ENHS Nature Trails April 2004 Article 4

Story Without an Ending
by Reida Kimmel

In early March a neighbor of mine, Lynn Bowers, discovered that Rosboro Lumber Company plans to clear-cut and herbicide spray 160 acres of land on the ridge running west from Le Bleu Road, divides Fox Hollow from Peaceful Valley, Chezem and Sarvis Berry Roads. Winds are strong and erratic in our area, and the spray potentially could drift for miles. The herbicide to be used is imazapur, sold as Arsenal Chopper and Assault. Approximately two hundred homes lie within a mile and a half of the proposed aerial spray plan, including some organic farms and many organic gardens. Many households rely on shallow wells for all their domestic water supply, and others get water from springs coming down from the ridge. The neighborhoods mobilized. Lynn found that a Peaceful Valley resident, Dale Olsen had known of the Rosboro plan for some time and had already researched the chemicals to be used, sent out letters to all the neighbors and drawn up a petition urging Rosboro to deal with weeds by manual release or by hand spraying. People from the various areas that could be affected by the spray met together to decide strategies. The Peaceful Valley No Spray Association was born, and the offices of Rosboro Lumber, as well as those of local political leaders, were flooded with letters of protest. Lynn's colorful posters appeared along the roadsides. The new Land Timber Manager of Rosboro Lumber, Knox Marshall, met with concerned local residents and the company agreed not to aerial spray. Instead it will selectively cut some areas while clear cutting others, but it will leave wide buffers of unlogged land in the steep areas and beside the little creek flowing off the ridge. Finally, Rosboro agreed not to apply herbicides until their use became patently necessary. This story has a happy ending. The company has gained the goodwill and respect of the community, and the land, which has been logged several times in the past and has a growth of young crowded trees mostly useful for pulp, is being treated in a responsible way that will improve the quality of the next timber harvest.

Behind the story are a number of very disturbing developments, however. In the past, trees were planted in the cool wet months, and in subsequent years, if blackberries, Scotch broom, and occasionally vine maple were found to be impeding the growth of the young trees, the weeds were grubbed out by hand or herbicide-sprayed topically with hand-held equipment. The new forestry practice, however, is to spray the area of newly planted trees with very potent and long lasting herbicides that will inhibit the growth of broad-leafed weeds for several years. "Weeds" can be invasive alien plants or they can be the normal forest floor flora. Both will be killed by herbicides, and the final product will be a sterile, monoculture of Douglas fir. The cocktail of herbicides can include a number of products, but products of choice are, in addition to imazapur, often Garlon (triclopyr), Oust (sulfometuron methyl), Ln6 (2,4-D), Velpar d.f. (hexazimone), and Transline (clopyralid). You can find out more about these chemicals on NCAP's website http://www.pesticide.org/factsheets.html
but it suffices to say that they are, for the most part, very active in the soil and water and persist for years. Thus even without spray drift, local water supplies could become contaminated and stay that way. These chemicals, even in very tiny amounts, are generally very harmful to cold-blooded animals, fish, amphibians and invertebrate soil organisms. Drift from BLM aerial spraying with Oust is blamed for contaminating and damaging crops on 100,000 acres of Idaho farmland in 2002. (High Country News, 7/10/2002). The NCAP website documents harmful effects to humans as well.

This widespread, heavy use of dangerous chemicals is perfectly legal. The Oregon Department of Forestry must be notified of plans to spray, but the Oregon Forest Practices Act does not forbid spraying near settled areas. Likewise, protection near streams is minimal. The damage must already be done before an affected party can sue. Clearly, as the rural areas around Eugene and other communities become increasingly filled with new homes, and more families seek a high quality life in the clean and peaceful countryside, the Oregon Forest Practices Act must be modified to make heavy use of herbicides, especially aerial spraying, near communities illegal. The broader issue to me, however, concerns the earth. What are we doing to the soil and water that nourishes all life? Why are people so unaware of the harm these chemicals can do? Why do timber producers, in the name of immediate profits, so "chemicalize" the land that the soil organisms on which the health of their forests depend are destroyed?

As I write, the Giustina Land and Timber Company is poised to aerial spray 70 acres of clear-cut wetland at the headwaters of Camas Swale, a mile from my home. Our neighborhood had only two weeks' advance notice, again finding out about the plans almost by accident, and Giustina turned a deaf ear to our letters of protest. A group of us met with their foresters and were told that only aerial spraying could assure profitability for the company. This month they will also aerial spray one hundred six acres of land at the end of Lynx Hollow Road, two miles from Creswell, and thirty-eight acres south of Ham Road. In all, the same helicopter company will be spraying seven hundred acres of land in South Lane County this month, and the list of various companies' hand spraying projects in our area and close to west Eugene is extensive too. This is indeed a story that has no end, as the effects of this heavy use of chemicals may not be fully felt for years. How long will it take for citizens, voters, to mobilize against this chemical trespass into their lives? Meanwhile the poisons descend. A helicopter just flew over our house. I guess it's beginning.

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