Posted on 07/30/2004 3:06:01 PM PDT by Graybeard58
Among the last actions taken by Bill Clinton before leaving office was to outlaw road construction in virgin national forests. Most affected were Alaska and 11 Western states with 97 percent of the 58.5 million acres of affected roadless tracts. The rule was hailed by conservation groups and decried by some Western states.
The Bush administration is proposing to replace Mr. Clinton's rule with a policy that gives states a greater voice in the management of national forests, thereby adding flexibility.
James L. Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environment Quality, said "one-size-fits-all was creating some real issues ... Can we construct a process that will be respectful of local needs and still let us put an important focus on conservation of roadless areas? That's what this is about."
Balancing nature and human endeavor is a goal reasonable people recognize. Extreme conservationists do not seem to agree with the precept. One consequence of unyielding preservation demands is a good deal of trees go up in flames rather than being judiciously harvested to supply lumber to an ever-hungry construction industry.
Most Western Republican governors have expressed strong support for the new policy. New Mexico's Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson and Allison Dobson, press spokesman for the John Kerry presidential campaign, were sharply critical. Mr. Richardson said the president "wants to drill, drill, build, build." Ms. Dobson found it "unfortunate that George Bush has chosen to ignore the needs of not only the wildlife, but the many Americans who enjoy recreation in these areas."
Mr. Connaughton retorted, "They are national lands for a public purpose." He added most who use the forests are "state citizens" who have an interest in the environmental health and the economic well-being of their region. Their perspective deserves more consideration than the Clinton rules provided.
Good. Roads can be effective fire blocks. The whole world watches our forests burn each fall. Besides, I think it is bogus that the feds claim to own half of the west.
Yup. Hopefully, that's going to be addressed in the second term.
Kerry will use this issue as campaign fodder to rally his eco terrorists against Bush. W's now destroying the last remaining forests.
And in the same breath, promote the natural burning of the forests as beneficial to their preservation. The natural burn theory replaces the logic of managing our forests for future generations.
We had to burn the forest in order to save it. Has a nice Vietnam ring to it, don't ya think?
Aw, come on. We can talk about it can't we?
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