Full citation: Dawn, Kimberly, Craig Beneville, Beverly Cherner, Stefanie Penn, and John Green, eds., Earth First! Journal 14, no. 1 (1 November 1993). Digitized in cooperation with the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek. http://www.environmentandsociety.org/node/6974 Copyright: All rights reserved. The user may download, preserve and print this material only for private, research or nonprofit educational purposes. The user may not alter, transform, or build upon this material. • Samhain 1993 Vol. XIV, No·. 1- November 1 THE RADICAL ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNAL THREE DOLLARS 9 T. G-_ ... from the event, about 30 people MainstreaITl confronted arriving guests. Activists eventually pushed the police back in a peaceful march, accompanied by Groups native drumming and singing-a powerful presence throughout the weekend. - Se lOut The next morning, a bizarre half­ mile long traffic jam built up behind BYJUSTIN TIME three successive blockades and as­ The Dirty Deed sorted road debris. Vehicles carrying V OnOctober6, theWhiteHouse crowed of A astronomers and administrators, that it had reached an agreement with along with telescope supporters from the 12 plaintiff groups who had gotten as far away as Italy and Germany, '" were interspersed with truckloads of a landmark injuction to halt logging in 6' spottedowlhabitat.The agreementcalls <> Earth First!er~ and Greenpeacers, for the release for logging ofsome 54 VS ~ Native and student activists, VIP's Forest Service timber sales containing ~ from nearby Safford, and hundreds of 83 million board feet. These sales are "invited guests. 1I mostly oldgrowthcontainingtrees 400+ The first delaying action was at the years old. What these erstwhile "envi­ Coronado National Forest entrance, ronmentalists" have agreed to is an­ Arizona's finest try to figure out how to deal with EFI's Swift Trail roadblock. where Lisa Marchetti andJim Leonard other 2000+ acres of clearcut ancient had V-locked themselves to a cattle forest andimplicitapprovalofOption9, guard. Arizona Department of "Public theClintonoldgrowth liquidationplan. Activists Crash SCQpe Degicatio~ Safe~' (DPS) offic~rs, .accustomed to In a classic case offirst an inch, then a mire, as the five-year campaign of Mt. Graham protests, had a power mile, the White House states that the BY PAUL ROlAND civil disobedience opposing the cutter handy. An hour later, the deal has "the potential for release of "When I come to a place like this, I project continued undeterred. Cre­ slowly moving caravan neared the top substantially more timber." always ask myself, 'What are we doing ative blockade tactics delayed the of the steep and winding 30-mile Vnwillingtogo alongwiththesurren­ here?JIJ-Father George Coyne, S.J., at ceremony for about three hours. Swift Trail road. With no one guard­ der (whatoneactivist crudely called the the Vatican telescope dedication on A festive weekend had been ing the road's only gate, student "Stop Rape: Just Say Yes" deal) four true Mt. Graham. planned for funders and others activist Wendy Young was able to lock grassroots groups, (the Native Forest On September 18, the telescope associated with the embattled tele­ down to it by her neck. Council, the Friends ofthe Breitenbush crusaders tried once again to bury the scopes, to remove the lingering, "We are here to defend ancient Cascades, KalmiopsisAudubonandSave Mt. Graham issue and convince . uncomfortable taste ofconflict. It wilderness and endangered spedes,JJ the West) filed documents seeking to themselves that the international began September 17 with what a she said, lIespecially when those who ll intervene in the "spotted owl lawsuit observatory project is really off and counter-invitation called a "Genocide are building the project are breaking before Judge William lJwyer;vvhn- had running. But the IIdedicationII of the Dinner and Cocktail Partyll at the environmentallaws/' The first vehicle? issued the injunction. The press labeled nearly-complete Vatican and Max posh Westin La Paloma Resort outside to the gate contained a Hopi tribal them "renegade" environmentalists; a Planck telescopes on Mt. Graham Tucson. Though confined by heavy official, who turned back whentold 0 ' surrendering plaintiff dismissed them turned into a public relations quag- security to a small comer removed the protest . as "fringe elements" and "dissidents/' . continued on page The Background The main pressure on the plaintiffs Bearwallow was the threat from Bruce Babbitt and (Asst. SecretaryofAgriculture)Jim Lyons that if the plaintiffs didn't do this as a Forest Service Shenanigans on the, "good faithll gesture, the administra­ Cherokee National Forest tion would go to Congress to seize the trees whiledenyingconservationiststhe BY AIMEi MOSTWIIL ~ righttogo to courttotryandstopit.This When last we left the Bearwallow Area on the Watauga ~ maneuverinvolves so-calledsufficiency Ranger District of the Cherokee National Forest in Tennes- ... languagewhich wouldshieldthewhole see, there was good news. The Forest Protection/ !