Elliott State Forest
| Elliott State Forest | |
|---|---|
| Type | State forest, park |
| Location | Coos and Douglas counties, United States |
| Nearest city | Reedsport and Coos Bay |
| Coordinates | 43°35′05″N 124°01′04″W / 43.58472°N 124.01778°WCoordinates: 43°35′05″N 124°01′04″W / 43.58472°N 124.01778°W |
| Area | 93,000 acres (380 km2) |
| Created | 1930 |
| Operated by | Oregon Department of Forestry |
Elliott State Forest is a state forest in Coos and Douglas counties of the U.S. state of Oregon, between Coos Bay and Reedsport in the Oregon Coast Range. The first state forest established in Oregon, it is named after the state's first state forester Francis Elliott. Trees commonly found in this forest are the Douglas-fir, western hemlock, western redcedar, bigleaf maple, and red alder.
More than 90 percent of the Elliott State Forest forms part of Oregon Common School Fund (CSF) lands devoted to supporting public education statewide. The Oregon Department of Forestry manages the CSF lands for the Oregon State Land Board, composed of Oregon's governor, secretary of state, and treasurer. Timber revenue from logging in the Elliott State Forest has generated about $284 million for schools since 1955. (sourced to a dead link)
Controversy arose in 2011 in response to changes in the way the forest is managed. Adopted by the land board in October 2011, a new management plan aims to increase annual net revenue from the forest to $13 million, up from $8 million. It would achieve this by increasing the annual timber harvest to 40 million board feet culled from 1,100 acres (450 ha), of which about three-fourths could be clearcut. The former management plan, adopted in 1995, called for 25 million board feet from 1,000 acres (400 ha), half of it clearcut.
The plan also changed the way in which the forest is managed to protect threatened and endangered species such as spotted owls and marbled murrelets. Supporters of the new plan say it will benefit wildlife by making more acres off-limits to logging than had been reserved for owls, murrelets, and watershed protection under the old plan. Opponents of the plan say it will damage habitat and harm wildlife. They would prefer a plan that promotes thinning of young trees, avoids clear-cutting, and seeks other ways of raising revenue from the CSF lands.
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