UPDATE:
PDF: Sept, 2009 - Forest Service Notification of Delay
PDF: Sept, 2009 - George Washington National Forest Plan Revision
PDF: March 27, 2009 - Virginia Ridge and Valley Act Passes Both Houses of Congress
PDF: Dec. 2005 - Tennes-Sierran: Focus on National Forests,
Energy and Transportation
Stimulus Projects Being Identified Now: Call Your Regional Office
From: Anne Martin, American Lands Alliance
Date: February 18, 2009
To: All Activists
Note: The BLM Numbers Have Been Updated The final $790 billion economic stimulus bill, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (HR 1) was signed into law yesterday by President Obama. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) are getting approximately $1.5 billion for watershed restoration, road maintenance and decommissioning, infrastructure improvements, and hazardous fuels reduction projects to be spent over the next two years. Here is the breakdown:
US Forest Service $650 million for Capital Improvement and Maintenance to be used for projects that maximize the number of jobs including reconstruction, capital improvement, decommissioning, and maintenance of roads, bridges and trails, deferred maintenance projects, abandoned mine clean up, and other related critical habitat, forest improvement, and watershed enhancement projects.
From the House Congressional Record: “The conference agreement provides flexibility to the agency in determining the allocation of this funding among various program activities and sub-activities. The conferees encourage that selection of individual projects be based on a prioritization process which weighs the capacity of proposals to create the largest number of jobs in the shortest period of time and which creates lasting value for the American public."
$500 million for Wildland Fire Management:
- $250 million for hazardous fuel reduction projects on federal lands
- $250 million for hazardous fuels reduction projects on state lands through grants to states
Up to $50 million for competitive grants to increase use of biomass from federal and non-federal forest lands. BLM (Note: BLM numbers have been updated, adding an additional $125 million) $125 million for Management of Lands and Resources to be used for projects that maximize the number of jobs including deferred maintenance, abandoned mine and well site remediation, road and trail maintenance, watershed improvement, and high priority habitat restoration.
$180 million for Construction to be used for priority projects that maximize the number of jobs including road, bridge and trail repair or decommissioning, deferred maintenance projects, facilities construction and renovation, and remediation of abandoned mines and well sites.
From the House Congressional Record (in both line items above): "The conference agreement provides flexibility to the agency in determining the allocation of this funding among various program activities and sub-activities. The conferees encourage that selection of individual projects be based on a prioritization process which weighs the capacity of proposals to create the largest number of jobs in the shortest period of time and which creates lasting value for the American public."
$15 million for Wildland Fire Management to be used for high priority hazardous fuels reduction projects on federal lands.
Click here to read the final bill language from the House Congressional Record (BLM is on page H1420 and Forest Service is on page H1421).
The Forest Service and BLM are moving very fast to get these "shovel ready" projects out the door - forest conservation groups need to engage: The Forest Service is asking each of the Regions to submit a list of priority projects to the Washington, DC office by February 20, 2009. The project information will be incorporated into a spending plan that the agency needs to submit within 30 days of the bill being signed into law. The Forest Service has to identify a subset of projects that can be underway within the first seven days of enactment. Click here to see the form Forest Service Chief Gail Kimball has sent to each Region and the list of project criteria.
Help make sure these funds are well spent: It is very important that conservation groups meet with their Forest Supervisors and Regional Foresters and communicate which projects and type of projects should be prioritized. These funds will be very useful to advance important projects but they will need your oversight. Please ask the Forest Service to prioritize:
- Road decommissioning, fish passage, and wildlife connectivity projects with the expenditures from the capitol improvement and maintenance account.
- Hazardous fuel reduction projects close to communities at risk and other important hazardous fuel projects.
Please coordinate with other organizations in your state and region to strongly request that:
- Each forest provide the public with a preliminary list of roads to be decommissioned to establish a fiscally and ecologically sustainable road system;
- Require that expenditures be prioritized on activities that further the elimination of unneeded roads and aid in rightsizing the roads system; and
- No hazardous fuels reduction projects be used for commodity production, be in roadless areas, or remove mature or old-growth forests.
To find your Forest Service Regional Office go to: www.fs.fed.us/contactus/regions.shtml. We have not seen similar directions or timelines from the BLM. Please call your BLM district to find out plans for project implementation. To find your BLM district office go to: www.blm.gov/wo/st/en.html.
Additional Info:
PDF: Feb12, 2009 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-HOUSE pt.1
PDF: Feb 12, 2009 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-HOUSE pt.2
PDF: Feb 20, 2009 Forest Service Reply
Forest Service Moves One Step Closer To New Planning Rule
Preferred alternative for Final Environmental Impact Statement of the
2008 Planning Rule is released
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7, 2008 The U.S. Forest Service has moved one step closer to finalizing a
new planning rule that will engage the public in the development, implementation and monitoring of forest plans. The release of
the agencys Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the 2008 Planning Rule identifies the Forest Services preferred
alternative and is a procedural move towards the implementation of a new planning rule.
The planning rule is important because it brings people together with the Forest Service to develop land management plans which provide the framework for all resource and recreation management on national forests and grasslands nationwide.
The process of developing a forest plan is a public service that ensures a great future for national forests on behalf of the American public, stated Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief of the National Forest System. We are proud of this vitally important planning process and yet we recognize that improvements were needed to emphasize more public collaboration, to be more adaptive to changing environmental conditions, and to ensure the protection of wildlife. The preferred alternative encompasses all of these elements.
After receiving and considering over 79, 000 comments on a draft environmental impact statement, the Forest Service developed. Alternative M is their preferred alternative. The alternative is based on public comment and builds on the 1982, 2002, and 2005 Planning Rules and years of professional forest planning experience. The preferred alternative provides extensive public participation and offers an approach to quickly respond to changing natural resource conditions.
This preferred alternative expands public involvement by requiring early and frequent public dialogue in all phases of the development, implementation and monitoring of land management plans, stated David Dillard, Director of Ecosystem Management Coordination. This exceeds National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements for public involvement. Our goal is to create strong, relevant conversations that address local issues as well as incorporate the latest available science and technology in the plans. Additionally, all plans and projects developed under those plans are expected and required to comply with NEPA.
The preferred alternative is responsive to changing conditions because adaptability is built in the approach. Plans will be able to adjust more quickly to changing conditions such as those brought about by climate change. By doing so, they will better protect resources of the forest and address the concerns of the surrounding communities.
Alternative M requires improved monitoring and sustainability standards for wildlife protection as well as the requirement for an Environmental Management System to be in place prior to the implementation of approved projects. In addition, Forest Service Timber Policy will not be affected by the preferred alternative because resource protections for timber management activities have not changed.
The FEIS will now be sent to the Department of Agriculture for a decision on a final rule for forest planning. The Record of Decision and final rule will be published in the Federal Register in approximately 30 days. Additional information on the planning process can be found at: http://www.fs.fed.us/emc
The mission of the USDA Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the nations forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land and is the largest forestry research organization in the world.
View the Southern Forest Future Project Timeline: www.srs.fs.usda.gov/futures/timeline
The Southern Forest Futures Project is committed to conducting an open process that engages and is responsive to its stakeholders and the public in general. While the assessment will be grounded in science and its reports evaluated through peer review by experts, the questions we seek to answer and the methods we use to get there must also bear the test of public scrutiny and engagement. For public input to work, we need to make the process as transparent as possible and will do so through several means: