May 20th 2001

Letter to the Editor
San Francisco Chronicle Magazine
May 20, 2001

I read with interest your piece on Bill McDonough ("Bill McDonough: Ecology Design's High Priest," April 1) describing The Gap headquarters with its recyclable materials and wood floors harvested from sustainable forests, etc. While certainly not a knock on Mr. McDonough, it must be pointed out at least as a paradox of corporate politics that Gap-owned Mendocino Redwood Co. is harvesting old-growth redwood and other timber in a decidedly non-sustainable way. In Mendocino County specifically, Mendocino Redwood Co. has been cited for numerous violations of the California Forest Practices Act. There is always a story behind the story, and the public must look behind a fancy atrium to get at the truth of corporate responsibility.

Pieter S. Myers
Occidential