A sea of evergreens, uninterrupted by roads or
clear-cut; an eroding mountainside, barren of everything but stumps
and broken branches. Ancient Forests: The Power of
Place, a 30-minute educational video, uses this contrast
to paint a compelling picture of logging’s siege on Northwest
forests. The video from Green Fire Productions, a nonprofit
filmmaking organization, takes a historical look at the Forest
Service’s timber policies, the billions of dollars the agency has
lost on timber sales and the destruction of forests that has
resulted. Everyone from veteran environmentalists to former loggers
testifies about why it’s important to keep remaining roadless areas
and ancient forests intact. The viewer is reminded of the power of
people by author/activist Michael Frome. “All the landmark moves in
preservation history have been the result of people who cared. No
other force,” he says. The program, geared toward grassroots
organizing, outlines simple measures that anyone can take,
including writing letters to the editor, contacting elected
officials and getting involved with forest protection
campaigns.
Copies of Ancient
Forests are available for $10 from Green Fire
Productions, 3948 East Burnside, Portland, OR 97214, or by calling
503/736-1295. You can visit their Web site at
www.greenmedia.org.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Logging doesn’t cut it.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
