Editorials

SAN FRANCISCO — An analysis of a Northern California watershed gives mostly positive findings on the state of water creatures and their habitats on the land owned by a logging company, but some environmental groups question the report’s credibility. 

The analysis of the Freshwater Creek watershed found fish and amphibian habitats are getting healthier, but that high levels of fine sediment still can be found there.  

The stream analysis was the first to be completed as part of the Headwaters agreement between Pacific Lumber Company and federal negotiators. 

The watershed analyses, of the company’s 211,000 acres of forest 250 miles north of San Francisco, must be done to create site-specific protective measures to fit each watershed in the forest, eventually replacing the blanket protective measures the company now uses. 

The new protective measures, called “prescriptions,” will govern logging in each area. 

The analysis said the major problem at the Freshwater Creek watershed, high levels of fine sediment in some areas of the creek, comes mainly from roads and logging practices of years past. 

But the credibility of the report, done by consultants hired by Pacific Lumber, is questionable, said Paul Mason, executive director of the Environmental Protection Information Center. 

“They were faced with a certain reality that they just couldn’t deny, like Freshwater Creek was full of sediment,” he said Monday.  

But the findings were better than even Pacific Lumber had expected, said Jeff Barrett, director of Fish and Wildlife Programs for Pacific Lumber. 

“I think that was a little bit of a surprise for everyone involved,” he said. “We found there were much better stream conditions than many people expected. We found there were widely distributed and abundant fish populations, although there are some management-related problems.” 

Other organizations, such as the National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, California Department of Fish and Game, California Division of Mines and Geology and the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, have given comment during the analysis period. 

The true test will be to see how the analysis is used, said Bruce Halstead, a project leader for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

“The big concern is going to be once we see the analysis and what it says and how it will be used to change the prescriptions to make them stronger or less restrictive,” he said. 

The analyses are part of the March 1999 Headwaters agreement that established a 7,470-acre forest reserve, following a 10-year struggle over logging in the area. 

While this first analysis took two years to complete, there are up to 15 watersheds left to examine, Barrett said. He said they will take only about six months each, because the method for examining them was established with the Freshwater Creek analysis. 

The analysis will be available for comment from the public, including review from scientists, Barrett said. 

THE REPORT 

The stream analysis was the first to be completed as part of the Headwaters agreement between Pacific Lumber Company and federal negotiators. The watershed analyses, of the company’s 211,000 acres of forest 250 miles north of San Francisco, must be done to create site-specific protective measures to fit each watershed in the forest, eventually replacing the blanket protective measures the company now uses.