Conversion of timber land is an important environmental problem
in Sonoma County, but it tends to be overlooked because it
generally happens in areas that most people don't see. (For
example, it might happen in the Gualala River watershed, and
that's far from the County's population centers.)
One fundamental problem is that the county and the state
mostly look at timber as a crop to be harvested, rather than as
something of ecological, (or even scenic), value. Nevertheless,
the county is somewhat receptive to the idea that the "crop"
of timber ought to be harvested in a way that is more sustainable
rather than less. So the county is mildly uncomfortable with the
idea of land being taken out of timber production, (i.e., "conversion"
to nontimber use).
