The feat of this salmon surviving to adulthood and then a 200 mile journey up the Klamath River is no small one, but is mirrored in this case by the feat of removing the Klamath River dams. I won’t attempt to summarize the enormous, decades-long organizing, advocacy, and political campaign to accomplish it here (check out some of the links below for that context), but this story highlights the tenacity of both people and nature.

For example, it is the Tribal nations and peoples in the Klamath region who lost the most during the era of the dams, and who stand to benefit most from this new era for the Klamath River’s restoration. The people of the Klamath, Shasta, Yurok, Hoopa, and Karuk tribes were not only instrumental in the effort to remove the dams, they are also now playing a major role in the restoration of the river, the salmon, and their ancestral homelands.  

Many voices from tribes who call the Klamath watershed home are highlighted in news stories and documentaries, and we urge you to seek these out. Some can be found linked here:

• OPB: After a century of displacement, Shasta Indian Nation sees hope in dam removal
• Ridges to Riffles: Indigenous Conservation Group working on Klamath restoration 
• Undammed: Amy Bowers Cordallis and the fight to free the Klamath
• Oregon Field Guide: “After the dams: What’s next for the Klamath River?”
• Underscore Native News: Klamath River Ecosystem is Booming One Year After Dam Removal
• OPB: Indigenous kayakers traverse 6 dam sites on the Klamath River and head for the ocean
• The Guardian: One year after a historic dam removal, teens inspire river restoration worldwide: ‘It turns out you can win’

My visit to the Klamath was organized by friends with the Great Old Broads for Wilderness, and facilitated by staff of Resource Environmental Solutions (RES), the contractor in charge of restoration post-dam-removal. (More about their work on their Klamath River Restoration Story Map) We learned from them and from the president of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation about  the political and policy context that led to the agreement to remove the dams, the actual project of taking them down, and the ongoing restoration work in the footprint of the dam and reservoir sites. 

On one day, our group worked with RES staff to harvest acorns from native oak trees and then plant them in a part of the reclaimed land behind the removed Irongate dam. A dozen bright orange vests dotted the hillslope, stooping to dig out a spot for a cluster of acorns every 6 feet or so. It was hopeful work. At one point, as I scooped another hole into the old reservoir sediment and poked an acorn into the ground, I glanced up to see a pair of bald eagles landing in a juniper tree across the river. I pointed them out to the wildlife biologist with us and she wisely said, “Look at that. The eagles know the fish are coming back.”

The salmon’s return to the Klamath River was no guarantee, but the careful planning and implementation of dam removal and restoration projects and the innate resiliency of these fish has led to a timeline that has exceeded expectations. Not only did fish show up just days after dam removal was completed, when biologists thought it could take a year, but they are also swimming farther into the watershed. This year, salmon returned to the upper Klamath headwaters, above two more existing dams and through Upper Klamath Lake. (See New York Times “A River Restoration in Oregon Gets Fast Results: The Salmon Swam Right Back“)

“A hundred and fifteen years that they haven’t been here, and they still have that GPS unit inside of them,” said the visibly giddy Klamath Tribal Chair William Ray, Jr. “It’s truly an awesome feat if you think about the gauntlet they had to go through.”
– OPB: Salmon clear last Klamath dams, reaching Williamson and Sprague rivers

For decades, Oregon Wild has advocated for water quality and quantity in the upper Klamath, for conservation efforts to benefit Klamath sucker fish and Chinook salmon,  and for protecting the spring-fed headwater rivers of the Williamson and Sprague – where salmon have now returned. And while we share the excitement of Chair Ray (quoted above), many challenges to these goals remain. The upper Klamath basin is still limited by water quality and quantity. As the tenacious salmon begin to explore these upper reaches, can their growing population be sustained? What work, and what changes in policies and practice need to be done and made to help them thrive? Do we (collectively) have the willingness and resources to do that work as federal funding and staff cuts take hold, and agency direction changes? I hope so.

Like the eagles, I hope to return to this newly freed stretch of river to look over the hillsides dotted with young oak trees, native wildflowers in bloom, families floating by in kayaks, and salmon returning to their streams of origin. This landscape still needs time to heal towards that vision, but if the Klamath dam removal project has taught us anything, it is that persistence over time does make a difference, and that this river, the landscape it flows through, the people who call it home, and the salmon and other wildlife that live here are remarkably resilient.

The post Resilience and hope for the Klamath River appeared first on Oregon Wild.

S. 1462, the “Fix Our Forests Act,” passed out of the Senate Agriculture Committee. Conservation organizations from across the nation have voiced strong concerns with the content of the bill and have opposed its passage. The bill now heads to a full Senate vote.

