The Luna Tree-sit
The tree sit at Stafford began Oct. 7, 1997. Julia Butterfly has been living in the ancient redwood known as the Stafford Giant or "Luna", continuously since Dec. 10, 97. The tree is 16 ft diameter at the base and is estimated to be between 1500-1800 years old. It is the last of it's kind on the over-logged hillsides above Stafford.
Last Jan. 1 (97) the clearcut hillsides above the small town of Stafford slid down in a catastrophic mudslide which destroyed Seven homes. The residents who suffered property loss & damage are suing the MAXXAM Corp. owners of Pacific Lumber (PL) for over-cutting the slopes and endangering their lives. The Pacific Lumber company asserts the mudslide was "an act of God".
Earth First! started the tree-sit in a new timber harvest unit immediately adjacent to the clearcut & mudslide.. Logging began last fall. The Columbia helicopter company from Portland was contracted by PL to remove the trees around the tree-sit area.
24 hour security guards were hired to camp at the base of the tree in an attempt to starve out the tree-sit. A large group of Earth First activists outnumbered the guards and re-supplied Julia Butterfly with fresh food and batteries for her cell phone.
