Cassidy logging plan

Cassidy Timber Harvest Plan THP #1-00-101 MEN

The 181-acre logging plan submitted by Gualala Redwoods, Inc. (GRI) in 2000 includes approximately 148 acres lying in the floodplain adjacent to the fish-bearing North Fork and Little North Fork branches of the river.

According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the California Department of Forestry, the Cassidy Plan could seriously impact the recovery efforts of the salmonid species listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act.

The plan was denied by the California Board of Forestry in February 2002. GRI filed suit in March 2002 to overturn the Board’s decision. Following a hearing in Superior Court in December 2005, the Court rejected GRI’s petition.

Meanwhile, in March 2004, GRI filed a new logging plan, the Lily THP, which is almost identical to the Cassidy plan.

Gualala Redwoods, Inc.

Gualala Redwoods, Inc. is the largest landowner in the Gualala watershed. Because it has engaged in unsustainable logging practices, it has been subjected to serious criticism.

But there is another side to the company. GRI donated 11 acres of beautiful redwood forest near town, plus several hundred thousand dollars, to support the Gualala Community Arts Center, for which the community is rightly grateful.

GRI also supports the efforts of the Gualala River Watershed Council and state agencies to restore the river environment, both financially and through some of its actions. We appreciate those actions by GRI, and hope they will continue to work towards a healthier watershed.

However, the fundamental problem is that remediation efforts will never restore the health of the river as long as destructive and unsustainable logging practices are permitted to continue.