to 500 Indians driven to Chico by soldiers on horseback."
- Leland Scott
The removal of the Indians from Chico to the Nome Cult Reservation in 1863 is one of the many forced relocations following the establishment of reservations in northern California in the 1850's. Several different tribes were moved to the Nome Cult Reservation after it was established in Round Valley in 1856. "Nome Cult" comes from the Sacramento Valley Wintun's term nome kechl or "western tribe."
Most of those removed from Chico were Maidu from the northern Sacramento Valley and adjacent foothills, but members of other tribes were also relocated. In September 1863, 461 Indians were marched under guard from Chico to the Nome Cult Reservation, nearly 100 miles across the Sacramento Valley and rugged North Coast Ranges. Only 277 Indians completed the journey. Some were killed, a few escaped, and others were left behind.
Although the path itself has disappeared, we now call this route the Nome Cult Trail. The most grueling part of the trail passed through what today is the Mendocino National Forest. The Nome Cult Trail was a tragic chapter in our state's history; it is also a story about the resilience and strength of California Indians. It is an important legacy for their descendants and for all Californians.
"....soldiers came on horse's and set the West people's [Maidu] roundhouses on fire. If anyone ran away the soldiers shot him, and if he did not run away they probably shot him anyway...."
-Coyote Man"
article found @;
http://www.covelo.net/tribes/pages/nomecult/tribes_nome_cult_history.shtml
As a community we are presented with the unique chance for a real change and restoring past wrongs during this PL bankruptcy trial. Though it may be a bit late in the day to request additional plans be put on the table, there is no time like the present to offer new ideas for the coastal forests we all share..
additional info on PL bankruptcy from overlogging;
http://www.judibari.org/
http://www.headwaterspreserve.org/
http://www.wildcalifornia.org/
http://mattolewild.blogspot.com/
http://www.treesfoundation.org/index.shtml
http://www.northcoastearthfirst.org/
http://www.fojb.org/
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IMC Network
Option A
Wildlife Habitat Old Growth
MRC will not harvest old growth as defined below:
Terrestrial – Un-entered stands of more than 20 acres.
– Stands of 5 acres or more with an average of 6 old growth
trees per acre or more (old growth trees defined as trees over 250
years old and 48 inches d.b.h. or larger) .
– Individual residual old growth trees with significant wildlife
value (eg. large limbs, cavities, nesting platforms, limited available
structures).
I have to ask:
-Can the MRC log "entered" stands containing old-growth?
(Most TPZ's have been entered, in fact, I'd like to see an unentered stand that is not a park or refuge)
-Can the MRC log old growth stands less than 20 acres?
(Most of the old growth stands left in TPZs are very small residual groves)
-Can the MRC log stands of old-growth that are more than five acres containing 5 or less old growth trees per acre?
(An acre is a very small piece of land, how many old growth trees can you fit in an acre? To achieve this requirement, 30 OG trees would have to exist on 5 acres. Furthurmore, residual Old growth trees and groves are extremely rare on TPZs, and the chance of finding 6 or more OG trees on one acre is extremly low).
-Who determines the "significant wildlife value" of residual old growth trees? (Besides wildlife surveyors, who else but the MRC?)
Our old growth may be safer if MRC takes over, but they better get up, walk, and clump together in a central location. Saftey in numbers, right?
Some other issues and failings of the MRC plan included their reluctance to commit to selective harvests and avoid any clearcuts. The officials claimed they would avoid clearcuts EXCEPT in regions dominated by single stand conifers where they would clear-cut and replant monostands of redwoods. We all love the coastal redwoods, though we also recognize that nowhere do redwoods grow exclusively as a single species, they always share habitat with either Sitka spruce nearest the ocean and/or Douglas fir further inland. To eliminate these other species simply because redwoods fetch greater monetary value and MRC plans to let the "market dictate" their practices is a mistake..
