News Release
A Time for Solutions
7/11/2003
Chuck Butler
406-444-5523
chbutler@state.mt.us
A Time for Solutions
July 11, 2003
Submitted by Senator Conrad Burns (R-Montana), Congressman Denny Rehberg (R-Montana), and Governor Judy Martz (R-Montana)
As we enter another potentially devastating fire season, increased attention has been placed on the condition of our national forests and the challenges faced by national forest managers in keeping these forests healthy and vibrant. While forest health issues should not be seasonal issues, the threat of another catastrophic wildfire season reminds us of the work we have yet to do.
Last August, President Bush placed a priority on forest management, as outlined in his Healthy Forest Initiative. In April, a bipartisan group of 256 Democrats and Republicans joined together to support rural communities through common-sense forest management by passing a legislative initiative, the Healthy Forest Restoration Act, from the full House of Representatives.
The Healthy Forest Restoration Act establishes streamlined management procedures for forest managers to employ on no more than 20 million acres of at-risk federal lands, while establishing new conservation programs focused on improving water quality and regenerating declining forest ecosystem types on non-federal lands. The program also places a high priority on maintaining at-risk lands in the Wildland Urban Interface and near sources of municipal water. The bill also establishes two grant programs to encourage energy-related utilization of the otherwise valueless wood, chips, brush, thinnings and slash removed in conjunction with projects on federal forests and rangelands. This is a responsible, common sense approach that will make our forests healthy.
The Senate Agriculture Committee will consider the Healthy Forest Restoration Act on Wednesday, July 16.
The forest health crisis on our public lands cannot be ignored. Currently, 190 million acres of federal forest and rangeland are at unnaturally high risk to catastrophic wildfire - larger than all of New England combined. Of the approximately 18 million acres of National Forest land in Montana, over 12 million acres are classified as "Condition Class 2 or 3," which means these lands are in critical need of treatment.
To those of us in Montana, it's clear that the federal process for addressing these problems is horribly broken. When roughly 90% of decisions the Northern Region are appealed the system is ripe for reform. These constant appeals and litigation, and the threat of these actions, have led our forest professionals into a predicament that can only be addressed through legislation. The time is now for real solutions.
Obviously, some treatment must occur for our communities to be shielded from catastrophic wildfire. And with responsible forest treatment comes jobs forlocal, rural, timber dependent communities. And unless we make honest, meaningful change, the infrastructure currently in place to address these problems will disappear - just ask Arizona and New Mexico about the difficulties of addressing the problem without mills and the skilled workers necessary to complete the task.
Forest fires are not Democrat or Republican issues. They are public safety and rural community issues.
We support the President's Healthy Forest legislation because it will alleviate some of the challenges facing our forest managers. We look forward to working with the President, the Western Governor's Association, our colleagues in Congress, and the Administration to implement a strategy that will create a safe, healthy environment in our forests and then in turn maintain a reasonable supply timber for our local mills.
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