Administration response to timber summit is awaited by opposing sides

With about 30 days to go, both the forest industry and the environmentalist faction are uneasily awaiting the long-term, balanced solution to their problems promised by President Bill Clinton at the timber summit. Both sides fear the other has an advantage.

Northwest Forestry Association President Jim Geisinger commented, "The President's pledge to offer an action plan within 60 days reassues us that he appreciates the urgency of the issue. Working in a bi-partisan fashion with the region's congressional delegation, the White House can forge a balanced resolution to this crisis."

Compromise is less than acceptable to some. Andy Kerr, conservation director for the Oregon Natural Resources Council, emphasized that preservationist groups were not willing to comp,romise and would continue to block federal timber sales with legal action.

Clinton promised to direct his administration to develop a strategy for a long-term, balanced solution. He also said he would direct each affected federal agency to locate and resolve contradictory policies and positions. He stressed the need to consider human and economic opportunities in creating a plan that would also protect forest ecosystems.

The April 2 Forest Conference in Portland, Or., followed a round0able fonnat with panels of indusury, labor, environmental and scientific representatives from the affected areas. "Who Is Affected and How," "Ecological and Economic Assessments" and "Where Do We go From Here" were discussed for the enlightenment of the President and Vice President Al Gore.

Interior Secretary Babbitt, Conmerce Secretary Brown, OMB Assistant Director Rivlin, Agriculture Secretary Espy, EPA Administrator Browner and Labor Secretarv Reich also took part.

As the daylong conference to address the forest management practices and protection of species conflict in the Pacific Northwest opened, President Clinton told participants he hoped the proceedings would help the nation confront problems, not people, and stressed that govemment agencies must work together to find common ground in developing a solution that everyone'could live with. As panelists addressed tbe questions, he cautioned them to avoid confrontation and instead collaborate in seeking a balanced solution.

An Old Tale Of Trees & Paper

Because trees used !o make paper are usually grown on tree fanns and harvested at sus0ainable rates, recycling paper does not save wilderness forests.

Although virtually no paper is produced from ancient forests, the belief saving paper saves forests is widespread.

Only 2Vo of the respondents to a recnnt consumer Reports survey gave the correct answer.

Wholesalers Protest Tax Bill

President Clinton's tax proposal calls for too much taxation and too few spending cuts, George Sydnor, chairman of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, testified before the House Ways and Means Committee.

The Clinton package, he emphasized, rep'resents a step back towards the pre-1986 tax code, which was filled with shelters, loopholes and preferences. low corporate rates benefit all profitable businesses, while the proposed investment tax credit will benefit only a handful of businesses which meet criteria selected by Washington policy maken, he added.

"The proposed new individual top rate of 367o," Sydnor said, "and the additional 107o surtax on certain taxpayers is being sold as a way to soak the rich and bring fairness to the tax code. I understand the rhetoric. I do not" however, understand why no attention seems to be paid to the impact of these increases in tle individual rat€s on Subchapter S corporations, partnerships and sole proprietorships which are the job-creating engine of the economy."

HomeBase Wins Ad Battle

HomeBase obtained a contempt of court decree against Contractors' Warehouse, Sacramento, Ca., April 9, after the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ruled they violated an existing courl order prohibiting false advertising, said Bill Patterson, president of Fullerton, Ca., HomeBase.

Contractors' Warehouse television and radio advertisements contparing prices and products such as a stainless steel kitchen sink and a fully insulated steel door to those of HomeBase and other competitors aired last month in the Los Angeles, Ca., market. This violated a July, 1992 judgment restraining them from tv commercials claiming lower prices than HomeBase unless they were for identical products. HomeBase was also the plaintiff in that lawsuil

Contractors' Warehouse was ordered to pay damages equivalent to their profit from the sale of the advertised products or the cost of advertising them, whichever is greater, and legal fees for HomeBase.

(AS

AND GO TO WASTE. PUTTHEM IN A HOME.

2X4 SIUDS, WOOD WINDOWS, WOOD MOULDINGS, WOOD DOORS, EIC.)

Whatever happened to...? I

Matt Mouldet

At one time the hrgest producer of pine lumber in the U.S. was McCloud River Lumber Co. This honor was laler daimed by Hudspeth Pine Co. The person who was at the helm of Hudspth during those years is our featured lumberman for this issue, Stan Leonard.

Lumbermen are oflen chanc,terized as "rugged individualists." We're not sure what the exac{ definilion of this term is, but if stafling one's woft career at age 12 is any indication, Stan Leonard fils the mold. Kids did not divotce their parents in lhe days when Slan was a youngster, but separalion was an option and this is the choice that he made. Leonard checked out of his 7th grade dass, pac*ed his bags and headed for Portland, Or., where he landed a job as dishwasher in a restauranl. He later worked in the shipyards and as a bell' hopbeforejoiningtheNavyinlg43atage15.

In1946heleftlheNavyandwenttoworkas a tumdown man at a small sawmill, Monison Lumber Co., near John Day, Or. He later worked for the Alexander Stewai sawmill as a ciain puller and tallyman in the planing mill. In 1947 he wenl to work for Hudspeth Pine as a tallyman, then grader, nighi foreman, ship ping superintendent and evenlually phnt superintendent.

He remained at Hudspeth unlil they closed shop in 1981, having served as sales manag' er and general manager in the interim. After that he went lo wotk for Ai Pozzi at Bend Millwork, as diredor and senior v.p. Pozzi sold h's operations lo Noflek in 1986. Redmond Wood Produas signed Slan on that same year as executive v.p. and general manager. He also held psitions with Saratoga Forest Products and Fullmer Lumber Co. before retiring in 1991. Stan now lives in Prineville, Or., enjoying his retirement with his wife, Alvyne.

OwlDroppings

We bought some fluorescent lighl bulbs recently. On the package was a message lo lhe effect that it is wise to use this type of bulb because hs use reduces nalural resource consumption and carbon dioxide emissions compared to the conventional type of fluorescent bulbs. Type A bulbs, we read, save 110 lbs. of coal or 8 gallons of oil vs. using Type B bulbs. Also, lhe reduction of carbon dioxide emissions equates to 250 lbs. of coal or 210 gaF lons of oil. A message on the back of a pac*age of Nabisco $/heat Thins tells us that if every household lowered its avsrage temperature by 6', we'd save the equivalent of 500,000 gallons of oil per day. Nabisco also offers to send us a book entitled "30 Things You Can Do to Save lhe Eaih."

One of the best things pople can do lo "save the earth" is build their homes with wood products rather than metal producls. The savings in gallons of oil per day and carbon d'toxide emissions would make the savings ciled from closing refrigerator doors and lowering thermostats seem small by comparison, Perhaps we need to look al labeling our wood products in a similar fashion!

We dont lhink thers is any truth lo this, but we heard that there is a timber faller in the Northwest nic*named Dr. Keruorkan. He puls old, dbeased tr€€s out of their misery. Local ecomaniacs give this man the needle, however, as they feel only God should put somelhing to death. Obviousty, thb is not a dearcut issue,