Some of the Players

Larry McLaud is the point person for a local environmental group, called The Friends of the Clearwater. For our OUTDOOR IDAHO program, McLaud and Jonathan Oppenheimer of Idaho Conservation League took us to see the rock slide at Quartz Creek, a tributary of the North Fork Clearwater.

McLaud believes poor management by the Forest Service led to the rock slide. "We need to be smarter in the future. We need to be a lot more humble about what we think we know is right... and not assume we can do anything we please."

"The Clearwater forest is said to be one of the most important wildlife national forests in the lower forty eight. I have decided to stay here and fight for the Clearwater. It has grabbed my soul in more ways than one. Physically, it's grabbed me because the hiking is sometimes quite hard. The actual draw for me spiritually is the diversity. It has everything from coastal rain forest all the way up to sub-alpine firs and craggy peaks."

"People need to understand that the Clearwater is a critical part of the whole. We need to respect the whole ecosystem in this part of the world... What I would do if I were in charge of the Clearwater is to focus almost completely on restoration. There's plenty of areas that have been intensively managed and have a lot of damage to them. We could provide jobs for the local community and let people feel good about what they're doing. And we can also bring back the bull trout, the lynx, the grizzly bear. If I were in charge, that's what I would want to do."