It was not so long ago that America was a virgin paradise of thousand year old forests and abundant wildlife. We all know the story of how "civilization" changed all that. And yet anyone who haa traveled the Cat-skills has seen the way small woodlots can grow into forests once again. Mounralns that once held little more than cow pas-tures are home to whitetail. deer, wild turkey, bobcat, fox and occasioaally even black bear, while overhead Goshawk, Cooper's and Red Tail Hawks sail, sig-naling the long awaited return of the birds of prey aㄅer their devastation by But don't get over-excited. These forests, like most others across the con-tinent, are still missing quire a few faces that wexe and should be regulars; the Bald Eagle, Moose, Woodland Caribou, Elk and many mere. Those that have been able to make a comeback were only able to do so because there were enough of them around to repopulate, While the Passenger Pigeon and others have become extinct, many species are still holding out in the isolated pockets of roadless wilderness which make up our National Forest system. These Forests act as a genetic bank, if you will, keeping on deposit a xecord of the land's former and possibly future glory. With the proper attention, the interest from this bank could repopulate the wild areas of our continent.

There is just one snag. ThSs land is under the lQpprotectiont'of the Federal Government via the Bureau of Land Manage-ment (B.L.M.) and the US Forest Service (F.S.). Not totally unexpectedly these agencies plan to act more as auctioneers and vendors than as Under a new 15 year plan 65 million acres of the 80 million acres af undeveloped land in the Natfonal Forest System would ke clear cut. These soadless areas would be des-troyed at a rate of one to two million acres a year, eliminating half of the remaining natural wilderness by the end of the century (see page 4 for story). -\ But just because the "appointed" protec-tors are falling down on the job does not mean that a13 is lost. In the spfrir of the late Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior and the French Resistance, small groups and lone individuals across the land are

pages 6 joining the fr~ntlines in tli~protection of Kother Earth. Taking monkey wrench in hand, these scattered kands of eco-raiders are making wilderness areas quite ucat-tractive t6 clear-cutters, strip miners, and Off Road Vehicle Freaks. After all, what lumber company fs interested in the expense of cutting wilderness areas if they return to wark Kanday morning, miles from "nowhere", to find their equipment has been permanently disabled? (If you've priced bulldozers and other heavy equip-ment lately you know it doesn't come cheap!) Likewise, it's no fun rearing through the back woods in your new "Big Foot" 02.V. with its $1,000 tires, go to cross a pristine stream, and come out the other side with four flat tires from an ecoeagers spikes. You get the idea. These areas are worth hundreds of times any amount of lumber revenues; no non-violent action to protect them 5s too small'or large. Even a single action makes a difference because there are hundreds of other groups and indivi-duals out there doing their bit too, and it really adds up. So do your homework. Check out the threatened areas near you. Pick your target. And ecotage.