«: process from eXisting environmental Biodiversity Project and Sierra Club appeal had resulted in .s­ laws. withdrawal of the Bearwallow timber sale. That was back in ! . This hasbeendone a number oftimes April. In July, FP/BP activists were hiking around the in the past, culminating·with the infa­ former proposed sale area and wandered into some amaz- .. ll mousHatfield/AuCoin"Riderfrom Hell ing and beautiful areas, induding some which appeared to Old gruWth in North Carolina: ' in 1989 that led to the clearcutiing of possess old growth characteristics. On the way out of town For readers unfamiliar with USFS procedures, whenever a.· 130,000 acres of ancient forest. With the activists decided to stop in at tp.e District Rangers " project is being proposed it muSt go through the "sCOping .,. 75% of Americans claiming to be envi­ office to inquire about future plans for the area. Itturned process/' All interested, part;ies are contacted anq invited to ..' ronmentalists, there is little chancethat out the Forest Service was planning to reissue the same voice comments and'concerns about the project. The. " _.~ Congress can repeal popular environ­ timber sale, with slight modifications of course, in a few Forest Service then supposedly looks at the comm¢lfs and mentallaws like theEndangeredSpecies weeks. Huh? This was the first that FP/BP had heard of concerns, takes them into consideration, and:wrties'an, ,. Act, so instead they just suspend en­ such plans. It seemed odd that neither office had been erivironmental assessment basedon·th.eiJ' iflvestlg~tionof '~.' forcement of the laws for a year-cer­ contacted, seeing how both offices are onthe ~herokee the project. They then issue a decisi~n notice· sta~g w~at '•.. tainly notthe democratic form of. gov­ forestwide mailing list and both had sentin.appeals of-the they plan to do, °explainingtheotbeJ,: ciltehicitl-V-eH:OriSfd.·'·' ernmentoflawswe weretoldaboutway old sale. This was just the firsJ in a series,ofinCidents where ered, and sayj,pg hpw they will n6t.b~akany laws wQi.le - ~_ back in civics class. the Watauga District would fail to ~ert the FP/BP on time executing ~ecproj~c,t·. -.,.. ' .. " .., -.... - . :-;.._"~ ~ .co~~~ ~.~ag~ ~ ~out b~en inV~IV~d,~ ~ince?~9~ "~ ~ ~ ;·)::~~;;:.>?U{.::LB~"':!l~~&":'~~~~~~~:~~;.~~ . .~. ~ -. - ~ -, .. , ..... an issue weI:tad .... .. " _ •. ... EARTH FIRST! NO COMPROMISE IN THE DEFENSE OF MOTHER EARTH! POB 1415 * EUGENE, OREGON 97440 * 503-741-9191 Earth First! Rising to the Challenge Samhain One of the more interesting tasks In British Columbia; harsh sen­ Unable to intimidate him, the govern­ .we have here at the Journal office is tences have been given to the first of ment finally gave up. November 1, 1993 responding to the diversity of mail we nearly 800 people arrested protesting Louisiana-Pacific made the mistake Vol. XIV, No. I receive. Recently twelve-year-old the ravaging of forests in Clayoquot of filing a Strategic Lawsuit Against Laura of British Columbia earnestly Sound. Activists in Idaho have re­ Public Participation (SLAPP) against The Earth First! Journal is published by an asked, "Ifall ofus took part how ceived the same treatment for defend- Albion Uprising activists who had editorial staff from within the Earth First! much would we get done?" At first I halted logging of Enchanted . movement. Entire contentsare copyrighted dismissed this as the kind of unan­ Meadow's redwoods in northern 1993. We are pleased to allow reprinting if swerable question kids ask, and California. The creative response of credit is given, except for those articles dashed off a brief reply to her easier Earth First!ers has made the experi­ spedfically copyrightedbythe author. Art, inquiries about environmentalissues. ence a bureaucratic nightmare for L-P. photographs, and poetry are copyrighted by the individual artists and permission for But her pointed question continued' There is a lot to fight for. Chainsaws can still be heard in the Walbran use must be received from them. to rattle around my brain. Earth First! Journal is a forum for the no­ Those of us who are takfug part now Valley and Clayoquot Sound in British compromiseenvironmentalmovement.Re­ are accomplishing a great deal, based Columbia. The wolf killers in Alaska sponsibility rests with the individual au­ on the news corning into our office. and BC are at it again now that the thors and correspondents. The contents do At Mt. Graham, Native American and tourist season is over. Option 9, the not necessarily represent the viewpoint of environmental activists wreaked official government plan to wipe out this newspaper, the Earth First! movement, havoc at what was supposed to be a old growth in the name of "ecosystem local Earth First! groups orindividual Earth celebration of the University of management," has received the First!ers. Submissions are welcomed and shouldbe ArizonaNatican telescopes. Southern blessings of mainstream environmen­ typed or dearly printed. Send a SASE ifyou ing the Cove/Mallard wilderness. tal groups and jeopardizes the forests Californians embarrassed the film would like them returned. Ifyou want con­ industry by calling attention to the Animal rights activist Kim Trirniew is of the Northwest.