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 Lowbagger News
Flash:But Proposed Logging Grows Washington D.C. -- As budget restraints force the Forest Service to tone down its action in 2007, the agency still insists upon growing its below-cost, timber-sale program. “The
administration’s budget request for the Forest Service continues a
trend of
misplaced priorities favoring resource extraction and privatization at
the
expense of good stewardship,” said Michael Francis, Forest Program
Director of
The Wilderness Society. “Programs that support forest
restoration,
recreation, clean water, wildlife, and community protection are not
receiving the
support they need or what the American people expect and deserve.” The
proposed FY 2007 Forest Service budget is $4.86 billion, $182.6 million
(3.6%)
less than the FY 2006 enacted level. Most programs will see
funding
reductions; however, spending for timber sales will increase. The
agency
is also planning to sell off National Forest lands to meet budget
shortfalls,
and is continuing a review process that could lead to the replacement
of more
than 2/3rds of the Forest Service workforce by private companies.
"Included
in the Bush administration's FY07 budget is a proposal to auction off
304,000
acres of National Forest lands. These lands belong to current and
future
generations of Americans -- they should not be sold off to the highest
bidder
for development,” said Sean Cosgrove, Forest Policy Specialist at the
Sierra
Club. "If the federal government truly believes it's desperate for revenue, there are better ways to balance the books. Maybe it's time to reconsider the billions of dollars in subsidies and tax breaks that the administration and Congress awarded to the oil industry last year despite the fact that the industry had record profits,” said Cosgrove. Under the FY 2007 budget proposal the public will see: Increased Logging The timber sale program would receive a $30 million (10.7 percent) increase. Since FY 2000, the forest products line-item has increased from $216 million to the proposed $310 million in FY 2007 -- a 43 percent increase. The FY 2007 budget includes a $41 million increase (117 percent) in funding for timber sales under Northwest Forest Plan to log 800 million board feet of timber. Achieving that goal will require logging more old growth forests that the public wants to see protected. It proposes to nearly double the already controversial logging level of 415 million board feet sold in the region last year. In
addition, the Forest Service plans to divert $23 million for new timber
sales
from the Knutson-Vandenburg (KV)
Fund, which
formerly was used to pay for reforestation costs and the restoration of
logged
over forests. In FY 2006, the agency diverted $40 million in KV
funds it
had deemed “surplus.” Other sources of funding for the timber
sale
program in FY 2007 include $70 million from the Salvage Sale Fund, $3
million
from the Timber Sales Pipeline Restoration Fund, and $69.8 million for
logging
road construction and engineering support. The total estimated
timber
sale program cost by the agency is $475 million. In Land Sales The agency is proposing to sell over 300,000 acres of National Forest. The lands slated for auction include roadless forests, popular recreation sites, hunting and fishing areas, and public access points for lakes and rivers. This proposal has sparked widespread opposition and ignores the recent defeat of a similar proposal in Congress opposed by conservationists, hunters, anglers, local elected officials, businesses, governors, and Representatives and Senators of both parties. Failure to Maintain Roads The roads maintenance budget for high-clearance logging roads, which is already insufficient to address the $10 billion maintenance backlog, would be cut by $17 million, from $29.6 million in FY 2006 down to only $12.5 million, a 58 percent decrease. At that level the agency estimates only 15 percent of the high clearance roads will be considered maintained to applicable standards or properly stored for future use. Decommissioning of unneeded roads would also be decreased by $8.5 million. In addition, the agency plans to spend at least $69.8 million on the construction, reconstruction and engineering of new logging roads that it cannot afford to properly manage. Outsourcing Jobs The Forest Service is studying whether it should contract out 21,350 full-time jobs, including fire-fighting, law enforcement, environmental reviews and research. The outsourcing of fire-fighting support services has led to a substantial increase in costs for the government. Cuts to Community Protection Programs The Economic Action Program that provides funding for communities for economic diversification, assessments for wildfire risk and planning for defensible space would be eliminated. The State and Volunteer Fire Assistance programs, which provide for community protection planning and projects through both the State and Private Forestry and Wildland Fire Management programs would be cut by nearly $23 million – a 30 percent reduction. Most of the highest priority lands (85 percent) in need of treatment within the wildlands urban interface are on private, state and tribal lands, but most fuels reduction spending continues to be targeted at federal lands. Cuts to Recreation and Wildlife Programs Recreation and Wilderness Management would be cut by $10 million. The Forest Service is currently reviewing recreation sites across the country to identify places and facilities that can be closed to save money. In addition, only 12 percent of National Forest Wilderness Areas are currently being managed to Forest Service standards. The Wildlife and Fisheries budget would be cut by $9.3 million. |
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