Associated Oregon Loggers Applauds End of Harmful Old Growth Proposal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Salem, OR – January 8, 2025 – Associated Oregon Loggers welcomes the U.S. Forest Service decision to withdraw the National Old Growth Amendment (NOGA) process, an ill-conceived effort championed by out-of-touch environmental politics that threatened to undermine both forest health and the American economy. This deeply flawed proposal ignored realities of modern forest management and would have imposed disastrous consequences on Oregon’s rural communities, forestry sector, and the national forest role in addressing carbon and climate.

The NOGA process, initiated more than two years ago, was rooted in a misguided agenda to restrict active management under the guise of “protecting old growth.” The result would have been a catastrophic chain reaction: suffocating forest restoration efforts, cutting timber supplies critical for the forest products industry, slashing forestry jobs, removing wildland firefighters, and escalating costs of management projects. These impacts would have worsened conditions in overgrown, unhealthy forests, leading to more smoke pollution from catastrophic wildfires.

“The NOGA withdrawal is a victory for science, common sense, and Americans who understand that solutions to healthy national forests and communities come from modern forestry management and professionals. Solutions do not result from environmental politics that lose the forest for the trees,” said Rex Storm, Executive Vice President, Associated Oregon Loggers.

The NOGA's proposed restrictions would have gutted access to wood, the most sustainable, climate-friendly fiber and building material. This misguided policy would have made forest products more expensive, destabilized rural economies, and crippled the forest sector's ability to maintain healthy forests and fight wildfires.

This NOGA proposal failed to grasp that modern forest management and our forestry workforce are the backbone of wildfire prevention, forest resilience, and renewable wood fiber.

Associated Oregon Loggers supports policies that prioritize forest management science, protect rural livelihoods, and ensure America’s forests are healthy and resilient for future generations.

For further information, please contact:

Amanda Sullivan-Astor, CF

Forest Policy Manager, Associated Oregon Loggers

Email: aastor@oregonloggers.org

Phone: 503-364-1330