Oregon Wild Wilderness Program Manager Erik Fernandez released the following statement:

“Today, the US Senate advanced its latest attack on public lands, the so-called “Fix Our Forests Act” (FOFA). This bill is a direct assault on what makes public lands public: it stymies science-based forest management, muzzles community input, and endangers the fish, wildlife, and communities that rely on our forests. It also fails to provide dedicated funding for the types of wildfire strategies that save lives and livelihoods — home hardening, defensible space, and emergency planning.

The legislation authorizes 15 square-mile-sized logging projects with little to no public input and environmental analysis, making this one of the scariest plans to face public lands in a generation.

Trump and his logging industry backers have made no secret of the fact that they see public land forests as tree farms, and view any science, transparency, and accountability from the public as an obstacle to profit. FOFA is nothing less than a corporate handout and a further step towards that dystopian vision. It is a betrayal of the very idea of public lands.

Over the past several months, we have seen an incredible movement develop, first to oppose public lands sales proposed by Senator Mike Lee of Utah, then as an unprecedented outpouring of support for the Roadless Rule that protects some of our nation’s last wild places from reckless logging and development. Over 99% of those public comments opposed the Trump administration’s efforts to rescind these public lands protections.

Unfortunately, too many politicians in Washington DC, including Senate Democrats like Amy Klobuchar, still don’t get it. 

Public lands may be managed by agencies like the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service, but they belong to all of us. They’re held in trust for the American people, not for industry lobbyists or corporate logging interests. As caretakers of these lands and as believers in the democratic vision they represent, we will continue to remind our elected officials that these places are ours, and that efforts to privatize, profit, and remove public oversight will not be forgotten.”

The post Anti-Public Lands Forest Bill Passes Senate Committee appeared first on Oregon Wild.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and Forest Service has concluded a three week public comment period on the Trump administration’s plan to rescind the landmark Roadless Rule. The rule protects approximately 44.7 million acres of National Forest System lands, including nearly 2 million acres in Oregon, but the Trump administration wants to open these wild areas up for logging and mining.

Hundreds of thousands of comments were submitted from across the country, including thousands of unique and personalized comments from Oregonians. A coalition of conservation organizations, including Oregon Wild, Central Oregon LandWatch, Central and Eastern Oregon Bitterbrush Broadband, Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center, Cascadia Wildlands, Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project, Greater Hells Canyon Council, and Oregon Sierra Club helped facilitate this outpouring of public input.

An initial analysis by the Center for Western Priorities found that opposition to dropping safeguards for Roadless Areas was nearly unanimous, with 99.2 percent of comments supporting keeping Roadless protections in place.

“The American people have clearly and forcefully rejected this attack on our wild public lands,” said Sami Godlove, Central Oregon Field Coordinator for Oregon Wild. “Proceeding with the rescission of the Roadless Rule after such an overwhelming outpouring of opposition would be another example of how the Trump administration allows campaign donors, like those in the logging industry, to buy the policies they want, even when the public has spoken nearly unanimously against them.”  

Adopted in 2001 after the most extensive public involvement process in federal rulemaking history, the Roadless Rule safeguards some of America’s last intact national forest landscapes. These areas provide clean water, critical wildlife habitat, and world-class recreation opportunities while sustaining rural economies.

“Roadless areas contain much of our last remaining mature and old-growth public forests, which absorb climate pollution and provide refuge for vulnerable fish and wildlife,” said Grace Brahler, Wildlands Director with Cascadia Wildlands. “Targeting these areas for destructive extractive practices would further erode the ecological resilience we need in the face of a warming climate.”

View an interactive map of Oregon Roadless Areas

Roadless Areas are also some of the most fire-resilient landscapes. Because they are remote and intact, they experience fewer human-caused ignitions. Building new roads would dramatically increase the number of man-made fire starts and redirect scarce firefighting resources away from protecting homes and communities. Instead of focusing on strategic fuel reduction projects near communities where it matters most, the logging industry is pressuring agencies to pursue logging in unroaded backcountry areas where timber is more lucrative. Logging in these areas would make them more vulnerable to fire, fragment wildlife habitat, and degrade water quality. Road construction and the sediment runoff that follows are already among the greatest threats to clean drinking water across the West.

“Even the Forest Service’s own research shows that building more roads neither improves forest health outcomes nor mitigates wildfire risks. More roads lead to more fires, pulling vital wildfire response resources away from where they’re needed most,” said Fiona Noonan of Central Oregon LandWatch. “Rolling back of the Roadless Rule is not only scientifically baseless — it’s reckless, putting people and ecosystems at greater risk.”

