Our Work

Our efforts have won protections for waterways, wildlife, and wildlands. We use every possible tool to protect biodiversity, including grassroots organizing, education, advocacy, and when necessary, litigation. 

In general, we do not lobby for legislation, but do support ambitious bills like the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, or NREPA.

Victories

Since 1987, FOC has defended more than a million acres of roadless areas in the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests from logging and road building.

 Working together, FOC and allies have accomplished important goals, including the following:

Stopped the infamous Cove-Mallard timber sales

in roadless lands contiguous to the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness with allies. The FOC campaign helped pressure the Forest Service to take steps toward protecting remaining roadless wildlands throughout the national forest system.

Prevented logging and road building in numerous roadless areas:

Fish & Hungery Creek (North Lochsa Face), White Sand, Weitas Creek, Kelly Creek, Pot Mountain, Meadow Creek, and Mallard – Larkins Roadless Areas and in roadless proposed Wilderness land adjacent to the Gospel-Hump Wilderness.

Protected the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness

from helicopter intrusions by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

Protected the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness

from unnecessary expansion of landing strips by the Forest Service.

Minimized salvage logging

in the Wild & Scenic Middle Fork Clearwater and Selway River drainages.

Helped stop Big Oil

from turning roads along the Wild & Scenic Middle Fork Clearwater and Lochsa Rivers into an industrial corridor for "mega-load" infrastructure with the Nez Perce Tribe, Fighting Goliath, Nimiipuu Protecting the Environment, Idaho Rivers United, and others.

Defended water quality and fish habitat

in the South Fork Clearwater, key tributaries of the North Fork Clearwater and Lolo Creek from timber sales and suction dredge mining by appealing and litigating for water-quality standards.

Limited motorized damage

in unroaded backcountry through monitoring, appeals, and litigation, although much work remains.

Helped stop the Upper Lochsa Land Exchange

an attempt to give away high-quality public lands in exchange for over-logged private inholdings with a diverse group of allies.

Created comprehensive scientific reports

on issues affecting the Clearwater River Basin, including roadless areas, old growth, and clearcutting . These reports have garnered national attention.

Protected Endangered Species

including the threatened Canada lynx in the region and persuaded the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to review the wolverine for protection under the Endangered Species Act nation-wide.

Reports

FOC-led in-depth analysis of policy, science, and on-the-ground monitoring in the Clearwater
September 25, 2024
Clearcut Kings Report (2021)

An investigative report on the growing trend of "supersized" clearcuts above 40 acres in size within US Forest Service Region 1. Such clearcuts have been accelerating on publicly owned forest.

Read More
September 25, 2024
Roadless Report (2020)

FOCs investigation into development on roadless areas in Idaho and Montana between 2000 and 2020.

Read More
August 29, 2024
Clearwater Carbon Report (2023)

In 2022, Friends of the Clearwater organized a first-of-its-kind analysis of the carbon impacts of the draft Nez Perce-Clearwater Revised Land and Resource Management Plan (AKA the "Forest Plan"). John Talberth, an economist with the Center for Sustainable Economy, completed the following report, which analyzes how current carbon stocks in the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests […]

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August 28, 2024
Old Growth Report (2021)

Written by Friends of the Clearwater Forest Policy Director Jeff Juel, this report examines 40 years of U.S. Forest Service policies on management of old-growth forests. The document is a clear-eyed view of the agency's long-term prioritizing of older forests for timber production above all other values. The report extensively cites dozens of scientific research […]

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"The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness" - John Muir 
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