Ohio’s Only National Forest Under Attack
A new report on southern Ohio’s Wayne National Forest says a 15-year management plan does not maximize net public benefits as required by law. The report, An Economic Analysis of the Wayne National Forest Plan, by Greenfire, LLC and commissioned by Heartwood, a regional forest protection organization, found that logging, mining and off-highway vehicle trails cost the Forest Service more than what is coming back in revenues. They also found that extensive pollution costs will result from the Forest Service’s plan to log more than 18,000 acres and burn more than 68,000 acres (over a quarter of the forest) in the next ten years, as well as expand off-highway vehicle trails by 100 miles.
The authors of the study, Christine Glaser and Karyn Moskowitz, challenged the rationale for increased logging, burning and off-highway vehicle use on economic and environmental grounds. The study points out that southeast Ohio has one of the highest air pollution levels in the nation, four counties in the Wayne National Forest area are in noncompliance with Environmental Protection Agency’s particulate standards and off-highway vehicles are high emitters of particulates, volatile organic compounds and nitrous oxides.
The authors also found high costs in lost ecosystem services from Forest Service activities, such as logging, burning and off-highway vehicle use. These include the loss of trees that help filter out pollution, the loss of forests which help purify water and regulate flow by storing storm water and releasing it slowly which reduces flooding, and the value of forests for carbon sequestration. Glaser also discussed recreation as an ecosystem service. The study documents the wider popularity and greater economic contribution for the forest is recreation activities like nature viewing, hiking, sightseeing and picnicking, which are largely incompatible with off-highway vehicles use. The study calculates that ecosystem services provided by the Wayne have an average value of $1,800 per acre per year compared to timber’s value of $250 per acre per year. Based on the $1,800 value, the study estimates that Wayne ecosystem services could be worth $381 million per year.
Moskowitz questioned, “Why does the Forest Service use millions of dollars of taxpayers money to subsidize private logging, mining and off-highway vehicles on public land?” She challenged the Forest Service’s commitment to “ecosystem management” as a smokescreen to cover its real goal of promoting logging and burning, because these programs generate revenue for the Forest Service, although never enough to cover the Forest Service’s costs associated with these extractive activities. Moskowitz pointed out that logging, burning, and off-highway vehicles discourage more environmentally benign and profitable recreation activities and also prevent attraction of new businesses, due to the degradation of the land, air and water generated by these destructive practices.
According to Andy Mahler, Heartwood Network Coordinator, “The GreenFire study will go a long way toward raising awareness that the economy and the environment are not in conflict, that doing the right thing environmentally actually benefits the economy.” Buckeye Forest Council Executive Director David Maywhoor has called on Ohioans “to become involved in preserving the Wayne National Forest and in preventing its continued exploitation as a sacrifice zone funded by public tax dollars. This is our national and natural heritage. The report’s recommendations provide a clear plan for safeguarding this national forest. We urge Ohioans to make sure their federal legislators have read the report and are committed to work on implementing its recommendations.”
Commenting on the study, Athens City Council member Debbie Phillips said, “This study deserves consideration by officials and planners in our region. The Wayne National Forest is an important public resource, and policymakers need to understand the relative economic and environmental benefits for our region. When making decisions about public land management, it is important that those decisions be based on sound scientific data.”
To read the full report, summary and recommendations visit, http://heartwood.org/Wayne_Economic_Analysis. For more information, contact David Maywhoor at the Buckeye Forest Council at 1-866-OH-TREES or david@buckeyeforestcouncil.org.
August/September 2008 Contents