Some positive news for those looking to save the Legacy Forests in the Elwha River watershed. Dave Upthegrove announces a 6-month moratorium on forest auctions, celebrates the Power Station Victory and urges you to attend the ELF monthly meeting on January 21st at 7-8 PM, and to engage with the protection of Elwha forests. Here’s the email from Elwha Legacy Forests Coalition email:

“Hi Forest Friends,

Welcome to the first Elwha Legacy Forests Coalition newsletter of 2025!  We have quite a few things to update you about.  Please try to make our zoom meeting on Tuesday, January 21st. We would love to see you there. Details are in the “Reminders” section below.

1. Dave Upthegrove took office on 1/15/2025!

In his inauguration day speech, he introduced that DNR is going to have a 6-month moratorium on auctioning off structurally complex forests, to give DNR time to identify and map forests that meet “Maturation 2” criteria.  “As someone who has worked for many years as a high school basketball referee, I know when a time-out is needed. And that’s what this is, a time-out. This process will be inclusive and transparent.” – Dave Upthegrove

To read more about what Dave Upthegrove said in his speech, see this article here.

2. Power Station is saved!

Due to the amazing work of Joshua Wright with Legacy Forest Defense Coalition, the ‘Power Station’ legacy forest in Sequim is saved from logging!  Joshua discovered a globally critically imperiled plant community, confirmed by the Washington Natural Heritage Program.

3. Legacy Forest Timber Sale Updates

A big thank you to everyone who came to the Tree Well Community hike.

The Elwha forests Tree Well and Parched were both auctioned in December, but Legacy Forest Defense Coalition and Earth Law Center along with Center for Whal Research & Orca Network have filed lawsuits.  Legacy forest Dungeness & Dragons, south of Sequim, is scheduled for auction January 29th despite public opposition.  Stay tuned on how to continue opposing this timber sale!

4. 29 Acres of Alley Cat is being protected!

This is because of yerba de selva, a rare plant reported by Legacy Forest Defense Coalition.  The good news is that our advocacy is working and both the Alley Cat and Bread & Butter timber sales in the Elwha Watershed have been kept off the Board of Natural Resources agenda.

 Many thanks to Lower Elwha Klallam Tribal Chairwoman Frances Charles and Vice Chair Russell Hepfer for asking DNR to pause the Alley Cat timber sale in its entirety and for Tashena Francis (Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe) for circulating a Petition to protect Elwha Watershed forests that gained nearly 400 handwritten signatures of tribal citizens in just 10 days!

See the Reminders section below to add your name!  With Commissioner Upthegrove in office, they are no longer under urgent threat, but we need to keep working on a long-term comprehensive visions of forest stewardship in the Elwha Watershed.

5. Doc Holliday

Doc Holliday is an incredibly unique coastal rainforest that rivals the forests of Olympic National Park and an important gathering area for S’Klallam peoples.  On Friday, November 29th, 2024, Lower Elwha Klallam Tribal Elder Yayacen (Linda Weichman) and Lummi Elder Sul ka dub (Freddie Lane) along with members of Elwha Legacy Forests coalition visited the proposed Doc Holliday/ Sadie Creek clear-cut site. To read more about this event, please visit the beautiful blog post put together by Scott McGee which features photography and video by John Gussman.

We continue to ask DNR to cancel this timber sale. Stay tuned for more ways to get involved!

6. Ode To Joyce is being logged now.

Ode To Joyce, a legacy forest in Joyce that the DNR nominated for protection under the legislature’s Climate Commitment Act conservation program but was rejected last year by the Clallam County Commissioners, is being logged now.  A tribute to the forest is on the website here.

Reminders!

Elwha Protection Petition

Please sign the Elwha protection petition in solidarity with Lower Elwha Klallam tribal members and spread the word!  Your voice is critical as we seek cancellation of the Tree well and Parched timber sales and advocate for protection of all legacy forests in the watershed, and for improved forest stewardship in the watershed overall.

! ELF Monthly Meeting on Zoom – Tuesday, January 21st. 
Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84054515111?pwd=ajNSSHlTR1lUZ2pOeVQxSjV1SXRldz09

Meeting ID: 840 5451 5111

Passcode: legacy

Time: 7PM- 8PM

Please attend and share with any friends who may be interested in the group!

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Donate!

Support us!  If you are interested in donating to help the Elwha Legacy Forests mission to protect our beloved forests. Please click the blue box to donate to the Elwha Forest Fund, managed by Earth Law Center.

Copyright © 2025 Elwha Legacy Forests, All rights reserved.”