The Trump administration’s attempt to roll back the Roadless Rule is part of a broader campaign to weaken bedrock environmental safeguards. Other targets include the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, individual Forest Management Plans, and the Bureau of Land Management’s Public Lands Conservation Rule. The administration has also slashed staff at the Forest Service and is attempting to relocate experienced staff and leadership away from the Pacific Northwest. These efforts undermine public accountability while falsely claiming to be about “local control.”

“Rescinding the Roadless Rule would put clean drinking water at risk for people in downstream communities,” said Paula Hood of the Blue Mountain Biodiversity Project.  “National Forests provide clean drinking water to millions of people nationwide, and Roadless areas are strongholds for the cleanest, coldest water.”

Meanwhile, most of Oregon’s congressional delegation has signed on in support of the Roadless Area Conservation Act, legislation that would make the rule permanent. The only two members who have not cosponsored the bill are Representative Val Hoyle and Representative Cliff Bentz.

“Eliminating the Roadless Rule would be a disaster for Oregon’s forests and communities,” said Jamie Dawson of Greater Hells Canyon Council. “Building new roads in these wild places opens the door to invasive species and habitat fragmentation. Once these areas are cut apart, we lose the clean water, wildlife, and solitude they provide forever.”

The next step in the Forest Service process will be to analyze the public comments and issue a draft plan, likely in the spring.

Oregon’s Roadless Wildlands

Oregon’s roadless forests are among our state’s most spectacular and irreplaceable landscapes. From the flower-studded meadows of Iron Mountain in the Willamette National Forest, to the dramatic canyons and cultural homelands of the Nez Perce Tribe in Joseph Canyon, to the clean drinking water flowing from Tumalo Mountain into the taps of more than 100,000 people in Bend, these places embody the best of Oregon’s natural and cultural heritage. They also sustain recreation economies and wildlife habitats.

Other iconic areas include Lookout Mountain in the Ochocos, where diverse forests and meadows form the headwaters of critical streams; Rough & Ready Creek, a unique botanical wonderland threatened by mining in southwest Oregon; and Larch Mountain, a lush old-growth haven just minutes from Portland. These and dozens of other roadless areas across Oregon safeguard clean water, biodiversity, cultural values, and recreation opportunities that are impossible to replace once lost.

Learn more about the Roadless Rule and Oregon Roadless Areas here. 

The post Over 99% of Public Comments Oppose Trump Administration’s Attack on Wildlands Protections appeared first on Oregon Wild.

BEND, OR — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has opened a public comment period on a proposal that threatens to dismantle the landmark Roadless Rule. This rule preserves the last of our intact public lands as a home for wildlife, a haven for recreation, and a heritage for future generations. Oregon Wild is calling on Oregonians to speak up in defense of these critical protections.

Adopted in 2001, the Roadless Rule had the most extensive public involvement process in federal rulemaking history. It protects nearly 2 million acres in Oregon (60 million nationally) of the most pristine national forest lands from logging and road-building. These “roadless areas” are some of the last intact landscapes in America, providing clean water, critical wildlife habitat, and world-class recreation opportunities.

“Eliminating the Roadless Rule would be a disaster for Oregon’s forests and communities,” said Erik Fernandez, Wilderness Program Manager for Oregon Wild. “Building new roads in these wild places opens the door to invasive species and habitat fragmentation. Once these areas are cut apart, we lose the clean water, wildlife, and solitude they provide forever.”

View an interactive map of Oregon Roadless Areas

The Trump administration’s proposal would also undermine public accountability. Unlike the original Roadless Rule, this attempt to repeal protections is being rushed through with minimal opportunity for input, scientific review, or oversight.

“These forests are some of Oregon’s most treasured landscapes, from the flower-studded meadows of Echo Mountain to the headwaters of Tumalo Creek, which provides Bend’s drinking water,” said Sami Godlove, Central Oregon Field Coordinator for Oregon Wild. “Oregonians value these places deeply, and now is the time to raise our voices to ensure they remain protected for future generations.”

Oregonians can submit their comments to the USDA before the close of the comment period on September 19, 2025.

Oregon’s Roadless Wildlands

Oregon’s roadless forests are among our state’s most spectacular and irreplaceable landscapes. From the flower-studded meadows of Iron Mountain in the Willamette National Forest, to the dramatic canyons and cultural homelands of the Nez Perce Tribe in Joseph Canyon, to the clean drinking water flowing from Tumalo Mountain into the taps of more than 100,000 people in Bend, these places embody the best of Oregon’s natural and cultural heritage. They also sustain recreation economies and wildlife habitats.