Corporations like MRC focus on short term profit and thus would be tempted to resort to clearcutting in times of budget crunching to please their shareholders. Clearcutting as a practice is less costly to the corporation as it does not employ as many workers. This was the significant difference between Pacific Lumber (PL) prior to their takeover by MAXXAM in '85. Before MAXXAM came into Humboldt, PL practiced selective logging where 50% of their trees were left standing on any timber harvest plan. When MAXXAM took over PL, selective logging was no longer practiced and the cheaper yet more destructive logging method of clearcutting became the norm. This resulted in loss of logging jobs as clearcutting is industrial logging at its worst. Clearcutting also causes a domino effect of loss of regenerative and protective cover (duff, branches, etc..), soil erosion during rainstorms, stream sedimentation and excessive flooding. Lack of tree roots also destabilizes soil structure and results in landslides, slumps and additional erosion. This process from clearcutting directly effects habitat for salmon, a staple cultural food for indigenous peoples of the region..
EPIC, Steve Wills and others spoke up in support of the MRC takeover as a "lesser evil" when compared to the practices witnessed during MAXXAM's ownership of Pacific Lumber. Clearly MRC are indeed a lesser evil when compared to the corporate criminal (TX S&L) CEO Charles Hurwitz of MAXXAM, though as a large corporation MRC will no doubt continue many practices considered evil (destructive, selfish, negligent, etc..) by the local community..
What other options are there to corporate logging? Besides being "another model of forestry" as claimed by the MRC public relations experts, community and tribal forestry is a radically different approach that seeks to place the forest's resources directly into the hands of the local community for recreation, timber jobs and other potential uses (medicinal plants, basketry material, etc..) instead of only for economic profit that benefits a few corporate officers at the expense of the ecosystem, workers, etc..
One plan excluded from the MRC debates and the Corpus Christi, Texas PL bankruptcy trial courtroom comes from the Bear River Rohnerville Rancheria and deserves further consideration. This plan entails land rights of indigenous peoples and restoration of sacred sites, and has existed for several years despite being repeatedly ignored..
Background;
"In 1851 U.S. government agent Redick McKee tried and failed to get the United States government to set aside a reservation for the Native American tribal bands living in and around the Humboldt Bay region. (see top map above). McKee feared for the safety of these ‘Eel River Indians’ from newly arriving white settlers. His fears were well founded. On February 25, 1860, by the minimum account number, at least one hundred and thirty-eight men, women, and children were massacred in Indian Island, South Spit, Bucksport, and Elk River villages. Survivors from these villages were the great grandparents of members of our three local Rancherias, Table Bluff, Blue Lake, and Rohnerville.
Pacific Lumber Co. was incorporated in 1869, nine years after the massacre and eighteen years after Redick McKee’s attempt to establish an "Eel River Indian Reservation" of roughly 85,000 acres. Today, Pacific Lumber Co. land constitutes about one half of the approximately 400,000 acres of Eel River Valley Indian ancestral homelands. And today, the three remaining rancherias or miniature reservations have altogether only one one-thousandth percent of the land our people have lived on for thousands of years prior to the coming of the Europeans.
The Rohnerville Rancheria site for our Tribe’s two hundred and eleven members is only 60 acres. Without an adequate land base our Tribe loses cohesion as members must move away to find housing and jobs. Regaining our ancestral land is one of our highest priorities as our survival as a Tribe depends upon it.
The following summarizes a project that has been developing slowly since March of 1995 for resolving the Headwaters Forest conflict in a new way that really can satisfy all sides in the dispute which the recent Clinton Administration-Hurwitz deal has failed to do. This project will also return approximately 52,500 acres of Pacific Lumber Co. land, the Headwaters Forest Complex area not covered in the 7500 acre Headwaters Preserve, to Native American stewardship."
Bear River claims to PL land found @;
http://paxcalibur.org/headwate.htm
The site above links to another page where there are discussions of problems arising between Earth First! environmentalists and the proponents of the Bear River proposal during the Headwaters deal. This conflict between potential allies is unfortunate and present day forest defense activists can discuss ways in which we can collectively come to agreement and support the Bear River proposal for returning PL land to indigenous ownership and stewardship..
