A donor-driven push showed how much support exists for preserving woods in Washington's Olympic rainforest, as more than 7,500 people chipped in to keep part of it uncut.
By the end of the campaign, 29 acres of state forest on the Northern Olympic Peninsula had been shielded from logging, according to the Washington State Standard.
Here's what to know
The Elwha Legacy Forests Coalition brought in $563,000 to prevent logging on part of the Doc Holliday timber sale west of Port Angeles.
That outcome depended on a deal the coalition made with Webster Logging after the company bought the Doc Holliday sale from the state Department of Natural Resources, the outlet noted.
If the coalition could cover the value of the timber, logging costs, and state fees, Webster Logging would relinquish harvest rights in selected parts of the tract.
Twenty-nine of the sale's 74 acres were spared.
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Elizabeth Dunne of Earth Law Center, who helped arrange the agreement, described the saved land as an "ecological sanctuary" that contains rare groves of coastal temperate rainforest.
Two large gifts closed the gap: $75,000 from the Holdfast Collective, the nonprofit tied to outdoor gear company Patagonia, and $72,000 from an anonymous donor, the Standard reported.
More background
The arrangement showed one way to protect forests without leaving a hole in timber income.
"Everyone is made whole. Why would we be losing these incredibly valuable forests … when we have, you know, a number of alternatives and a demonstrated interest by the public in protecting them?" Dunne told the Standard.
Bruce Webster, owner of Webster Logging, signed a $620,000 contract with the Department of Natural Resources in 2024 for the Doc Holliday sale, per the Standard.
The coalition's first step came in May, when it raised $32,000 to keep 2 acres near the Sadie Creek Campground from being cut. It was Washington's first agreement of this kind between a nonprofit group and a buyer of a state timber sale.
Another fundraising round in August brought in $260,000 and protected 13 more acres. Webster then extended the deadline so the coalition could try to cover the last 14 acres it wanted to save, and by mid-September it had done so, the Standard said.
Intact forests preserve biodiversity, protect recreation spaces, and maintain the landscapes that support both tourism and local identity.
What's being done?
The campaign occurred amid a policy debate in Washington over how older forests on state land should be managed.
Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove has backed efforts to conserve older forests and, while in office, designated 77,000 acres of state forestland for conservation, per the Standard.
However, the arrangement does not involve the Department of Natural Resources, and the remaining forest in the sale area could still be sold.
Dunne said several alternatives exist to routine logging on state lands.
The Department of Natural Resources and the Legislature can designate land as natural areas to protect it from harvest, and lawmakers could replace county revenue that would otherwise come from timber sales, according to the Standard.
Upthegrove told the Standard in May that conservation leases could offer a similar path to keep forests standing but with direct involvement from the agency.
In September, Michael Kelly, a spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources, told the Standard the idea was still under review.
"Maybe this is just the beginning of work that we could do on the peninsula. We made a pretty fast decision to jump in," Greg Curtis, executive director of the Holdfast Collective, said, according to the outlet.
Dunne added, "People want to see these forests protected and are willing to find solutions."
Where can I learn more?
For more on how communities and conservation groups are keeping forests intact, these stories look at public funding, land donations, and conservation deals.
• In Maine, conservation groups and Wagner Forest Management protected 78,000 acres of wildlife habitat across the Appalachian corridor.
• The U.S. Forest Service launched a $265 million initiative to preserve over a quarter million forest acres.
• In Erie County, Pennsylvania, a family chose to leave nearly 250 acres of old-growth forest undisturbed.
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