Other iconic areas include Lookout Mountain in the Ochocos, where diverse forests and meadows form the headwaters of critical streams; Rough & Ready Creek, a unique botanical wonderland threatened by mining in southwest Oregon; and Larch Mountain, a lush old-growth haven just minutes from Portland. These and dozens of other roadless areas across Oregon safeguard clean water, biodiversity, cultural values, and recreation opportunities that are impossible to replace once lost.

Learn more about the Roadless Rule and Oregon Roadless Areas here. 

The post Oregon Wild Rallies Public to Defend Roadless Rule appeared first on Oregon Wild.

Portland, Ore., – This month, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) Commission unanimously approved an update to the State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP)—a required roadmap for protecting vulnerable species and keeping the state eligible for critical federal funding. The number of species the agency now considers of greatest conservation need has now climbed to over 300. The list of species requiring more data is much higher.

“Oregon is home to some of the most iconic wildlife in the country, from puffins to pika, salmon to sand hill cranes,” said Danielle Moser, Wildlife Program Manager at Oregon Wild. “But our wildlife is facing a very real extinction crisis. Without dedicated funding, Oregon’s conservation plan is just words on paper.”

This week, the Trump administration announced rollbacks to Endangered Species Act protections that will make recovery harder. Coupled with budget cuts and staff reductions at the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the responsibility for wildlife conservation is shifting to states.

“The Trump administration’s attacks on wildlife conservation make clear: the federal government is abandoning its responsibility, and states like Oregon will need to step up,” continued Moser.

A 2023 NatureServe report ranked Oregon fifth in the nation for the percentage of at-risk animals, with more than half of amphibians, one in five reptiles, and roughly one in ten bird species already in decline. The revised SWAP expands the state’s conservation list to include porcupines, Western grebe, California condors, and sea otters. To make the plan actionable and to begin removing species from the list, advocates say Oregon must secure new and sustainable wildlife funding.

Yet, the SWAP currently does not receive any dedicated funding from the state.  That’s where the “1% for Wildlife” bill comes in. This landmark bipartisan legislation, which nearly passed the Oregon legislature earlier this year, would dedicate a small increase in the state’s lodging tax to safeguard wildlife and restore habitat. A recent economic analysis found that the tax increase would not deter tourism and could actually boost outdoor recreation spending in Oregon by improving visitor experiences and protecting iconic species and landscapes. The proposal has the support of hunters, anglers, birders, conservationists, and business leaders, and will return in the 2026 short session.

“In this iteration of the SWAP, Oregon didn’t go down in the number of species with greatest conservation needs or even stay the same; we simply went up ,” said Sristi Kamal, Deputy Director for the Western Environmental Law Center. “This is the most direct proof one can have that species decline is a real threat in Oregon and 300+ species are counting on the state to step up to the challenge. The 1% for Wildlife bill is a smart, fair solution that would bring in millions for conservation—paid for by the tourists who come here to see Oregon’s wild landscapes and iconic species.”

Advocates warn that without action, Oregon’s wildlife will continue to decline, hurting not just ecosystems but also rural economies that rely on outdoor recreation and tourism.

Photo by Drew Watson

The post List of Oregon species considered “greatest concern” tops 300 appeared first on Oregon Wild.

PORTLAND, OR — Conservation groups sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today for denying protections to the imperiled North Oregon Coast population of red tree voles. The voles spend most of their lives in the upper branches of the Oregon Coast’s mature and old-growth forests.

The Service’s 2024 decision to deny life-saving Endangered Species Act protections to the North Oregon Coast population echoes a similar 2019 Trump administration denial, which also sparked a lawsuit. Those decisions were made despite studies showing that these red tree voles are threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation, largely due to logging and climate change-fueled wildfires.

“Red tree voles have graced Oregon’s coastal old-growth forests for thousands of years, but we could lose them forever if they don’t get Endangered Species Act protections soon,” said Ryan Shannon, a senior attorney in the Center for Biological Diversity’s endangered species program. “It’s time for the Fish and Wildlife Service to follow the science and do the right thing by stepping up for red tree voles.”

Red tree voles build their nests on complex branch and bole structures found in mature and old-growth forests. The North Coast is dominated by a combination of private industrial timberlands and the Tillamook and Clatsop state forests. Decades of rapacious clearcut logging, as well as a series of historic fires known as the Tillamook Burn, have eliminated most of the area’s old forests along with the red tree voles that once called them home. Red tree voles are an essential species in the last remaining old-growth and mature coastal forests in Oregon and protecting them is necessary for ecosystem recovery.