Since this important proposal from Bear River was excluded from the current PL bankruptcy trial in Texas, and there are no options to choose from besides worst evils (MAXXAM resumes ownership of PL, auctions land to developers to pay debt) and the lesser evil (redwood forests at the mercy of Mendo Redwoods Corporation), many people rightfully feel left out of the process..
for more info on Bear River proposal please contact;
Steve Lewis
707-764-3035
biomystic [at] hotmail.com
Don Brenard
509-474-0733
The Bear River proposal is inclusive of all other tribes and wishes to include the Table Bluff Wiyot in the land reclamation process, and also includes former PL employees who lost their jobs due to mismanagement of PL by MAXXAM corporation..
from the recent Bear River plan;
"We firmly believe a major reason Palco (PL) has gone under financially is due to outside managers being brought in to manage Palco who do not know local conditions and are only answering to corporate voices in Texas. This extends not only to the increasing debt load being tied to Palco assets but to Palco facilities themselves."
The proposal from the Bear River Rancheria is also being disputed from within the Bear River tribal council elections, and this is a reason for their recent disclosure of the plan. However, the plan exists (Case # 07-20027, Document 2255) and needs to be considered by the court if Judge Schmidt wishes the trial to be fair. My vote on the matter is a retrial that takes place in California where the company in question (PL) is located, as the entire dog and pony show in Corpus Christi, Texas that calls itself a trial is in fact a mistrial under the false premise of a non-exsistant corporation (Scotia Development) that consists of an empty building with a file cabinet and telephone that exixts for the sole purpose of relocating the trial to Texas near MAXXAM headquarters in Houston and shutting out everyone from CA..
Background on phony "Scotia Development";
"We've got a lot of ground to cover this week, so let's get right to it. There were three major motions filed by interested parties in the Palco bankruptcy last week, and each of them sheds light on different aspects of Hurwitz's breathtakingly audacious play to engineer the company's demise to his own maximum benefit. The general idea, it is plain, is to hold on to the company long enough to extract yet more of its assets. There's a hearing on these matters this morning (Thursday, Feb. 15) in Corpus Christi. It's hard to see how Hurwitz could possibly get his way, given the out-and-out flagrancy of the thing, but don't forget -- this is Texas we're talking about.
The first fantastical element is Maxxam's creation of a shell company -- "Scotia Development" -- in order to hold the Palco bankruptcy proceedings in Texas rather than California. Since it was reported in this space two weeks ago, this move has received a great deal of press, most notably in an amusing pair of Times-Standard stories by ace reporter John Driscoll last week. In short, Maxxam created this "Scotia Development" firm last summer, and headquartered it in a 344-square-foot office five blocks from the Corpus Christi branch of the federal bankruptcy court. Maxxam is arguing that this "phone booth" office gives the Texas branch of the court legitimate jurisdiction over the Palco bankruptcy, since "Scotia Development" -- big surprise -- went kaput at the same time as its 130-year-old sister corporation in California.
This argument was attacked last week by both the California Attorney General's Office and the "unsecured creditors committee" -- those luckless souls who are owed money, but who have no collateral. (As it turns out, the Journal itself is one of the approximately 3,000 unsecured creditors. When bankruptcy was declared, Palco subsidiary Britt Lumber owed us $85 for ads.) Both the AG and the unsecured creditors are asking Judge Richard S. Schmidt, of the Corpus Christi court, to order the proceedings moved to California."
article found @;
http://www.northcoastjournal.com/021507/towndandy0215.html
Since when is creating a phony shell corporation for the sole purpose of choosing the location of a politically vital bankruptcy trial viewed as legitimate? Since the CEO of MAXXAM has support from established interests that view justice as affordable only to those who are priviliged, regardless of their past records of dishonesty and corruption (see Texas S&L, Doolittle derails FDIC investigation) that led to MAXXAM's record profits and PL's bankruptcy..
Personally i feel that a mistrial verdict is the only option for the PL bankruptcy trial in Texas, and the proper venue of Humboldt County, CA needs to be chosen for any agreeement to be worthy of honoring. Unless the concerns of the Bear River proposal are acknowledged, NO corporation (PL, MRC, etc..) or developer can rightfully claim ownership and rights to the PL land in question..