Informing and empowering
the public to advocate
for responsible
federal land management.
LFDC Federal Forest Watch
MATURE and OLD GROWTH forest management in western Washington
Roughly half of Washington's land mass is forestland, some 22.5 million acres, containing an estimated 9.4 billion live trees. The Federal government, mainly the US Forest Service, manages 12.7 million of those acres.
The Forest Service is broken up into regions, with Washington and Oregon contained in region 6. These regions are further broken down into National Forests (NF) and further still into Ranger Districts. Region 6 includes 16 NFs, six of those residing primarily in WA.
Source: 2019 FIA, USFS
The US Forest Service is Washington's largest forest manager
RECENT threats to Washington's National Forests
EO Requiring Increased Timber Output
Status: Driving USFS toward more extraction
Accelerates approvals and weakens environmental review- emphasizing speed and volume over site-specific analysis. Frames timber production as the primary use of federally managed forests, instructs agencies to "fully exploit domestic timber supply".
March '25
Weakening USFS NEPA Regs
Status: New USFS rules issued in August
At the direction of the White House, USDA (and USFS within) developed new NEPA regulations changing how the public oversight process works. Requirements for public comment were removed, definitions were re-written to favor industry and more.
April '25
Repeal of Roadless Rule
Status: Awaiting final NEPA analysis
Removes protections on over 2 million acres of public land in WA preventing the building of new roads and other industrial uses. Includes large portions of Okanagan Wenatchee and Mt Baker Snoqualmie NF and beyond.
June '25
Shuttering of USFS Field and Research Offices
Status: Implementation in progress
The process of closing all regional offices and research stations is underway. The accompanying re-organization comes as more than 25% of USFS staff have recently left the agency, leaving it dramatically understaffed and lacking in local knowledge.
April '26
Public Participation
2 ways
to get involved
The NEPA Process
The National Environmental Policy Act provides a democratic process for evaluating every federal action's environmental impacts– and when those are found to be significant it requires agencies to carefully investigate those impacts and include the public in the process by provide documentation and opportunity to comment.
Before approving “major federal actions” which “significantly impact the environment”, federal agencies must take a “hard look” at environmental impacts & consider alternatives.
The Legislature
Congressional engagement is the most direct way the public shapes how our national forests are managed. In simple terms, congress decides what's legal and what's not. By contacting representatives, submitting written comments, and meeting with congressional staff, the public can communicate priorities, raise concerns, and push for science-based, transparent forest management that mimics nature's own methods.
Congressional offices track constituent input closely, and sustained engagement helps determine which policies are advanced, amended, or stopped altogether.
WHAT'S RADICAL ABOUT ADVOCATING FOR OUR ECOLOGICAL FUTURE?
how to get started
working with NEPA
working with CONGRESS
Get to know your representatives
Chances are you know more about FOREST ECOLOGY than they do. And if you don't– you'll find the tools you need to understand the issues and speak confidently here, on our website.
The single most effective thing you can do to be a forest advocate is to look your legislator in the eyes and tell them–forests are worth more standing. And that your political loyalty and vote follow ecologically sound legislation.
Sign up for your representatives' newsletters to find out when townhalls are happening. Attend and participate in these events. Applause for environmental advocacy is good- speaking up and BEING an advocate is better. Calls are always more effective than emails – learn more about how to contact your delegation.
Participate in the planning process
Explore the rest of our Federal pages to learn how NEPA and the NW Forest Plan can be used together to advocate for nature inspired ecological forest management.
Every comment supporting environmental protection matters- familiarize yourself with what goes into writing substantive NEPA comments by exploring our comment writing resources.
Check back here for up-to-date information about concerning issues. SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter for alerts about projects or legislation that need your comments.
Sign up for one of our upcoming events to equip yourself with real world context and inform and improve your comment writing.
Current Campaigns
Northwest Forest Plan Amendment
Priority #1
Critical Action:
Tell USFS that you value forests for more than timber.
Tag the agency on social media, call agency offices, email the planning team and leadership.
IG @u.s.forestservice
FB @yourNWforests
X @forestservice & forestserviceNW
SM.FS.NWFPquestion@usda.gov
Region 6 phone: 503-808-2468
Nat'l USFS phone: 800-832-1355
Adopted in 1994, the Northwest Forest Plan was designed to halt the loss of – and begin restoring – old-growth forests on federal land throughout the range of the northern spotted owl. While imperfect, the Plan has largely been successful at ending the clearcut of old-growth forests.
Now, under leadership demanding increased timber production, the Plan is being amended.
What's might change:
The program to look for and protect old-growth dependent species could go away.
New loopholes to allow logging in mature temperate rainforests could be created.
Trees in dry forest as old as 150 or 175 years could be logged.
Tribal co-management and integration of Indigenous knowledge could be left out.
What to do:
Emphasize you care more about functioning, intact forests than about extracting timber and how important public input is to a successful amendment. Tell the Forest Service that you value forests for recreation, clean water, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, etc.
Ask that the amendment:
-
Keep Survey and Manage
-
Keep the 80-year threshold for moist LSRs
-
Add strong, mandatory Tribal co-management requirements
-
Add old-tree protections in Matrix
-
Add salvage logging prohibition
-
Eliminate loopholes that will allow commercial thinning in mature moist forests
LFDC's work
Using citizen science, grassroots pressure and strategic litigation, the Legacy Forest Defense Coalition (LFDC) has protected thousands of acres of native forests since 2023.
Monthly Federal Forest Webinar
Each month LFDC hosts a free hour-long webinar covering the latest developments at the federal level.
Learn about recently introduced legislation and projects, recent court cases involving environmental issues and other federally related topics.
Webinars are a great opportunity to learn about the complex and varied regulations and policies that shape forest management. You'll leave each webinar with concrete ways to take action to advocate for our forests.
Focus Campaigns
We do the digging and when something big is in the works- we take action.
Federal issues can have wide reaching effects. So we devote time and energy to the biggest bills and projects through out Federal Focus Campaigns. You'll get in-depth context, on-the-ground research and evidence based analysis to get you informed and ready to do your part.
Current Federal Focus Campaigns:
Action Alerts
When we know- you'll know. Sign up for our newsletter for timely action alerts.
The Federal forest management landscape is complex. We sift through the noise to find the things you need to know about and act on. LFDC closely monitors U.S. government and keep the public informed and empowered with context, expert analysis and clear, convenient ways to act in defense of forests.
Federal Resource Library
Learn about legislation being considered, important policies like the Northwest Forest Plan, and much more
