The Lands Council might rank as the leading conservation voice in the Inland Northwest. Started in 1983 by John Osborn when he was an intern at Sacred Heart Medical Center, it has grown from his apartment to the Saranac, protecting thousands of acres. They’ve just released their summer project list, and their staff is out in the field, using beavers for a strange solution as noted HERE in High Country News.

Additionally, The Lands Council just won a critical forest lawsuit. According to their newsletter, “a federal judge agreed with The Lands Council and 13 other conservation groups and threw out Bush-era Forest Service regulations that govern management plans for national forests. The Bush era rules failed to guarantee viable wildlife populations, allowed the Forest Service to pay lip service to the impacts of its management and limited public involvement in forest management. We are hoping that we can now move forward with the Obama administration and try to come up with rules that will actually protect the forests.” Read more HERE.

 

And don’t miss out on the chance to take a hike. We found out you can join one of the Washington Trails Association’s Hiking Trail Advocacy and Trail Maintenance Work Parties this summer. If interested---we are!---you’ll find more information and can sign up for any local project HERE or call 206-965-8561.

If you have not seen "Kids Run Better Unleaded," a documentary produced by Community-Minded Television about The Lands Council's work with community partners to reduce childhood lead poisoning, please do so HERE.

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