Posted on 07/06/2002 8:58:28 AM PDT by madfly
Udall calls for Hayman inquiry panel
Probe sought to ensure blaze won't be used to 'overlog,' build roads in forests to cut fire risk
By M.E. Sprengelmeyer, News Washington Bureau
June 27, 2002
WASHINGTON --
Rep. Mark Udall has called for a special panel to investigate the Hayman Fire so the case is not used to justify widespread logging of the nation's public forests.In a letter to U.S. Forest Service chief Dale Bosworth, Udall said a panel including forestry experts, environmentalists and logging industry officials should use the 137,000-acre blaze six miles northwest Lake George as a case study to steer policy.
The fear is that a less diverse panel, or the Forest Service alone, might use the case to expand routine fuel-reduction programs into widespread logging, said Udall spokesman Lawrence Pacheco.
"The Hayman Fire should not be used as an excuse to overlog and build roads in the forest to reduce fire risk," Pacheco said. "There can be lessons in the Hayman Fire, where proper treatment in the red zones can reduce fire risk and create a forest condition where fires can be more manageable, less destructive."
Various lawmakers have accused environmentalists of putting up unnecessary barriers to block fuels-reduction programs in the national forests and roadless areas.
One of the most outspoken critics is Rep. Scott McInnis, R-Grand Junction, chairman of the House subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health.
Josh Penry, staff director for McInnis' committee, said Udall's idea is worth considering.
"The more science, the more information, the better," Penry said. "But the overwhelming anecdotal evidence we're hearing from the field is that in those areas (where fuels-reduction programs were in place), the fire dropped to the ground and the fire was easier to contain."
As of Wednesday, the Hayman Fire was 77 percent contained but still burning in the Pike-San Isabel National Forest near Lake George.
A portion of the fire had burned in areas that had been treated with small fuels-reduction projects. Udall said that when the crisis is over, the panel could evaluate how the fire spread through treated and untreated areas.
"Its purpose would be to focus on the future, rather than to attempt to assign blame for past events," Udall wrote.
In other fire news out of Washington on Wednesday, McInnis introduced a bill he hopes will reduce red tape to let foreign governments lend their firefighters to the efforts in the United States.
A 1988 law allows federal officials to enter agreements with foreign organizations willing to send firefighters, but some countries have balked because they worry their firefighters could be sued in the event of an accident. McInnis' bill would have foreign firefighters considered federal employees, making the government liable for lawsuits.
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Section Title/Description | View/Download Options |
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Title Page , Nondiscrimination Statement, and Table of Contents | pdf - 325k html |
Executive Summary | pdf - 275k html |
Chapter 1 - Introduction to National Roadless Protection Rulemaking This chapter includes two main sections: National Roadless Protection General Remarks, and Issue Identification. |
pdf - 615k html |
Chapter 2 - Process, Planning, Policies, and Law This chapter includes six main sections: National Forest Management Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Interim Direction, Other Policy Concerns, Appeals and Litigation, and Other Legal Concerns. |
pdf - 1.12MB html |
Chapter 3 - Public Involvement This chapter includes three main sections: Informed Decisionmaking (Question 1), Working Together (Question 2), and Competing Values/Limited Resources (Question 9). |
pdf - 1.91MB html |
Chapter 4 - Roadless Area Values This chapter includes five main sections: Characteristics of Roadless Areas, Environmental Values, Social Environment and Values, Economic Environment and Values, and Heritage Resources. |
pdf - 2.76MB html |
Chapter 5 - Forest Management This chapter includes four main sections: Forest Management, Activities (Question 7), Designating Areas (Question 8), and Agency Organization and Funding. |
pdf - 3.2MB html |
Chapter 6 - Protecting Forests, Communities, and Property Access This chapter includes three main sections: Protecting Forests (Question 3), Protecting Communities (Question 4), and Protecting Access to Property (Question 5). |
pdf - 2.01MB html |
Appendices |
pdf - 3.91MB html |
Udall wants to put many questions off limits.
They might be too embarassing for the envirowackos!
Right in line with the UN's Agenda 21, Man and the Biosphere, Wild Lands, etc. Funny how that happens.
These people lining up either as useful idiots for such policies ... or doing it with a will ... are domestic enemies of all we hold dear.
Josh Penry, staff director for McInnis' committee, said Udall's idea is worth considering.
McInnis is my Congressman.....he is great, imo. Votes sensibly. I went to college with Penry, here in GJ. He's pretty conservative, so I'm a bit surprised that he thinks Udall's idea is at all valuable. The Governor of AZ is fuming at the environmentalists and obstructionists in government.....and I believe she was sincere in her condemnation, which was very strong. Mother nature would have our forests burn more frequently......so the least we can do is have controlled burning and logging......which can be a good thing if done correctly, imho.
Gov. Hull has memories of the beauty of that part of Arizona, from teaching school on the Indian Reservation, further north, in the 1960's. Perhaps this accounts for her welcomed vocal outrage. She always looks mean, but especially pissed off at the news conference. ABOUT TIME Jane.
Its purpose would be to focus on the future, rather than to attempt to assign blame for past events," Udall wrote.
Udall wants to put many questions off limits.
Udall is no stranger to the world of public service. His father, Morris "Mo" Udall, served in the U.S. House of Representatives for 30 years and ran for the Democratic nomination for President in 1976. His uncle, Stewart, is widely revered for his accomplishments while serving as Secretary of the Interior under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.
link: http://wwwa.house.gov/markudall/bio.htm
Is he related to the ultra lib Mo Udall?
Thanks again! People like you make Free Republic so great with your personal knowledge of these rats.
Who cares if some people don't "like" him? He's doing a superb job and I RESPECT him!!!
No arguments here. He's doing great and I'm glad he's there, gaining seniority....which, if term limits applied, he'd be out of office, and all the other congressman/women, who'd gain seniority from their states, would be sitting as the top dog on committees. Term limits are not good, for that reason, unless ALL states have term limits.
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