Dried-out piles of slash, hundreds of acres of barren land and soil erosion make it difficult to see how industrial timber and clear-cutting are allowed these fire-prone days.

Add the spraying of carcinogenic substances and the unstable economics of boom-and-bust practices, and one has to ask whom does this really benefit. The Dorena fire last Friday was a dangerous and unpredictable blaze; the risk to Thurston would be several-fold if the “Pedal Power” sale goes through.

The Oregonian’s February series “Polluted by Money” reports on Oregon’s dubious honor of being number one in the country for corporate contributions per capita. Could this account for our county commissioner’s languid and backseat stance on these issues? Or for the BLM, time and time again, putting out plans that over-harvest, spray and clearcut?

Last I checked, these are public officials and agencies paid for by public tax dollars and are servants of the public. Now is the time for us to hold them responsible for that.

Kerstin Britz

Dorena