8/03/2020 -- Local nonprofit, Friends of Gualala River, plans to move their five-year conflict over logging in the Gualala River floodplain from Sonoma county Superior Court to federal court. The local conservation group is teaming up with the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting threats to biodiversity worldwide, to try to stop Gualala Redwood Timber's Dogwood Timber Harvest Plan, in the Gualala River watershed. On July 8, the two nonprofits jointly filed a notice of intent to sue both Gualala Redwood Timber, which is owned by Redwood Empire Sawmill, and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) in federal court for alleged violations of the Endangered Species Act.
The conservation groups believe that the logging operation — which the timer company says would harvest mostly mature redwoods of 90 to 100 years old — and could substantially harm the Gualala River Watershed population of five federally listed endangered species. The two nonprofits want Gualala Redwood Timber to apply for a special permit, called an “incidental take permit,” designated for projects that may harm a listed species in any way (including significant habitat modification) before moving forward with their timber harvest plan. However, Gualala Redwood and Cal Fire say that the Dogwood Timber Harvest Plan has been adequately vetted to ensure that it will not result in the illegal take of any endangered species. Gualala Redwood also noted that they already follow United States Fish and Wildlife regulations put in place to protect the creatures on the federal endangered species list.
Now that Friends of Gualala River and the Center for Biological Diversity have officially filed their intent to sue, there is a 60 day ticking clock, which started on July 8, during which time, the parties can negotiate. The conservations say that if a deal isn’t brokered by September 6, they will sue in federal court. Ultimately, Friends of Gualala River and the Center hope that Gualala Redwood Timber will leave the forest around the Gualala alone.