A professional's view of Blue Creek Bay logging

First of all, I am a retired professional forester with over 40 years of field experience managing thousands of acres of forest land. I am acquainted with root rot in trees and its effects on standing timber. I have seen over 400 acres of timber infected with the pathogen and know the only way to adequately treat a timber stand like that is to cut it down and reforest it with less-susceptible trees.

It was with interest that I read the front-page article related to the logging at Blue Creek Bay by the Bureau of Land Management. I applaud you for getting the facts straight and keeping hype out of the article. Treatment of the prescription developed by the BLM staff was described clearly and logically. As an aside, foresters working with BLM are constrained by stringent requirements under the National Environmental Protection Act. They had to have public notifications and meetings, as well as developing proper procedures to handle any timber sale activity. I am sure all requirements were met through this public process.

I am also sorry that Aileen Hicks must look at the apparent devastation resulting from logging, but unfortunately it is not possible to have a timber sale without a mess. Once brush disposal is completed the view will improve. Yes there are fewer trees and more openings, but Ms. Hicks has only 10 years to wait before the tree planting and natural regeneration gives her a green view to see.

Unfortunately this is the only way to treat root rot in standing timber. You cannot burn it, plow it, spray chemicals, or wish it never happened. It is the way nature works to grow trees and to begin the conversion of timber stands to other species. We can do it in five years, Ma Nature requires hundreds of years. Douglas fir, grand fir, cedar, hemlock are very susceptible to root rot. Once the pathogen is in the root system the end of that timber stand is just around the corner. Trees will start falling down, brush growth increases, and fire danger starts to become a problem.

However, ponderosa pine, western white pine, and western larch are not affected by root rot to the degree those other species are. That is why your front-page photo shows ponderosa pine in the background. The foresters want it to reseed the ground following logging and slash disposal. Tree planting will also aid in the reforestation of the open areas.

Again, thank you for the well-done report.

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Charles Finan is a Coeur d'Alene resident.