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We are living through a miracle. Despite development, climate change, resource extraction and other threats to wildlife, in California less than 1% of species have gone extinct since European-American settlement of the state. It is our obligation to ensure that the other 99% remains and ultimately recovers. To that end, EPIC has pursued protection for numerous species, primarily under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). EPIC also acts as the watchdog for Northwest California’s public and private lands. EPIC covers more than 6 million acres of public lands in Northwest California, including lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, State Parks, and more. In this role, we review projects for environmental impacts and work to lessen these impacts through citizen advocacy and education, detailed commentary, and strategic litigation.
EPIC focuses on the wild forests of Northern California, with our area of focus coinciding with the range of the northern spotted owl within the state. This eleven million-acre, rugged forested region encompasses the North Coast Range and the California Klamath-Siskiyou Mountains. The magnificent Klamath-Siskiyou bioregion—composed of more than six million acres, mostly in federal ownership in five national forests—is a vast, tangled knot of mountains and rivers that shelters an incredible complex of wild country and rare and unique species.
Each year, the uniquely beautiful forests of northwest California attract local, as well as out-of-state and international, visitors. The forests offer the solace of nature to hundreds of thousands of people annually, and supply clean water to millions of Californians. EPIC is based in the areas we are charged to protect and the biodiversity, productivity, and relative isolation of the region suggest that if properly protected and restored, the bioregion could serve as a “climate refuge”—providing essential habitat to support California’s diverse natural communities to buffer human development and climate change. EPIC’s central location within the bioregion acts as an advantage, for we know these lands intimately and have relationships with the individuals who work within the services and agencies of the areas affected.
By engaging with legislators, agencies, and stakeholders, EPIC advocates for the development and implementation of new rules and regulations to ensure science-based management of forest resources within this important region. We gather, track, review, and disseminate information and comment on projects that would negatively impact public and private forestlands, and when necessary, we hold agencies accountable. Through litigation, we ensure that the Forest Service and other natural resource agencies abide by established rules, and through winning cases; we set legal precedent, thereby establishing better rules for the future.
We are already living within a biodiversity and climate crisis, one that threatens the very existence of not only other species, but human species as a whole. Part of a way to combat these crises is by preserving our state’s forests. Our forests are essential for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, and help to regulate temperature and moisture. We’re particularly excited about transforming working timberlands into carbon reserves that can become part of the climate change solution instead of part of the problem. EPIC is one of the only organizations working on this solution within our region and funding is tight. We operate on a shoestring budget and time is running out to protect these important forests. Please donate to support these efforts today and help preserve our forests for the future.
EPIC was founded in 1977 when local residents came together to successfully end aerial applications of herbicides by industrial logging companies in Humboldt County. Our work played a pivotal role in bringing the plight of the Headwaters Forest to the world’s attention during the 1990s. Three of the six groves in Headwaters Forest are now in public hands and EPIC continues to pursue actions to preserve the forests left unprotected as part of the infamous Headwaters Deal. Our work led to the permanent protection of other important areas, including an ancient redwood grove that towers above the ocean in the Sinkyone Wilderness, and Gilham Butte, an ancient forest that connects an old-growth reserve, Bureau of Land Management lands and Humboldt Redwoods State Park. We remain vigilant in our efforts to protect forestlands, with our areas of focus including industrial forestry reform, public land conservation and biodiversity protection.
We believe success is measured in the outcome and influence of our efforts. EPIC has filed more than 80 lawsuits on behalf of the native species and wildlands of Northern California. At one point, the Journal of Forestry reports that EPIC had the highest success rate in court among “parties opposing the U.S. Forest Service … from 1989 to 2005.” During that time, EPIC won approximately 65 percent of its cases, a staggering rate of success when compared to similar organizations. EPIC’s litigation has protected old-growth-dependent wildlife from the cumulative loss of redwood and Douglas fir forest habitat. Most of our cases involve private forestlands in our region, the North Coast of California, but many have affected statewide forestry policy and have set both state and national legal precedents. Of particular importance are EPIC v. Johnson #1, Sierra Club and EPIC v. Board of Forestry #5, and Marbled Murrelet and EPIC v. Pacific Lumber #18. EPIC’s litigation has challenged corporate timber practices and negligent governmental oversight, leading to temporary protection of the largest remaining groves of ancient redwoods, stronger implementation of environmental regulations, and reform of forestry policy.
Without watchdog organizations like EPIC, who have the expertise and innovative tools to challenge government agencies and big industry, we would have a much different landscape in our wild backyards in Northern California. On California's North Coast, there lives a diversity of wildlife that must be protected. From the Northern Spotted Owl to the Humboldt Marten and Coho Salmon, EPIC is working hard to protect the wildlife of Northern California through public outreach, on-the-ground monitoring, public comments and review, and when all else fails, litigation.
In 2010, EPIC became alarmed because population surveys of Humboldt martens showed that the population of this cute coastal marten was in major decline. So EPIC got to work. We submitted a petition to list the species under the Endangered Species Act and pushed for more protections for the marten.
It took 10 years and multiple lawsuits but we were successful in finally getting new safeguards for the marten just last year. But more than just new protections, the listing process has resulted in significant investment in science and conservation planning for the species, which will hopefully put the species on the fast-track for recovery.
Would you give $4 a month to support four nonprofits that are making a big difference? Join forces with other 52andChangmakers to automatically give to every Cause of the Week. Every Monday, you’ll wake up knowing you’ve already made a difference! As our community grows, so does the impact!
Together we’ve become volunteers in places we would have never expected, planted milkweed for butterflies, provided books to kids in need, helped save endangered turtles, helped turn excess food into nutrition, helped bring art to youth, educated one another about how we are connected to our delicate food systems, helped save abandoned horses and given old dogs new hope, watched foster youth shine in the spotlight of movie making, helped clean tires out of rivers… we could go on and on and on. It is an absolute joy to be a part of such an amazing network of humans making a difference.
“ALMA reconnects the lives of the formerly incarcerated back to the fabric of society. Our participants have the chance at attaining gainful employment and becoming self-sufficient. Urban Farming helps everyone involved explore the relationships between plants, animals and humans as a way of creating a profound connection to both nature and their community.” - ALMA Backyard Farms
While we’re writing this and you’re reading it, Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes is out there, finding ways to provide food to more people in need throughout Santa Cruz County, where one of three residents are reported to be food insecure.
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