In 1999, almost 100 Interfor workers and friends took the law into their own hands, and confronted local environmentalists in British Columbia’s Elaho Valley. Even more alarming than the acts of its employees is the role of Interfor itself. The employees carried out the assault using Interfor logging trucks. A company vice-president and three directors were in the region at the time but did nothing to stop the vigilante attack. Interfor trucks and radios were used to co-ordinate the violence.

But it was Betty Krawczyk, a 72-year-old great grandmother, and Barney Kern, a 36-year-old environmentalist, who have recently been sentenced to one year in jail, each for peacefully protesting International Forest Products's (Interfor) ongoing clearcut logging of 1,000 year old trees in the Elaho Valley.

Interfor is destroying many intact areas throughout the ancient coastal temperate rainforests of British Columbia, including the island of the Spirit Bear and the Elaho Valley. The Elaho contains thousand-year old trees and is home to the southern-most population of grizzly bears on the west coast of North America.

Greenpeace has repeatedly asked Interfor to agree to a moratorium on logging in the last remaining intact areas of temperate rainforest. Not only has Interfor refused to suspend its logging plans and work towards a long-term solution, but its employees have resorted to violently assaulting environmentalists, and the company has helped to send peaceful protesters to jail.

Read Betty's letter from jail or listen to what she has to say about her imprisonment: download MP3 or listen to Real Audio (requires plug-in).

TAKE ACTION NOW.

Send a message to the Premier of British Columbia and the CEO of Interfor.

Click here to send a Greenpeace E-card to a friend about the assault in Canada's ancient forest.

READ MORE : Interfor assaults peaceful environmentalists [An ADOBE document.]
READ MORE: Greenpeace Briefing - International Forest Products [An ADOBE document.]