After four days of protesting a timber sale at Elliott State Forest in Douglas County, Oregon, five University of Oregon students and 22 Eugene-based protesters were arrested on Thursday, July 9. The logging company Roseburg Forest Products had purchased a three-year permit auctioned by the Department of Forestry to cut down the trees on state land. The company has cut down 80 acres so far, about 10 percent of the forest. Unlike other state forests, logging taxes on Elliot State forest provide money for the Common School Fund, a statewide trust fund set up for public schools. The protestors were demonstrating against the logging itself and liquidat[ing] public forest lands for public schools. The protest was organized by Cascadia Rising Tide and Earth First. In addition to protesting, the groups laid tripwires across the road and chained themselves to cemented barrels.
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