“Red tree voles are a key prey of the threatened northern spotted owl whose population is plummeting,” says Joe Liebezeit, statewide conservation director for Bird Alliance of Oregon. “We need to step up protection of voles to ensure the integrity of forest ecosystem as a whole — including the food web which so much wildlife depends on.”

Remaining North Coast voles are concentrated on federal public lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Although the Northwest Forest Plan helps protect these remaining small and isolated populations, the long-term survival of the voles depends on improving state and private land forest management and connecting fragmented and isolated red tree vole populations.

Oregon is in the process of adopting a state forest habitat conservation plan that will provide some protection to the vole, but the plan will also allow for continued logging of thousands of acres of potential vole habitat without any surveys to determine if voles are present. There are currently no meaningful protections in private forests.

“The red tree vole is a unique species with adaptations that allow them to live almost their entire lives high in the canopy of mature and old-growth forests,” said Doug Heiken of Oregon Wild. “Its range and habitat are already limited, and without protection for the North Coast population, we could lose red tree voles to irresponsible logging.”

In response to a 2007 Center for Biological Diversity petition, the Service determined in 2011 that protection of the North Oregon Coast population of red tree voles was “warranted but precluded” by other listing priorities. It then moved the voles to a list of candidate species for a decade, repeating its determination that the North Oregon Coast population warranted protection several times before reversing course and denying protections in 2019. A Center lawsuit over the denial resulted in a 2022 settlement directing the Service to reconsider the decision.

“The Fish and Wildlife Service is yet again shirking its duty to this and future generations to prevent the extinction of our most imperiled wildlife species including the red tree vole,” said Bethany Cotton, conservation director for Cascadia Wildlands. “Red tree voles are an important indicator species of forest health; their decline should be a wake-up call to us all to better care for our remaining mature and old-growth forests.”

Bird Alliance of Oregon, Cascadia Wildlands and Oregon Wild are represented by the Center for Biological Diversity in today’s suit.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

Bird Alliance of Oregon was founded in 1902 and works statewide to advocate for Oregon’s wildlife and wild places, and to inspire all people to love and protect birds, wildlife, and the natural environment upon which life depends.

Cascadia Wildlands defends and restores Cascadia’s wild ecosystems in the forests, in the courts, and in the streets.

Oregon Wild works to protect and restore Oregon’s wildlands, wildlife, and waters as an enduring legacy for future generations.

The post Lawsuit Aims to Protect Oregon Coast Red Tree Voles appeared first on Oregon Wild.

Oregon Wild has been doing our best to keep track of the many attacks the Trump administration and anti-conservation Members of Congress have launched against America’s public lands, clean water, and wildlife. Below is a partial list of what we are keeping tabs on. Amid all the bad news and threats, there is also some good news, and some early signs that grassroots activism is working.

The Good: 

Stopping the Sell-off of America’s Public Lands: Earlier this summer, Representatives Mark Amodei (R-NV) and Celeste Maloy (R-UT) tried to insert language in Trump’s Big, Ugly Tax and Spending bill that would have sold off 500,000 acres of America’s public lands in Utah and Nevada. A ferocious public backlash (including from Oregon, where Rep. Bentz ultimately came out against public lands sales) forced the House to withdraw it. Then, in June, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) went even further with an awful proposal that would have mandated the sale of up to 3 million acres of public land (and paved the way for millions more to be privatized in the future).  The backlash against Sen. Lee’s ploy was even stronger, and it was ultimately pulled.

While Trump’s bill ultimately passed the Senate (with plenty of awful anti-conservation and anti-environmental provisions in it), the backlash against public lands privatization is proof that even in this day and age, grassroots pressure works.

The Bad: 

The Fell (Fix) Our Forests Act: The Fix Our Forests Act is a logging bill trying to pass itself off as a wildfire strategy, and unfortunately democratic Senators like Hickenlooper and Padillia are drinking the Kool-Aid and handing the keys of our national forests over to the Trump administration. The bill will make it easier to avoid environmental laws like The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA) — the bill uses emergency authorities to allow NEPA consultation after a project has been completed. It will allow even bigger loopholes through the expansion of Categorical Exclusions — 10,000 acres or 15 square miles — basically removing all public oversight of projects on federal forest land. And it will help to advance the narrative that commercial logging (and grazing) will protect communities from wildfire. The science is clear — we should be investing in proven community protection measures like defensible space, home hardening, and emergency planning. Unfortunately, the bill does not provide meaningful funding for these proven strategies. 

