Encounter the untold narrative of the Pacific Northwest’s old-growth forests in “Forest Under Siege.” Author and environmental champion Rand Schenck takes readers through a vivid exploration of the Cascades – revealing the beauty that captured Gifford Pinchot’s imagination and the policy shifts that followed. This timely volume is a call to understand and protect these ancient natural wonders.

About The Author

Rand Schenck is more than an environmental activist; he is a storyteller, a historian, and a passionate advocate for the Pacific Northwest’s old-growth forests. With a deep connection to the Cascades and years of conservation work, Schenck offers a unique perspective on our shared natural heritage.

“Forest Under Siege” provides a critical look at 100 years of forestry in the Pacific Northwest. Beginning with Pinchot’s early enchantment, it journeys through mid-century industrial forestry practices and the public’s rising concerns. Schenck’s narrative culminates in the current effort to rebalance the relationship between humans and these ancient ecosystems.

Highly Praised

“An exemplary work digging into the soul of forestry management and its resistance to exploitation. A must-read for environmental enthusiasts.” – Gifford Pinchot III, Grandson of Gifford Pinchot

Molly Whitney, Executive Director of The Cascade Forest Conservancy, describes ‘Forest Under Siege’ as a “testament to the region’s resilience and the persistent fight for its protection.”

Forest Under Siege – The story of old growth after Gifford Pinchot, by Rand Schenck

Reviewed by John Perona

“Rand Schenck undertook a commendable and consequential project when he set out to write Forests Under Siege: The Story of Old Growth after Gifford Pinchot (Basalt Books, 2024). Schenck, a veteran environmental advocate, has spent a great deal of time walking America’s forests and a great deal more thinking about how Americans have chosen to dispose of them. In Forests Under Siege, his first book, Schenck gifts us with a compelling, accessible narrative that explores the legacy of Gifford Pinchot, who served as the first Chief of the Forest Service in the early years of the 20th century, under President Theodore Roosevelt. 

Pinchot stands foremost among the earliest group of forest managers whose perspectives shaped the course of US policy. In 1949, President Truman renamed the Columbia National Forest, extending from the Columbia River north to Mt. Rainier National Park, for Pinchot. That was a well-deserved honor, yet Pinchot has nonetheless suffered considerably under the weight of negative public opinion. This burden arises from the contrast often drawn with John Muir, America’s preeminent preservationist. Muir, first president of the Sierra Club and author of a dozen books, is famous as the man who convinced President Roosevelt to preserve Yosemite. He saw God in Nature, and thus held the preservation of Nature’s bounty as a sacred trust. 

Muir’s deeply held stance as an uncompromising environmental advocate was not available to Pinchot, whose role as a policy leader required him to strike a balance among sharply conflicting perspectives about how forests should be used. As Schenck describes, the public constituency for leaving forests as untouched wilderness was small, so Pinchot developed the concepts of multiple and sustainable use, by which some logging would be allowed but the long term health of the forest was always to be foremost. With Roosevelt’s support, Pinchot set aside an enormous acreage of land into national forests, about three-quarters of today’s total. But he felt compelled to side with those who advocated flooding the spectacular Hetch Hetchy valley to provide water for San Francisco, a battle that cemented both his falling out with Muir and his public image as one complicit with those who would plunder Nature’s bounty. Schenck’s goal in Forests Under Siege is to rehabilitate Pinchot’s conservationist, multiple-use approach as one equally worthy to Muir’s view of Nature as a holy trust. 

Schenck’s thorough research leaves the reader with little doubt of Pinchot’s bona fides as a conservationist, and the book documents well how his doctrine, often articulated as “the greatest good for the greatest number for the long run,” inspired later generations of Forest Service employees to work for long-term sustainability. But Pinchot’s vision, necessarily articulated in general terms, could not survive the post-World War II expansion of American industry. Timber company pressure driven by consumer demand resulted in heavy domination of logging within the “multiple use” regime, with decimation of West Coast old growth forest the most heartbreaking part of the sorry tale. Old growth logging was finally halted by a key 1991 judicial injunction to preserve spotted owl habitat, and this was followed by the science-based 1994 Northwest Forest Plan – an achievement whose legacy remains with us today. Yet barely more than 10% of the original old growth remains, and the timeframe for ecological restoration will be measured in centuries.

Not least among the virtues of Forests Under Siege is the way Schenck evokes the internal culture of the Forest Service through time. The forces giving rise to the early shift away from Pinchot’s ethic and toward timber production are well described, but more compelling is the later reemergence of the sustainability theme, driven by decades of research that offered a solid basis for appreciating the unique aspects of old growth ecology. As the science accumulated, internal dissatisfaction with the status quo did as well. The courage of rank and file Forest Service employees to challenge their superiors is an important part of this history and, as the book shows, helped bring about the cultural shift that eventually won the day. The remaining preserved tracts of old growth forest can now serve as a marker and beacon towards a much fuller restoration, an ongoing project for many future generations.

In a concluding epilogue, Schenck brings Muir and Pinchot together in an imaginary dialog, to reminisce about old times in light of contemporary events. Their conversation has broad value, because the two men so clearly epitomize the ever-present tension between the visionary and institutional elements of any environmental campaign. The analogies with today’s healthy climate advocacy are patent. Rand Schenck shows us that what the two sides have in common is much more important than what keeps them apart. For its inspirational value, this short piece alone makes Forests Under Siege a worthy addition to the environmental literature.”

Bring home this compelling story of resilience and preservation. “Forest Under Siege” is available now. Experience the journey to save the Pacific Northwest’s old-growth forests and understand why their future hangs in the balance.