Free Republic

Green with anger Marines like to brag that they're the best-trained military force in the world, but many didn't even know how to dig a foxhole when they hit Afghanistan last November. The reason? Rules pushed by enviros in California protecting endangered species prohibit the Marines from digging foxholes at Camp Pendleton near San Diego. "Sometimes," says a miffed Lt. Gen. Edward Hanlon of the greens, "they view our military bases as wildlife parks."

August 10, 2002 Florence fire jumps lines, makes tracks for Brookings By PAUL FATTIG Medford Florence fire jumps lines, makes tracks for Brookings Mail Tribune The dog days of August continue to hound firefighters battling the southern flank of the 331,375-acre Florence fire. As temperatures rise, residents in the hamlet of Wilderness Retreat along the Chetco River more than a half-dozen miles east of Brookings have been warned to evacuate on a moment’s notice if the fire flares up along its southwest flank. However, the fire is about three and a half miles from the scattered homes and as of...

Grants Pass- U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth said thinning national forests and restoring the natural role of fire in the ecosystem should be made top priority after he toured the largest active wildfire in the nation.The Florence Fire was threatening to become the largest wildfire in state history after expanding to 308,000 acres on the Siskiyou National Forest and adjoining lands in southwestern Oregon and Northern California.The largest wildfire in Oregon was the Tillamook Fire in 1933 which burned 311,000 in the northwest corner of the state.The threat to 17,000 people of the Illinois Valley has eased, but the...

Forest Service Chief Calls for Controlled Burns 08/09/2002 By JEFF BARNARD, Associated Press Writer U.S. Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth toured the Florence Fire Thursday and said it is imperative to thin national forests and restore the natural role of fire in the ecosystem. Bosworth said he wanted a firsthand look at the largest active wildfire in the nation, to see how well the national firefighting effort is dealing with what could become the worst wildfire season in history. "The most important thing we can do in a good part of the West is doing some thinning and reintroduce fire...

Friday, August 9, 2002 Task Force Says Some Grazing OK By Brendan Smith Journal Staff Writer     Range conditions in the Santa Fe National Forest are much better than reported by forest officials, and about half of the closed grazing allotments can still support cattle this year, the New Mexico Range Improvement Task Force reported Thursday.     The task force evaluation was requested by ranchers who were ordered last month to remove all or part of their herds from about 40 grazing allotments, which forest officials said had been damaged by severe drought and overgrazing.     However, the task force...

Friday, August 9, 2002 Groups Protest N.M. Drilling By Tania Soussan Journal Staff Writer     Provisions of a House energy bill now before congressional negotiators would allow unprecedented oil and gas drilling in sensitive areas of New Mexico, conservationists said this week.     A coalition of 17 groups — including the Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife, the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, the San Juan Citizen's Alliance and Forest Guardians — released a report detailing the potential impacts of the bill.     They called on Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., and others to kill several provisions in the energy bill passed by...