Trump’s Big, Ugly Tax and Spending Bill: The Senate stripped out provisions to sell off public lands from its budget reconciliation proposal. However, there are some truly awful logging provisions in the version that passed the Senate, including: 

1. 250 Million Mandate: Increases timber production by a minimum of 250,000,000 board feet over previous years’ sale volume for the Forest Service and 20,000,000 million for Bureau of Land Management. This arbitrary increase in logging will occur regardless of the impacts it could cause, be it worsening wildfires due to clearcutting or reducing our federal forests climate and clean water benefits.
2. 20-Year Logging Contracts: This bill calls for ramping up logging across federal forests, by mandating that the Forest Service enter into at least one long-term timber contract per year for 10 years in each region.  A similar provision applies to the Bureau of Land Management. This might force harmful logging to occur that has negative impacts on drinking water, vulnerable wildlife, and mature and old-growth forests.

Trump’s Wildfire Executive Order: Trump signed an executive order aimed to combine major wildland firefighting programs across federal public lands agencies within 90 days, in an effort to streamline how the federal government approaches fires. He issued this order during the height of wildfire season after gutting the federal firefighting workforce. The administration’s poorly thought-out and reckless actions will place wildland firefighters at increased risk and will make communities and infrastructure more vulnerable to catastrophic fires. 

The Ugly:

Recission of the Roadless Rule: The proposed rollback of the 2001 Roadless Rule jeopardizes nearly 58 million acres of backcountry forestland managed by the U.S. Forest Service, comprising around a third of the territory in our national forest system. In Oregon, the rule protects nearly 2 million acres of Oregon’s forests from destructive logging and development. These include beloved places like the Metolius River, Lost Lake, the Oregon Dunes, Mount Hebo, Hardesty Mountain, Tumalo Mountain, and the Upper Hood River Valley. Take action to protect wild Roadless Areas.

NEPA rollbacks: US Department of Agriculture, which houses the Forest Service, and Department of the Interior, which includes the Bureau of Land Management, have announced their intent to gut NEPA as it applies to national forests and BLM lands. There will be a 30 day public comment period for the Forest Service’s interim rule that is expected to close July 30th. 

Trump’s logging Executive Orders (+ subsequent logging directives from his administration): President Trump issued two executive orders (EOs) to dramatically expand logging across federal public forests and increase timber output by 25%. Under the pretense of enhancing national security, these policies seek to weaken environmental protections to supercharge timber harvest and benefit wealthy corporate interests.

Changing the Definition of “Harm” to Endangered Species: For decades, America’s Endangered Species Act has defined “harm” to imperiled fish and wildlife to include the destruction of their habitat, such as building a dam with no fish passage and block salmon from accessing the habitat they need to spawn and reproduce.  In April, the Trump administration proposed changing this rule to remove habitat destruction from the definition of “harm” to an endangered species.  It is an incredibly cynical (and stupid) idea, and one that Oregon Wild is gearing up to challenge in court.

The post The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly – The War Against Public Lands appeared first on Oregon Wild.

SALEM, OR – In the final hours of the 2025 legislative session, a landmark bill to fund wildlife conservation fell short—not for lack of public support, bipartisan backing, or legislative merit, but because of cynical obstruction from a small group of Republican senators. Democratic leadership in the Senate had the power to stop them, but chose to give in.

HB 2977, which passed the Oregon House with a three-fifths bipartisan majority and cleared the Senate Rules Committee, would have modestly increased Oregon’s statewide transient lodging tax—currently among the lowest in the country—to fund urgently needed wildlife conservation. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has identified nearly 300 species in decline, yet lacks the general fund resources to act.

“This bill was built on compromise, unity, and a shared love for Oregon’s wild places,” said Danielle Moser, Wildlife Program Manager at Oregon Wild. “It brought together hunters, anglers, conservationists, and rural community leaders, people who often don’t agree. And it showed what’s possible when we put politics aside. Unfortunately, a few obstructionist senators decided to stand in the way of that hope.”

Senators Daniel Bonham and Cedric Hayden used procedural gimmicks to block a floor vote on the bill, despite growing momentum and a written minority report ready to be set aside. While a few Republican legislators defied their caucus to vote for HB 2977, the obstructionists prevailed—for now.

Still, advocates say the coalition and public engagement behind this bill have created a wave of political will that won’t disappear.

