The fight to protect Washington’s “legacy forests” intensified earlier this month, with protesters literally using their bodies to stop a controversial timber sale.

A group calling itself Olympic Forest Defenders has put one of its activists in a tree to block logging of units 3, 4 and 6 of the Parched timber sale near the lower Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula, approximately two miles southwest of Port Angeles.

The sale to the Eugene, Ore.-based Murphy Company was approved by the Washington State Board of Natural Resources in December. The Murphy Company is a more-than-a-century-old, family-owned wood products company based in Oregon, with a veneer mill in Elma.

Wood from Washington’s state forests keep their workers working, including at the plywood mill in Elma, and provides products people want and need. Logging on these state trust lands also pays for local government services.

Since May 7, an activist calling themself “Steve,” who withheld their last name because they are on land that is temporarily closed to the public, has been ensconced in a makeshift shelter high in an old grand fir within the Parched sale boundary. The act of protest is intended to ensure logging does not go on.

The Parched sale affects nearly 200 acres of state forestlands. It includes about 90 acres of “legacy forest,” a term used by activists for maturing forests that aren’t yet old enough to qualify as true old-growth, but which serve important functions as carbon sinks and refuges of biodiversity.

Organizations including the Legacy Forest Defense Coalition have sued to stop the Parched sale, recently winning a two-week restraining order against logging from a Clallam County judge.

The groups will ask for a longer-lasting court injunction at a hearing scheduled to take place on Friday. LFDC is not involved the tree-sit.

“Tree-sitting” to protest logging began in New Zealand in 1978 and reached a publicity high point in the United States in 1997 when Julia “Butterfly” Hill climbed into a coast redwood in Humboldt County, Calif., and didn’t come down for 738 days. A dozen or so tree-sits in the United States and Canada have attracted media attention in the 21st century.

Washington Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove has denounced the Parched tree-sit as “dangerous, reckless and counterproductive.”

Columbia Insight spoke with Henry Richards, a member of Olympic Forest Defenders who is on the ground providing support for the tree-sit.

Columbia Insight: What was the inspiration for your group choosing this tactic of tree-sitting right now?

Henry Richards: The state’s last legacy forests keep being logged, and we’re tired of it. This particular spot, located in the Dry Hills recreation area, was scheduled to be clear-cut. They had already built all the roads they needed to begin work and were getting ready to start logging.

CI: What do you hope this protest accomplishes?

HR: We want to stop the Parched timber sale. We’re also calling on State Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove and the Washington Department of Natural Resources to end all logging of legacy forests in the state.

CI: Is Olympic Forest Defenders a formal organization?

HR: We’re just a bunch of friends who really love the local forests. That love is what brought us together and made us decide we wanted to do something about it.

CI: What are the challenges of maintaining a tree-sit?

HR: Law enforcement was harassing us early on, trying to get us to leave. Other than that, it’s really not all that different from maintaining a house or any other living space. You need to be able to take out the trash, you have to be able to go to the bathroom, and so forth.

CI: You mentioned harassment from law enforcement. What has that looked like?

HR: They were shining bright lights powered by generators into the tree at night and playing loud music, basically trying to prevent anyone from being able to rest or sleep. That went on for a few days, then they seemed to give up. They’ve left for now but could come back any time.

CI: Who is staying in the tree?

HR: My friend Steve is the tree-sitter. You can call him Steve Upthetree, haha. He’s staying anonymous due to security concerns.

CI: What are those security concerns?

HR: Commissioner Upthegrove has closed the area affected by the timber sale to the public, so everything that happens there is potentially misdemeanor trespass. No one wants to incriminate themselves. Myself included.

CI: How did “Steve” get up there? And how long are they going to stay?

HR: We used professional climbing equipment to get him into the tree. Now he’s sitting about 75 feet off the ground. He’s prepared to stay there until Upthegrove and the Department of Natural Resources cancel the Parched timber sale.

CI: What’s your role in all of this?

HR: I’m just a normal dude, here to provide support on the ground while Steve is in the tree. My job is to make sure he has what he needs while he’s staying up there.

CI: How can people get involved in this cause?

HR: Come visit us at the site and stay as long as you can. If you can’t do that, we’re accepting donations through a GoFundMe page. You can also contact Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove and urge him to cancel all legacy forest timber sales.

Editor’s note: At the time of this story’s publication, “Steve” was still in the tree.