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| A Real-Life Chainsaw Massacre |
| In a recent move, the Bush administration stated it would not oppose placing the Clinton administration roadless rule into effect, protecting approximately one-third of the national forests from road building for commercial activities, although allowing roads to be built for fire fighting and public safety. However, in a move to satisfy Republican governors of some western states driven by the timber industry, the administration, through the USDA, intends to introduce an amendment to the roadless rule allowing states to apply for exemptions and to reverse the new regulation for portions of Alaska's Tongass National Forest. The Bush administration has long held that the rule was too broad, but that position is contrary to the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' April '03 ruling. The Forest Service already faces a maintenance backlog of $8.4 billion on its 380,000 mile network of forest roads. The US Agriculture Secretary, Ann Veneman, maintains the amendment is needed to allow states to maintain the health and integrity of roadless forest area. The move has been praised by Montana's governor Judy Martz even though in 2001 78% of comments submitted by Montana's residents on the roadless rule were for the ban on road building. Wyoming's governor Dave Freudenthal also has publicly stated the state would most likely apply for some projects to be exempt, but was unsure which ones although several projects were delayed when the rule was originally passed. He also cites this move by the Bush administration as an "unfunded mandate," forcing states to develop forestry expertise they do not have. Many environmental groups contend that this move shows that the administration was never dedicated to upholding the spirit of the law. For an administration priding itself on fiscal responsibility, adding more costs to an $8.4 billion maintenance backlog makes little sense. It is unclear how the "exceptional circumstances" amendment will give states more flexibility in forest management decisions, when they are limited by fiscally tight times. |
For
more information about SERC, or to use our services, contact our national
headquarters at:
State Environmental Resource Center
106 East Doty Street, Suite 200 § Madison, Wisconsin 53703
Phone: 608-252-9800 § Fax: 608-252-9828
Email: [email protected]
106 East Doty Street, Suite 200 § Madison, Wisconsin 53703
Phone: 608-252-9800 § Fax: 608-252-9828
Email: [email protected]
