Oregon Public Broadcasting

The Bureau of Land Management is asking the public for comments on a big timber sale east of Medford. And some logging groups are optimistic that environmentalists may support the project if some compromises are made. Ethan Lindsey reports.

A January windstorm knocked down so many trees near Butte Falls that the federal government now worries it's a wildfire waiting to happen.

The BLM has proposed selling about 6000 damaged acres.

Environmentalists say most times salvage logging is just an excuse for a clear cut.

George Sexton is the conservation director with the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center.

He says his group, K-S Wild, could support salvage logging in this case.

George Sexton: “K-S Wild is nothing if not a feisty and litigious environmental group, its showing a lot of willingness to compromise. What the BLM is going to do with that, and whether they're willing to take a step towards us, remains to be seen.”

Sexton says the BLM needs to set a few ground rules, like keeping heavy machinery away from rivers critical to Coho Salmon.

The BLM is accepting public comment until the end of the month.