Timber giant Boise Cascade said quietly last week that it would phase out old-growth logging in the next two years. Almost all the old growth cut by Boise Cascade in recent years has come from federal land, and the company said its plan reflected a shift in federal forest management away from felling the big trees. The company said enviro protests had had little impact on the decision to change its logging practices. In turn, enviros who have been campaigning against the practices for years remained skeptical. They said Boise Cascade’s definition of old growth — forested areas that are at least 5,000 acres in size with trees at least 200 years old — would exclude most of the remaining unprotected stands of trees. Jennifer Krill of the Rainforest Action Network said her group would continue to target the company.
