[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 125 (Monday, July 31, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       SAVE THE HEADWATERS FOREST

                                 ______


                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 31, 1995
  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, for 117 years, family-operated Pacific Lumber 
Co. was a model corporation. As owners of the Headwaters Forest in 
Humbolt County, CA, Pacific Lumber's conservative logging practices 
left their forests healthy long after other timber companies had 
liquidated. Corporate raider, Charles Hurwitz, recognized Pacific 
Lumber Co. as an undervalued asset and with his friends Michael Milken 
and Ivan Boesky orchestrated a takeover of Pacific Lumber primarily 
through high interest, high risk, junk bonds. In the wake of the 
takeover, Hurwitz's United Savings Association of Texas failed, costing 
the taxpayers $1.6 billion. It was the sixth largest savings and loan 
failure in U.S. history.
  Hurwitz has been logging the Headwaters Forest at an unprecedented 
rate so that he can pay off his debts. He has tripled the logging of 
redwood, especially old growth and since 1986 has cut in excess of 
40,000 acres of redwood and Douglas fir. The company has only 5,500 
acres of virgin redwood and 5,000 acres of virgin Douglas fir left. 
However, Hurwitz's debts from various ventures are so massive that no 
amount of logging will help him balance his accounts. By logging at 
such a furious pace, Hurwitz has nearly exhausted the resources of the 
forest which will devastate the local timber industry and mean the loss 
of hundreds of jobs from the region.
  Several court decisions have kept Hurwitz from logging even further. 
Still, Hurwitz has been logging previously restricted parts of the 
forest since March and has indicated that he will log the Headwaters 
Grove, home of the last stand of privately owned ancient redwoods in 
the world, in September. He has already violated State and Federal 
endangered species law and is clearly not afraid of punishment. Mr. 
Hurwitz needs to know that the taxpayers will not stand idly by and 
watch him break the law time after time, avoid his massive public debt 
and cut down an ancient grove of 2,000-year-old redwood trees. 
Unfortunately, it appears that Hurwitz will break the law once again, 
but this time he will also completely ruin one of nature's greatest 
treasures.
  The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation [FDIC] is investigating 
Hurwitz for his role in the 1988 savings and loan failure. If 
prosecuted, the FDIC on behalf of the taxpayers could force Hurwitz to 
pay back $550 million, which ironically, conveniently, or justly 
approximates his price tag for the Headwaters Forest. A debt for nature 
swap is the best way for the taxpayers to recover their debt from Mr. 
Hurwitz and also save the Headwaters Forest from destruction.
  If the public is interested in saving the Headwaters Forest redwoods 
from the chainsaws, then this dept for nature proposal is our best 
hope. Voters should let their Members of Congress know--and all 
concerned taxpayers should urge the FDIC to pursue aggressively its 
investigation of the failure of United Savings Association of Texas.


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