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6 December 2019 DR
Ed Ray, President
Oregon State University
Corvallis, Oregon 97331
Subject: OSU Research Forests should focus on carbon sequestration and storage and ecological research to be administered by a multi-college consortium.
Dear President Ray,
As concerned Oregonians we urge you to:
(1) refocus research and management of OSU’s several research forests to address the existential threat that climate change presents; and
(2) reorganize the administration and management of the forests so they are overseen by a multi-college coordinating body.
The Climate Emergency
As the urgency of the climate emergency heightens, carbon sequestration in biological systems becomes an increasingly critical issue in the 21st Century. Given that Western Oregon forests could provide one of the largest carbon sinks in the world and that Oregon State University is a world leader in forest science, OSU is strongly positioned to lead the way in forest carbon sequestration and storage research. If only OSU has the vision and fortitude to proceed.
The Management of OSU Research Forests Needs to Evolve
OSU’s major research forest where carbon sequestration and ecological research could be conducted is the McDonald Dunn Research Forest. However, there is a huge hurdle to surmount before the McDonald-Dunn can be utilized to focus on carbon sequestration and ecological research. For many years, the OSU College of Forestry has managed the OSU “Research” Forests to prioritize wood fiber production and teaching students how to exploit wood fiber. In recent years, the College of Forestry has focused on maximizing revenue generation to help pay for the new forestry building.
Here are just three examples of how College of Forestry has mismanaged the OSU McDonald Dunn Research Forest:
1) The recent cutting of 16 acres of Old Growth (200-400+ year old trees) purely for the revenue. No serious forest research has taken place, the COF simply wanted to convert the space to maximize wood fiber production.
2) Suspending/abandoning its own 2005 research forest management plan (in 2009) - and operating (in violation of the plan) for a full decade, while the Dean insisted (falsely) that COF was following it in principle.
3) Destroying about 166 acres of nesting/roosting/foraging (NRF) habitat for northern spotted owls - in violation of the 2005 Plan to maintain the existing NRF.
Foresters Alone Can’t Manage 21st Century Forests
If OSU does not become a global leader in forest carbon sequestration, it will be left behind. OSU McDonald-Dunn Research Forest needs to be managed to meet 21st century challenges by 21st century leaders and thinkers. Enlightened leadership includes researchers from the Colleges of Science, Agriculture, Earth Atmosphere and Oceans—as well as from the College of Forestry. A diverse group of people in various OSU Colleges share forest expertise and research interests. The OSU administration should recognize this diversity by broadening the management of the forest to include other disciplines outside the College of Forestry.
The urgency of climate change is upon us. We support the transformation of OSU's McDonald-Dunn Research Forest to “OSU McDonald Dunn Carbon Research Forest” (the same for OSU’s other research forests). The time is ripe for OSU to take the initiative to lead the world in forest carbon sequestration research.
The highest and best use of Oregon’s forests is no longer fiber production, but rather carbon sequestration and ecological research. Can Oregon State University restructure the management of the OSU Research Forests to address the existential threat that is the global climate crisis?
Thank you for your consideration.
Steve & Terri Cook Andy Kerr
Corvallis The Larch Company
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Supporting material:
Coverage of cutting ancient trees: Rob Davis, The Oregonian/OregonLive.com:
For coverage of a “public listening session,” see this Corvallis Gazette Times article: https://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/osu-takes-heat-for-forest-practices/article_baeabf74-ef1b-521b-ab9c-feae19dac71c.html
For more background on the mismanagement of the MacDonald Dunn Research Forest and several high quality videos on the cutting of the old trees and the public memorial service see:
https://friendsofosuoldgrowth.org/
For historical reference of COF attitude towards forests, review the Biscuit Fire (Dan Donato) controversy from 2002, where the OSU COF Dean and six industrial foresters on his faculty embarrassed OSU by demanding (unsuccessfully) that Science magazine not publish a research paper contrary to the timber industry’s position: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biscuit_Fire_publication_controversy )
For how to pay for managing the forest, see:
Benton County Natural Areas and Parks Beazell Memorial Forest model: https://www.co.benton.or.us/parks/page/beazell-memorial-forest-education-center ).
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