Anatomy of a Conflict: Identity, Knowledge, and Emotion in Old-Growth Forests

Anatomy of a Conflict explores the cultural aspects of the fierce dispute between activist loggers and environmentalists over the fate of Oregon’s temperate rain forest. Centered on the practice of old-growth logging and the survival of the northern spotted owl, the conflict has led to the torching of ranger stations, the spiking of trees, logging truck blockades, and countless demonstrations and arrests. 
     Satterfield shows how the debate about the forest is, at its core, a debate about the cultural make-up of the Pacific Northwest. To talk about forests is to talk about culture, whether the discussion is about scientific explanations of conifer forests, activists’ grassroots status and their emotional attachment to land, or the implications of past people’s land use for future forest management.