Our History
Adapted in part from The True History of the Gifford Pinchot Task Force: The First 11 Years-1985 through 1996 by Susan Saul
1985
- On January 19, forest activists in Southwest Washington unite under the name Gifford Pinchot Task Force to monitor timber sales and advocate for the creation of the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
- The Task Force begins developing a “Citizens’ Alternative” to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (GPNF) Forest Management Plan and presents it to the GPNF in July. It includes plans for and prioritizes Wild & Scenic Rivers, riparian corridors, roadless areas, and spotted owl habitat. In the next year, the GPNF begins using concepts from this plan in their management practices.
1987
- A Forest Trails Plan is submitted by the Task Force to the GPNF containing a proposal for a new trails system paralleling the four rivers that we proposed for Wild & Scenic designation.
- 1989
- The Task Force begins to appeal harmful timber sales and continues to do so throughout the 1990’s.
- As part of our work with the Washington Ancient Forest Alliance, the Task Force forms GPNF district-based groups to conduct groundtruthing, develop maps, sponsor hikes, and do outreach in local communities.
1990
- Just prior to our fifth anniversary, we realized our initial plans for a temporary campaign on the GPNF were naïve, and the Task Force held its first “official” business meeting where the first Directors were elected and steps were taken to incorporate as a non-profit.
- The Task Force contributes significantly to a bill to create a National Ancient Forest Reserve System, including hiking the Big Hollow Trail in the GPNF with the bill’s sponsor, Congressman Jim Jontz, from Indiana. Although the bill was never made into law, it significantly raised awareness about ancient forest issues, contributing to the defeat of Senator Packwood’s attempt to weaken the Endangered Species Act.
- The Task Force launches a major campaign to protect the Siouxon Roadless Area from two timber sales which would have added 26 miles of new roads to the area.
1992
- The GPTF and the Northwest Rivers Council fight to stop hydropower projects on Canyon Creek, tributaries to the Cispus and Cowlitz Rivers, Siouxon and North Fork Siouxon Creeks, and four tributaries to the upper Lewis River. All of the projects were eventually halted.
1996
- The Task Force ramps up activity as details of the Northwest Forest Plan are revealed that include targeting of the GPNF for a large portion of the timber to be produced in the region; 50% of the GPNF’s remaining ancient forest is slated for logging.
- The Task Force partners with the community of Randle in the successful fight to prevent ancient forests at Fossil Creek and roadless areas at Watch Mountain from being traded to Plum Creek Timber Company.
1997
- Thanks to the Task Force’s efforts over the next decade, no further old growth timber sales are successfully executed, ending an era of irresponsible timber harvest aimed at our ancient forests.
- The Task Force is approved as a tax-exempt non-profit, 501(c) (3) corporation.
1998
- The Task Force's management plan for the 144,00 acre Cispus Adaptive Management Area (AMA) reduces logging levels in the AMA by ten million board feet each year.
2000
- The Task Force’s first full time staff member is hired.
2002
- The Task Force stops thousands of acres of ancient forest logging near Mt. Adams and the Lewis River.
- A campaign that includes grassroots outreach, coalition work, and litigation by the Task Force to stop the Alpha-Omega timber sale is successful. It changes a five-part, 1,882 acre sale that would have eliminated significant sections of ancient forest to a 684 acre thinning project which included no ancient forest logging.
2003
- Seeking stable, long-term solutions, the Task Force brings together conservationists, rural community leaders, economic development interests, union leaders, tribal representatives, local loggers and others to form the Pinchot Partners collaborative group in the Cowlitz Valley. They work to identify practical and action-oriented forest management strategies that would restore ecosystems while creating quality, local jobs.
2006
- Expanding our work into supporting innovative conservation approaches in Oregon, the Task Force begins working with the Clackamas Stewardship Partners, Blue Mountain Forest Partners, Columbia Gorge Scenic Area partners, and Josephine County Stewardship Group.
2008
- After an exhaustive three year campaign led by the Task Force including the recruitment of local citizens; city, county and state government officials; media coverage; and the generation of over 40,000 comment letters in opposition, the Bureau of Land Management denied General Moly Incorporated the opportunity to develop a 3,000 acre copper mine just northeast of the crater of Mount St. Helens.
- The Iron Creek Watershed Restoration Project, initiated by the Pinchot Partners and the Task Force in 2004, is completed, removing 2 miles of road that was failing and in danger of destroying important fish habitat. The projected created about 350 hours of employment at $27-$45/hour.
- In a sign of the evolution of the relationship between the Task Force and the Forest Service, GPNF Supervisor Claire Lavendel accepts the Bigfoot Award at the Task Force’s membership event for the significant positive impact she has had in the area.
- The Clackamas Stewardship Partner’s success at collaborating led to national recognition from the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Chief Gail Kimbell and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Chief Arlen Lancaster for our “outstanding partnerships in forest conservation work.”
2009
- With the guidance of the Task Force led Clackamas Stewardship Partners, the Clackamas River Ranger District on the Mt. Hood National Forest plans for the removal of 117 miles of road in the Upper Clackamas watershed. This investment means family-wage jobs, restoration of fish and wildlife habitat, and the protection of community drinking water.
- After 10 years of advocacy by the Task Force and other partners, Hemlock Dam is removed from Trout Creek in the Wind River watershed, creating one of the few watersheds in the Columbia River basin that is entirely free-flowing from its source to its confluence with the Columbia River. The project provided high quality jobs to two local construction crews and restored vital steelhead habitat.
- The Washington Watershed Restoration Initiative, of which the Task Force is a member, received a Rise to the Future award from the Forest Service. It honors the significant impact the coalition has had by raising awareness of the Forest Service’s crumbling road system and its impact on water quality, fish populations, and watershed health.
2010
- Task Force Executive Director Emily Platt is honored by 1000 Friends of Oregon as one of the state’s 35 top innovators under 35 years old.
- The ambitious Plantation Restoration Program, a 1,700 acre restoration project planned by the Pinchot Partners with Task Force leadership, is approved by the GPNF. It features 22 miles of road removal, and will create years of stable restoration work while restoring habitat for wildlife ranging from mollusks to owls.
