In Oregon, where "clearcut is king" according to common forestry practice, helicopters spray herbicide mixtures on newly-leveled and replanted forests to prevent competing vegetation from taking hold, speeding up timber growth– and profit. Much like mono-crop agriculture, timber companies manage timber plantations of densely planted, marketable tree species by treating

areas with herbicides. But poor oversight of forestry laws and a chemical industry rooted in the military industrial complex have led to repeated cases of toxic exposure to herbicides from aerial spray drift or contaminated water. Despite bans in dozens of other countries and states, many compounds are still allowed in the forestry sector on private and state lands. Federal Forests in Oregon and Washington, in contrast, no longer utilize herbicides for vegetation management and manage weeds by hand– a labor intensive but non-toxic method that puts communities to work.

Quietly dismissed by agency, silenced by industry, and threatened by fellow community, rural families in the Pacific Northwest have lived alongside industrial forestry herbicides for more than 80 years. The film spans four storylines that point to an ongoing public health risk caused by these industrial practices on Oregon's most aggressively managed timber plantations.