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Dear
Friend,
Around
Oregon
and
throughout
the
West,
another
fire
season
is
well
underway.
Overstocked,
diseased,
and
bug-infested
forests
are
at
risk
of
the
massive
and
catastrophic
wildfire
that
clog
our
air
with
smoke
and
threaten
our
streams.
All
this
while
our
mills
are
starving
for
a
reliable
supply
of
timber
and
people
need
jobs.
It’s
clear
the
status
quo
isn’t
working
for
our
forests,
our
communities,
or
our
environment.
We
can
do
better.
The
U.S.
House
has
passed
a
bipartisan
bill—the
Resilient
Federal
Forests
Act— that
would
help
reduce
the
threat
of
catastrophic
wildfires
and
bring
active
management
back
to
our
federal
forests.
Through
active
management,
we
can
clean
up
our
forests,
prevent
these
unnaturally
large
fires,
protect
our
air,
and
put
people
back
to
work
in
our
forested
communities.
Our
bill
puts
into
place
much
needed
reforms
to
federal
forest
policy.
For
example,
the
bill
repeals
the
arbitrary
and
outdated
prohibition
on
harvesting
trees
over
21
inches
in
diameter
on
national
forests
in
eastern
Oregon.
“Temporarily”
put
in
place
in
1997,
this
rule
still
hasn’t
been
removed
20
years
later!
This
flawed,
one-size-fits-all
rule
illustrates
just
how
broken
federal
forest
management
has
become.
The
restriction
greatly
limits
forest
managers’
ability
to
address
site
specific
needs
of
the
forest
on
the
ground
and
has
only
served
to
further
tie
up
projects
in
endless
appeals
and
litigation.
Our
plan
also
gives
the
Forest
Service
greater
flexibility
to
move
quickly
on
projects
to
reduce
the
threat
of
fire
around
our
rural
communities,
streamlining
projects
developed
through
local
counties’
community
wildfire
protection
plans.
Right
now,
after
a
fire,
the
Forest
Service
is
able
to
reforest
less
than
three
percent
of
areas
burned.
This
plan
would
accelerate
the
removal
of
timber
after
a
fire
(to
help
pay
for
replanting),
and
requires
a
large
percent
of
the
area
impacted
be
reforested
within
five
years.
Just
like
we
do
after
other
natural
disasters,
we
ought
to
clean
up
and
rebuild
after
wildfires.
As
we
saw
earlier
this
summer
on
the
Buckskin
Fire
in
southern
Oregon,
failing
to
clean
up
only
leads
to
future
fires
in
old
burn
scars
full
of
fallen
trees
and
snag
that
prove
difficult
and
too
dangerous
for
firefighters.
This
bill
also
cuts
costs
and
streamlines
rules
for
timber
production
on
legislation
pertaining
to
Oregon’s
unique
O&C
Lands.
The
Bureau
of
Land
Management
(BLM)
recently
unveiled
new
management
plans
for
these
lands
that
would
fall
short
of
the
needs
of
local
communities
for
a
reliable
supply
of
timber
to
fund
essential
local
services
like
schools,
roads,
and
law
enforcement.
The
bill
tells
the
BLM
to
go
back
to
the
drawing
board,
and
propose
new
plans
to
actually
provide
sustainable
timber
production
for
Oregon’s
rural
communities
as
required
by
law.
Finally,
the
endless
cycle
of
“fire
borrowing”—forcing
the
federal
government
to
use
wildfire
prevention
funds
to
pay
for
fighting
fire—is
ended
under
this
bill.
It
fixes
how
we
pay
to
fight
fire
by
allowing
the
Forest
Service
to
apply
for
FEMA
disaster
funds
to
pay
for
firefighting.
This
treats
wildfire
as
the
natural
disasters
they
are,
similar
to
hurricanes
or
tornados.
The
Resilient
Federal
Forests
Act
will
improve
the
health
of
our
forests
and
our
rural
economies.
During
the
last
session
of
Congress,
the
House
twice
passed
bipartisan
legislation
I
worked
on
to
reform
federal
forest
policy.
The
Senate
failed
to
take
up
forestry
legislation.
However,
with
new
leadership
in
that
body
I’m
hopeful
that
the
Senate
will
take
meaningful
action
on
forestry
legislation.
We
cannot
let
this
opportunity
pass
us
by
again.
Our
forested
communities
have
already
waited
too
long.
Now
is
the
time
to
act.
You
deserve
your
chance
have
your
say
about
this
issue.
Do you support a plan that lets us actively manage federal forests to prevent wildfire or do you think it'd be better if we just left them alone?
|  Active management
Leave them alone
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Best
Regards,
Greg
Walden
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