Thursday, March 18, 2010
Preserve our way of life
Posted Thu, Mar 18, 2010 at 4:00 AM
I am writing today to express that we all need to push for the passing of Sen. Jon Tester’s Forest Jobs and Recreation Act (see “etc.,” March 11, 2010). As a Montanan I feel it is important to preserve our way of life that we have become so accustomed to and grateful for. This bill would help to maintain many benefits of our residence here in Montana, and create new jobs that we so desperately need in our state. Tester sees that light-on-the-land stewardship logging would help to preserve our forests from beetle kill and help prevent disastrous forest fires from harming our communities. It would also allow continued maintenance of campgrounds and trails so Montanans could enjoy the wilderness without impacting its wildlife and natural beauty.
This bill would ensure not only our natural beauty that we so treasure here in Montana, but also put people to work in the timber industry while protecting our watersheds and big game habitat. Tester’s bill is supported by hunters, anglers, loggers, conservationists and outdoor enthusiasts of all stripes. It not only protects the forests that we value, but protects the rights of Montanans to enjoy them.
I welcome the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Forest Service’s willingness to work with local citizens to help manage our public lands and I look forward to passing the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act and getting to work protecting and preserving Montana’s way of life.
Nate Watson
Missoula
Comments (5)
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Nate: I love what you're saying about big game habitat. Tester's bill would protect over 500,000 acres of wilderness on the BD National Forest where about 50% of the states elk are harvested every hunting season. That's a lot of wilderness in a state that hasn't designated new wilderness in a quarter century. Good to see the head of the USDA recognizing the need to get this bill passed.
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Like you, I think it's inspiring that the USDA and the Forest Service are working with local citizens to manage our public lands. The Forest Jobs and Recreation Act is a great way to protect the natural beauty of our state and our ability to get out into it and enjoy it.
You're exactly right. Logging and conservation are not mutually exclusive. Trees are a renewable resource, and we have the knowledge and the laws to ensure that we remove trees in a sustainable manner. In many cases, logging can actually improve big game habitat by allowing more light to reach the forest floor and stimulating the growth of more shrubs, forbs and grasses that ungulates depend on.
Nate: While I certainly appreciate young people taking an interest in public lands management, I must point out that your letter gives the false impression that in order for the Forest Service to do fuel reduction work around communities, or conduct logging projects through the use of the stewardship contracting mechanism, or maintain campgrounds and trails, that the agency needs to have Senator Tester's Forest Jobs and Recreation Act passed into law.
The fact of the matter is that the Forest Service currently has all the tools, laws and regulations available to them to complete these tasks. In fact, just the other day the Chief of the US Forest Service, former Montanan Tom Tidwell, made this following statement to Senator Tester at a Senate hearing:
"If you look at 2009, it was probably the toughest market that we've had with the integrated wood products industry. But we were still able to accomplish close to 97% of our [timber] target in 2009. We also exceeded our wildlife improvement targets and we also exceeded our hazardous fuel improvements targets."
Furthermore, the truth of the matter is that people of all different backgrounds – including the WildWest Institute – are successfully working together in open, inclusive and transparent collaborative processes in Montana, such as through the Montana Forest Restoration Committee (www.montanarestoration.org).
For example, the MFRC has formed restoration committees for both the Lolo and the Bitterroot national forests. What's been the results? Well, the Lolo National Forest hasn't had any logging-related litigation in over two years, while on the Bitterroot only one timber sale has been litigated since 2002.
Furthermore, the Forest Service in our region ended 2009 with more timber volume already under contract to logging companies (300 million board feet) than at any point in the past decade. That's enough timber to fill 60,000 log trucks lined up from Missoula to Miles City.
It's really too bad, Nate, that part of the story you're telling people isn't the fact that in 2009 the Forest Service exceeded their wildlife improvement targets and exceeded their hazardous fuel reduction targets while also achieving 97% of their timber targets (in the worst timber market in US history). But I guess pointing out these bona-fide facts to the public doesn't fit into the "gridlock" story you folks would rather promote.
Too bad, Nate, FJRA supporters such as yourself aren't telling Montanans that right now the Forest Service has over 300 million board feet of timber already under contract to logging companies, but much of that logging isn't happening because there is little demand for lumber these days.
Finally, as written, the FJRA would have a profoundly negative impact on the budgets of National Forests around Montana and the region. As the head of the Forest Service told the Senate back in December, "If we were to go forward with S1470 it would require far greater resources to do that and it will require us to draw these monies from forests within Region One or from other Regions."
You know what that will mean? Less money for all the other national forests in Montana (that are not part of Tester's bill) and forests around our region and country to do fuel reduction work around their communities, or restore watersheds, or maintain their campgrounds and trails. Is this simply not a concern to you folks? Thanks.
Well put, Nate. I also appreciate young people taking an interest in public lands management. This is our future as well as our children's and their children's that we are preserving and stewarding. The upcoming land managers of your generation are bright and innovative, that is why it is easy for you see that the FJRA while not perfect (because what piece of legislation ever is?) is a good bill based on collaboration that does a great service to our people and public lands.
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