| Vol. 6 | No. 1 | Winter 2003 |
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Dialogue
Why are environmental organizations opposed to the Bush administration's Healthy Forests Initiative? It sounds like a promising way to reduce the risk of catastrophic fires. |
In recent years, fires have devastated federal forests of the western United States. These fires can grow out of control due to dense underbrush that provides the fire with fuel. Environmentalists and ecologists agree that thinning forests is necessary to help prevent these fires, but the provisions outlined in the Healthy Forests Initiative would do more harm than good.
Commercial timber companies would be contracted to thin forests in exchange for the trees they cut down, so there is a financial incentive to cut down larger, more valuable trees that actually help keep fires from spreading. There are also no restrictions placed on where thinning could occur; so, rather than protecting communities at risk, timber companies could harvest in remote areas where fires pose no immediate threat to people or property.
In addition, this proposal would exempt forest management agencies from important requirements such as environmental reviews and scientific and public input. The Bush administration hopes to avoid these laws by claiming it is acting quickly to address forest fires. However, without these safeguards, the Healthy Forests Initiative would do little to ensure that forest management projects reduce the risk of devastating fires while maintaining the health and diversity of our national forests and rangelands.
Also in this issue of Earthwise:
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How Big Is Your Footprint?
