Forest Service tries to salvage N. Idaho proposal

The U.S. Forest Service is trying to salvage a proposal to log 950 acres of trees - and burn nearly 2,000 acres of vegetation - in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest.

A group that previously supported the proposal as a member of the Coeur d'Alene Forestry Coalition now has serious concerns about the plan. The coalition, an Idaho-based nonprofit that represents timber and environmental groups, has worked on the proposal for more than two years with the federal government.

Logging and environmental groups were expected to benefit from the Forest Service proposal to remove and sell the 950 acres of timber and allow for the potential growth of ponderosa pine and western white pine trees, eventually improving habitat for sensitive species such as flammulated owls and pygmy nuthatches.

The plan would also remove fire-prone trees near rural homes at the edge of the national forest in northern Idaho.

But after a visit to the site earlier this year with other members of the Coeur d'Alene Forestry Coalition, the Lands Council of Spokane, Wash., is objecting to the removal of large Grand fir trees.

The large firs, some measuring two feet in diameter, are some of the only big trees left in these areas after extensive logging, said Mike Petersen, executive director of the Lands Council.

"Here's this island of native forest, and they're going to go in and mow it down," Petersen told The Spokesman-Review.

Randy Swick works for the Forest Service in Coeur d'Alene and said the removal of the large firs will allow for the growth of the pine trees, which are more resilient to fire and disease.

Swick said he hopes the agency can reach an agreement with the groups that collaborated on the project. The Forest Service expects to implement the plan next year.

"Everyone wants this to be a success," Swick said. "It's a lengthy process, and when you hit a little bump, you continue on."

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Information from: The News Tribune, http://www.thenewstribune.com