“Every legislator and staffer I talked to had heard from Oregonians about this bill,” said Casey Kulla with Oregon Wild. “Phone lines rang off the hook. Inboxes were flooded. People showed up. This was grassroots democracy at its best, and it worked, even if the final vote didn’t happen. We are just getting started.”

While Republican obstruction was central to the bill’s defeat, conservation advocates are also pointing to internal resistance among some Democrats, and Democratic leadership’s decision not to advance the bill to the floor, as a missed opportunity that can and must be corrected.

“We’re disappointed,” Moser said. “But we’re not deterred. We’ve built something powerful. Next session, we’re coming back stronger.”

Oregon Wild and the statewide coalition behind HB 2977 are already preparing for the 2026 short session. 

“The need to fund wildlife and their habitats remains, and the broad public support has never been clearer. This was the closest Oregon has come in decades,” Kulla added. “And next time, we’re going to finish the job.”

SUPPORT FOR HB 2977

The post “We’ll Be Back” Vows Wildlife Funding Coalition appeared first on Oregon Wild.

SALEM, OR – A landmark bill to fund wildlife conservation in Oregon is being held up in the State Senate, despite passing the House with strong bipartisan support and clearing Senate Rules. HB 2977, backed by a broad and diverse coalition across Oregon (listed at the bottom of this release), is now stalled due to obstruction by two Republican senators, Daniel Bonham and Cedric Hayden, who are using procedural tactics to try to kill the bill.

“This bill has support from every corner of the state,” said Amy Patrick of the Oregon Hunters Association. “It’s a smart, fair solution to address a wildlife funding crisis, and it’s been shaped by everyone from hunters and anglers to birders and business owners. The House did its job. The Senate Rules Committee did its job. I urge the two senators attempting now to derail it to respect the extensive work done by stakeholders and legislators alike, and allow the bill to move forward.”

The so-called “minority report” being wielded to delay the bill has already been written and is available to view, but Senators Bonham and Hayden refuse to officially submit it. 

According to the rules of the Oregon Legislature, Senate President Rob Wagner has the ability to put HB 2977 for a vote on the floor. 

“Senate President Rob Wagner has the power to put HB 2977 on the floor today—and Oregonians from across the state are calling on him to do so,” said Danielle Moser of Oregon Wild. “This is not a party-line issue. Our wildlife, the habitats they depend on, and the democratic process deserve better.”

Over 70% of the submitted testimony available on the Oregon Legislative Information System (OLIS) is in support of the bill.

“Oregon’s fish and wildlife is big business in Oregon, and this incredible resource is in jeopardy of blinking out,” said Bob Rees of the Northwest Guides and Anglers Association. “The Oregon Legislature is on the precipice of passing its first meaningful funding to turn the tide of these imperiled species through a bipartisan wildlife funding bill. If this bill doesn’t pass, those imperiled species will continue down the path to extinction and, along with it, our community of outdoor enthusiasts that represents one of the greatest transfers of wealth from urban to rural communities in Oregon. We’ll hold those obstructing the passage of this bill personally responsible for its demise, the first real opportunity to recover Oregon’s troubled fish and wildlife species.”

“Rarely has a bill brought a more diverse stakeholder coalition together like HB 2977 has, and with strong bipartisan support in both chambers of the legislature, the bill was set for success,” said Dr. Sristi Kamal, Deputy Director of the Western Environmental Law Center. “But now it is being held hostage by gimmicky tactics such as a minority report by a few Senate Republicans who want to kill HB 2977. They have no interest in unifying rural and urban Oregon and instead thrive by dividing us. We urge the Senate Democratic Party to save HB 2977, and honor the democratic process that got the bill this far.”

Stakeholders are particularly frustrated that genuine compromise and broad consensus are being undermined by obstruction.

“HB 2977 is the result of ranchers, guides, hoteliers, birders, business owners, and sportsmen all pulling in the same direction,” said Tristan Henry, Oregon Field Representative for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “The Senate has an opportunity now to finish what this broad coalition started and deliver a lasting wildlife-funding solution for Oregon. We urge President Rob Wagner and Senate leadership to use every tool available to move HB 2977 forward and pass it into law.”

HB 2977 would increase Oregon’s statewide transient lodging tax—currently one of the lowest in the nation—to provide long-overdue funding for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The agency has identified nearly 300 species in decline, yet lacks the resources to protect and recover them.

A recent economic analysis found that the bill would not deter tourism and could actually boost outdoor recreation spending in Oregon by improving visitor experiences and protecting iconic species and landscapes.

Supporters say the bill is a win-win: funding from tourists to protect the wildlife and landscapes they come to see, and economic benefits for rural communities that rely on outdoor recreation.

