Let's make a special effort to contact Congressmen Ganske, Boswell and
Leach!

Please be sure to weigh in before 10:00 am EDT Tuesday.

Efforts to open up our National Forests to lawless logging -- thanks to the
congressional chainsaw caucus, the fight is expected to pass through  the
House Resources Committee tomorrow (Tuesday), then come for a vote before
the House.

There is still time to convince a critical mass of legislators that
this legislation must be stopped. The vote is expected to be VERY
CLOSE.   Every vote will count.

Please take a few minutes to contact your Representative and ask him to
OPPOSE any effort to open our forests to unrestricted logging under the
guise of fire management.

You can reach your Representative's Washington, D.C. office through the
Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121.  We've provided talking points, below.

****************************
BACKGROUND
The House measure (McInnis/Miller) is a legislative cousin of the Bush
Administration's deceptively named "forest health initiative."  It
would eviscerate the environmental laws that protect our public lands and
silence the public's voice in management decisions, all in the
name of fire protection.

Several House members (George Miller and Scott McInnis) have sponsored
a new version of legislation to implement the Bush fire plan.  This
new bill will do pretty much what the Bush Administration proposes to
do:

-Severely restricts our right to participate in management decisions
for our public lands;

-Eviscerate important environmental laws, such as the National
Environmental Policy Act, that protect our National Forests and other
public lands;

-Allow the logging of large, old, fire resistant trees in remote
backcountry areas far from the danger zone where people, their homes
and communities abut the forest.

The President's plan, and any House legislation that mimics it, won't
reduce fire danger to people or property.  That, as we've said before,
is not a fire protection plan, it's a logging plan.  America and its
forests deserve better.

That's why we need you to support legislation that would focus work
where it can do the most good around communities while not stifling
public involvement, waiving environmental protections, or inhibiting
judicial review.

POINTS TO MAKE

**Please urge your Representative to OPPOSE the McInnis/Miller
legislation that would:

-Open our forests to increased logging under the guise of fire
protection;

-Gut, waive or weaken environmental laws, such as the National
Environmental Policy Act;

-Limit in any way the public's right to participate in forest
management decisions, including appeals and litigation;

-Create so-called "stewardship" authority that would allow timber
companies to log big, old fire-resistant trees to pay for fuel
reduction work.

**Ask your Representative to SUPPORT legislation that would:

-Make protecting homes and communities the top priority for fire
prevention efforts; and,

-Ensure full public participation.  Citizens should have every
opportunity to comment on the use of public lands.  Public
participation in forest management decisions is the best way to deter
bad logging practices that increase fire risk.

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