Here we go. Land transfers on Mt Hood National Forest

[romann]

This Mt Hood land swap actually doesn't look too bad (phew - just a modest addition to Government Camp resort - not new development somewhere else on the mountain ). And acquired plot is several times larger than the conveyed one. Still, the prospect of losing isolated, wilderness-quality land remains and it's probably more serious than ever.

Koda - those price tags are hefty, but if they charge it someone's willing to pay it (I clicked on some and they're already sold out 6 months from now). I wonder how much they could charge if there wasn't National Forest recreation nearby. It's just so wrong when someone, or a corporation, can grab that much land and keep it locked away.

[RobFromRedland]

The fees for accessing Weyerhaeuser land are relatively new. I believe some executive saw this as a new profit center they could exploit. When Willamette Industries owned land in Oregon, it was freely accessible to hunters and anyone who wanted to go on it. The only restrictions were placed during fire season or when active logging was taking place. Once Weyerhaueuser took over Willamette and gutted both companies, they appeared to be looking for any new sources of revenue, which is were I think (my personal opinion) these fees came from. I think it is poor corporate citizenship myself.

[ThePortlandeer]

My understanding from several sources is that this land exchange has support from environmental groups and pro-environment legislators such as Earl Blumenauer and BARK.

https://walden.house.gov/media-center/p ... hange-bill

http://bark-out.org/project/cooper-spur ... d-exchange

[Rand Man]

I agree, and there is other national scale land swap legislation that is supported by these groups too, as in this thread:

http://www.oregonhikers.org/forum/viewt ... 14&t=25034