“The passage of HB 2977 would be one of Oregon’s most significant environmental achievements in decades,” said Colin Reynolds, senior advisor to the Northwest program at Defenders of Wildlife. “This bill would deliver long-awaited and necessary sustainable funding for Oregon’s essential wildlife conservation programs that support our iconic species like the marbled murrelet, Southern Resident orca and fisher. On behalf of Defenders of Wildlife’s over 40,000 members and supporters in Oregon, I call on the Oregon legislature to pass this bipartisan bill before the end of the legislative session.”

SUPPORT FOR HB 2977

The post Broad Coalition Urges Senate Action on Wildlife Conservation Bill as Two Republican Senators Block Bipartisan Effort appeared first on Oregon Wild.

Portland, OR — In a sweeping rollback of one of America’s most broadly supported and legally durable conservation measures, the Trump administration today announced it is eliminating the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule. This move puts nearly 2 million acres of Oregon’s most intact national forest lands at risk, including areas around the Metolius River, the Sandy River, the Oregon Dunes, Mount Hebo, Hardesty Mountain, Tumalo Mountain, and the Upper Hood River Valley.

Oregon Wild strongly condemns this short-sighted decision, which ignores decades of public input, legal precedent, and the irreplaceable ecological value of Oregon’s remaining wild forests.

“Once again, the Trump administration is siding with industry lobbyists and political insiders instead of the people of Oregon and the American public,” said Oregon Wild Climate Forests Program Manager Lauren Anderson. “This decision is an invitation for the most destructive commercial logging, roadbuilding, and development in some of the most remote, ecologically valuable, and unspoiled forests left in the country. These lands belong to all Americans, not just the industrial looters and billionaire donors who have the President’s ear.”

The Roadless Rule was established in 2001 after an unprecedented public process that included more than 600 hearings and 1.6 million comments. The vast majority of comments supported protecting roadless areas from logging and roadbuilding. The rule safeguarded 58.5 million acres of undeveloped national forests, including almost 2 million acres in Oregon, from most commercial development.

The Trump administration’s repeal of the rule comes amid a broader effort to ramp up logging on public forests in Oregon and across the West, as well as threats to sell off millions of acres of public lands, including in Oregon, to pay for Trump’s tax-cut and domestic militarization agenda. 

This effort is presented as “fire prevention,” but studies consistently show that roadbuilding and logging in backcountry forests do little to reduce fire risk near communities. In many cases, these activities increase fire risk while degrading clean water, fish and wildlife habitat, and outdoor recreation opportunities.

A recent poll showed that 74% believe the federal government should focus forest management on thinning small trees near homes and emergency services, rather than large-scale commercial logging in more remote areas like those currently protected by the Roadless Rule. Both state and federal policy heavily subsidize logging lucrative large trees in the backcountry in the name of ‘fire preparedness’ over effective ways to safeguard lives and communities.

“Oregon’s roadless forests are not only home to ancient trees and endangered wildlife. They are vital sources of clean drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people and support the state’s outdoor recreation economy,” said Erik Fernandez, Wilderness Program Manager for Oregon Wild. “Removing protections for these forests is not fire management. It is environmental vandalism.”

From the remote forests of the Rogue River-Siskiyou to the high headwaters of the Blue Mountains, Oregon’s roadless areas are among the state’s last best places. These landscapes provide refuge for salmon, steelhead, elk, and eagles. They offer cold clean water for communities like Ashland and Salem. They also offer a haven for hikers, hunters, and anyone seeking solitude in nature.

“Oregonians have made it clear time and again that they value their wildlands, clean water, and wildlife. The Trump administration’s decision is not only an attack on our environment. It is an attack on our values,” said Anderson.

Oregon Wild and its partners will continue to fight this decision in the courts, in Congress, and in communities across Oregon to ensure that roadless forests remain wild for future generations.

Background:

• The 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule protected 58.5 million acres of undeveloped national forests from new roadbuilding and most forms of commercial logging
  
• Nearly 2 million acres of Oregon’s national forests are protected by the Roadless Rule, including parts of Mount Hood, Hells Canyon, and the Siskiyou Mountains
  
• These areas safeguard drinking water for more than 800,000 Oregonians and provide critical habitat for species like salmon, marbled murrelets, and bald eagles
  
• Roadless lands support a robust outdoor recreation economy and are central to Oregon’s wild backcountry experiences

The post Trump Administration Moves to Eliminate Protections for Oregon’s Wild Forests appeared first on Oregon Wild.