The California Board of Forestry (BOF) just posted a 45 day notice for rule changes to the California Forest Practice Rules (CFPR) pertaining to the Northern spotted owl. These changes do not look good to me.

Basically California Forestry Association (corporate timber's lobbyist group) is trying to get rule changes into the CFPR that would allow even a forester to conduct surveys that only a state designated biologist could conduct before. Than when the poorly qualified spotted owl consultant does not find a nest for 3 three years, the logging company can go ahead and log it, even though it is still potentially good habitat.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Forest Practice Rules already do not prevent take of Northern spotted owls on private lands because under Subsection 'G' they allow logging within 500 feet of an active nest, and they don't require habitat retention of even a single acre of nest/roost habitat outside of the core area.

Is this an appropriate regulatory appproach? Is this regulatory approach legal? Will it provide good data in terms of best science? Is there a better regulatory approach that would truly provide the best data?

You can check out the rule changes at: www.bof.fire.ca.gov/pdfs/4P_...71008.pdf

Comments are due by 8 September 2008. Feel free to ask me any questions if you want to submit comments. Send me a copy of your comments if you send them in.

Submit comments by e-mail to:

board.public.comments@fire.ca.gov

or send written comments to:

Board of Forestry and Fire Protection
Attn: Christopher Zimny
Regulations Coordinator
P.O. Box 944246
Sacramento, CA 94244-2460

for the wild- chathaunt