NEW REPORT REVEALS THAT OLD GROWTH FORESTS
WERE CUT AT HOOVER CREEK

Sierra Club and Virginia Forest Watch to Lead "Tour de Cut" on Saturday June 18 Highlighting Threats to Old Growth & Roadless Areas in Virginia National Forests

Roanoke, Va. (June 16, 2005) A newly released report reveals that the Forest Service cut rare old growth forests in the Hoover Creek timber sale site. Ring counts reveal that old growth trees - some 130 to 230 years old - were cut as part of the sale in Alleghany County in the George Washington National Forest. Prior to the timber sale, it was estimated that 100-200 acres of old growth existed in the area; with the cutting of units 4, 6, 9, and 10, some of most spectacular old growth areas at Hoover Creek have been eliminated. "The Forest Service was clearly targeting the biggest, oldest trees here. They were also dealing with the public in a very underhanded way," said Steve Krichbaum of the group Wild Virginia. "Throughout the process, agency personnel discounted the impacts of the Hoover Creek timber sale on old growth forests. But from the beginning it was obvious to us that they were aiming for rare old growth forests - some of it rich cove forests. This report shows that the public was misled by the Forest Service."

Five conservation groups, the Sierra Club, Virginia Forest Watch, Wild Virginia, Wildlaw, and Southern Appalachian Biodiversity Project, sponsored the report, called "And Still They Fall: A Report on Old Growth Logging on the George Washington National Forest."

Old growth habitat is a rare habitat in the Southeastern U.S. According to the Forest Service's own Regional Old Growth Guidance (R8-FR-62), "old growth forests are rare or largely absent in the southeastern forests of the United States. Existing old growth communities may represent around 0.5% (approximately 676,000 acres) of the total forest acreage (approximately 108,400,000 acres) in the Southeast (Davis 1996)" (RG-1). The conservation groups are concerned that remaining small tracts of old growth are being logged across the Forest in the Hoover Creek project and others like it.

Among other findings in the white paper:
- Agency claims that no old growth existed in the area were contradicted by post-sale tree ring counts.
- The Forest Service arbitrarily and incorrectly assigned many of the Hoover Creek old growth units to the dry mesic oak community type, the category that receives less protection than any other forest type in the George Washington National Forest.
- Numerous large, hollow trees intended to be retained for wildlife were damaged, cut, or removed.
The report also notes that the current Forest Service Regional Old Growth Guidance does not adequately protect old growth because the numeric criteria used fails to consider the loss of the chestnut over half a decade ago, fails to protect small tracts of old growth located inside of artificially delineated stand boundaries, and fails to consider the complexity of forest community types in Appalachian forests.

According to Sherman Bamford of the Sierra Club and Virginia Forest Watch, " With so little old growth forest left, we need to save and buffer all that remains. Instead, we are seeing many deserving areas fall through the cracks. The Forest Service is logging many excellent older forests tracts that should be saved for wildlife today and saved for the benefit of future generations tomorrow." According to a 2002 Forest Service survey, 85% of local residents near Virginia's national forests believe that protecting old growth forests is important; 64% believe that protecting these forests is "extremely important" ("Public Survey Report: Southern Appalachian National Forests George Washington and Jefferson National Forests" (SRS-4901-2002-5)).

The White Paper will be made public for the first time on June 18th at the Tour de Cut, a two-part walking tour highlighting the threats to old growth forest, roadless areas, and other scenic areas in public forests. At 9AM, hikers from throughout Virginia will meet and hike through a logged portion of the Hoover Creek. Attendees will also have an opportunity to count the rings of some of the large stumps and to see some of the surrounding uncut forests themselves.

The second part of the Tour de Cut will be an afternoon hike through the Oliver Mountain roadless area, a 13,000 acre roadless area near Lake Moomaw. The Oliver Mountain Roadless Area is one of the roadless areas that is currently most vulnerable to logging and roadbuilding, now that the Bush Administration eliminated the popular Roadless Area Conservation Rule on May 5, '05. The 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule protected inventoried roadless areas from logging and roadbuilding under most circumstances. Prior to the establishment of the 2001 Rule, a record 1.6 million Americans participated in a nationwide 15-month effort involving 600 hearings and public meetings.

"The administration seems to have a problem listening to the public," says David Muhly of the Sierra Club, " In Virginia, 98.3 percent of the 45,513 comments provided on Rule supported the complete protection of all roadless areas. The 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule was a conservation milestone for our nation. And it was tremendously popular when it was approved in 2001. Now the Forest Service wants to eliminate this protection. Eighty-one percent of Virginia's 387,674 acres of national forest roadless areas are placed in management designations that allow roadbuilding and/or roadbuilding not allowed under the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Roadless areas like Oliver Mountain, and others across Virginia's national forests are highly vulnerable. We want to get as many people out into the field to see these areas before they are gone. We are encouraging the public to strongly advocate for their protection, or we will lose them."

To join the Tour de Cut hike, please contact Sherman Bamford at bamford@rev.net

Meeting Time for the hike:
Saturday June 18, 2005, at 9AM

Meeting Location:
Outside of the James River Ranger District office, 810 Madison Ave., Covington, Virginia

Directions:
The ranger's office is located just off of Interstate 64 approximately 40-45 miles west of Lexington, Virginia. Exit Interstate 64 at Exit 16, on the east side of Covington, Virginia. Take and immediate left onto U.S. 60. You will pass a Burger King building and a motel on your right (north side of U.S. 60). Immediately after the motel, and immediately before reaching a Shell gas station, you will see a small brown Forest Service sign to the Ranger District Office on your right. Turn right and go up a small hill to the ranger district office. We will meet in the large parking lot in the front and arrange carpooling and shuttles from there.

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More Info: June 2005 "Tour de Cut" Hikers to View Old Growth and Roadless Forests: Vanishing Landscapes on Virginia's National Forests | UPDATED with pictures (June 21, 2005)