Gov. Inslee Orders Rework of Washington’s Wolf-killing Policies


September 4, 2020 — In a win for wolf advocates, Gov. Jay Inslee directed the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission today to draft new rules governing the killing of wolves involved in conflicts with livestock. This action reverses the commission’s denial of a petition filed by advocates in May that called for reforms of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife’s lethal wolf-management policies.

Press Release: Legal Action Taken to Halt Thurston Hills Logging in Springfield, OR


August 17, 2020 — In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rejected administrative protests and decided to move forward with the Thurston Hills timber sale despite widespread opposition to the project. Last year on September 19th 2019, Oregon’s federal District Court rejected the Thurston Hills timber sale due to BLM’s failure to disclose increased wildfire danger for nearby communities and residents, and the BLM’s failure to designate and protect trails in this newly designated recreation area. In response to the court order, BLM made no changes to the project and quickly reissued another decision, a response typical of the Trump administration which ignores the rule of law and attempts to circumvent environmental rules and public process.

BLOG: Environmental Rollbacks Gut Core Conservation Laws


Trump Administration Pushing Through Environmental Rollbacks During the COVID-19 Pandemic by Gene McCarthy Cascadia Wildlands Legal Intern, Summer 2020 It can be exhausting keeping up with the constant barrage of unfortunate news covering the current administration’s breakneck efforts to remove environmental safeguards. Unfortunately, the past six months during the COVID-19 pandemic have been no exception. … Continue reading BLOG: Environmental Rollbacks Gut Core Conservation Laws

FIELD REPORT / BLOG: Quartzville-Middle Santiam Old-Growth on the Chopping Block


Proposed Quartzville-Middle Santiam (QMS) Timber Sale Project: Field Check Trip, July 2020 by Chelsea Stewart-Fusek Cascadia Wildlands Legal Intern, Summer 2020 On a gorgeous day earlier this month, the Willamette Valley Broadband of Great Old Broads for Wilderness joined the Cascadia Wildlands field checking team to survey some of the units in the QMS timber … Continue reading FIELD REPORT / BLOG: Quartzville-Middle Santiam Old-Growth on the Chopping Block

INTERN-al VIEW: No Longer the “Beaver State”- The Quest to Protect Oregon’s Beavers


by Chelsea Stewart-Fusek Cascadia Wildlands Legal Intern, Summer 2020 The North American beaver (Castor canadensis) is a primarily nocturnal, semi-aquatic rodent that is known as an ecosystem engineer because its dam-building behavior drastically changes the habitat in which it lives. Beavers are also considered a keystone species because their removal has far-reaching impacts on other … Continue reading INTERN-al VIEW: No Longer the “Beaver State”- The Quest to Protect Oregon’s Beavers