Letter: Save Davis Ridge

Published 12:15 am Thursday, June 27, 2024

I am writing to express my concern about the proposed harvest by the Oregon Department of Forestry of Davis Ridge, which has been our boundary for the past 34 years. The planned logging activities threaten the environment, local biodiversity and community health.

Davis Ridge hosts a diverse array of plant and animal species that rely on the mature forest ecosystem. Logging will disrupt this habitat, causing loss of biodiversity and displacing species. Davis Ridge is home to pileated woodpeckers, bald eagles, spotted owl, great horned owl, turkey vultures and a complex web of beings that live there, and will be threatened by the proposed harvest.

Additionally, the removal of vegetation will lead to soil erosion, as tree roots that stabilize the soil will be lost. This increases sediment flowing under Aldrich Point Road into Gnat Creek, affecting salmon runs and the risk of landslides, impacting both the environment and local infrastructure.

There is also a risk of soil contamination if herbicides are used postharvest. These chemicals can leach into the soil and Gnat Creek, and eventually the Columbia River, harming local agriculture, wildlife and residents relying on clean water sources.

The long-term environmental and community impacts of logging Davis Ridge far outweigh any short-term economic gains. I urge the ODF to reconsider their plans and adopt sustainable forest management practices.

DENISE MOORE

Brownsmead

Thank you, Sue Skinner (The Astorian, June 18), and all of the other supporters for saving our forests. Having read in The Astorian about these potential losses to our county, it appears the most important aspect of logging is money.

Our environment, our legacy for future generations and maintaining the inherent beauty of our land seems less important than the money logging outfits make cutting trees, and having them loaded onto ships sailing to the Far East. Then the finished lumber and plywood comes back to us at inflated prices and often of poor quality, partially from the processing and from removing immature trees.

The Oregon Department of Forestry has many goals for the protection of our land for all citizens, the water resources and the protection of specific animals and fish. Many of the objectives have been modified since the implementation in the early 1970s, mostly to address citizen concerns and the increase in environmental issues. On their website, one of the goals is forest practices monitoring program. It is nonspecific as to how this is to be managed, or to whom there is accountability.

We need to preserve areas like Mothball Hill and Davis Ridge. Otherwise, logging will demolish the logging industry, much as fishing is no longer the financial contributor to Clatsop County as in the past.

PRISCILLA LOWE BELIN

Astoria