FROM MELANIE GRIFFIN AT SIERRA CLUB, forwarded by Jane Clark at
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AWESOME NEWS ON FOREST WILDLANDS!
And the verdict is - 100%! We have obtained a copy of the announcement
being
made by the President this afternoon. No half-a-loaf here, it is all we
could have hoped for. President Clinton is making a major announcement
which
opens the door for permanent protection for all of the last remaining
roadless areas in America's National Forests. The Administration will be
initiating an Environmental Impact Statement on the management of all
inventoried roadless areas, including the possibility of a nationwide halt
to
road construction and all other damaging activities for 40 million acres
of
unprotected forests.
We wholeheartedly support the Administration's vision of full protection
for
these areas. A wide open comment period on roadless area protection gives
us
a historic opportunity to educate and mobilize citizens on behalf of our
wild
forest lands. We could not have asked for a better initiative. It will
allow review and comment on permanent protection for roadless areas in all
National Forests, including Alaska's Tongass, and on all damaging
activities,
not just roadbuilding.
The Club's Wildlands Campaign will be working with staff to develop a
strategy for generating massive public support for the Administration's
plan.
Stay tuned...
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DETAILS FROM THE MEMO YOU SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED LAST NIGHT:
1) Background
The Administration will announce that they will start an environmental
impact statement with review and comment periods on a range of
possible roadless area policies. The Administration announcement will
apply to all inventoried roadless areas on all National Forests in the
lower 48 states and the Chugach National Forest in AK and include the
Tongass National Forest to some degree. This process will especially
review road construction and logging in roadless areas but could also
include ORVs, mining or other destructive activities. The broader the
initial geographic and management scope, the more opportunity we have
to mobilize and focus public support for the protection of all
roadless areas. Protection of Forest Service wildlands is a major
part of our wildlands protection effort and Sierra Club is very
excited about this opportunity. This entire process will not be
completed until early summer of 2000 but it starts with the "Notice of
Intent" announcement on Oct. 13.
2) TALK POINTS
- Sierra Club supports the Clinton Administration's vision to ensure
protection for National Forest roadless areas. This is a great step
for the protection of our National Forests and to ensure healthy,
productive forests for future generations of Americans.
- Sierra Club believes that permanent protection should be given to
all National Forest roadless areas across the nation and applauds
today's announcement as the start of an effort to ensure permanent
protection.
- The roadless (or undeveloped forest) areas of America's National
Forests provide the best remaining unprotected habitat for fish and
wildlife, opportunities for backcountry recreation and solitude, and
clean drinking water, as well as opportunities for scientific study.
Roadless areas are the remnants of our nation's forest heritage and
deserve permanent protection. Sierra Club also supports an end to
commercial logging on the National Forests and a substantial
investment in restoring damaged areas.
- Over half of America's National Forests have already been been
logged, mined and exploited -- often at taxpayer expense. Less than
20 percent is permanently protected. It is time to permanently
protect these incredibly valuable remaining wild forests.
5) Questions and Answers
Q: What did the President announce?
A: The start of an environmental impact statement with review and
public comment periods on a range of possible National Forest roadless
area management policies.
Q: Why is this important?
A: This is a historic opportunity to permanently protect the best
remaining forest wildlands in the United States. This process could
decide the future of 60 million acres of America's public forests and
has great implications for fish and wildlife, recreation and our
natural heritage.
Q: What is a "roadless area?"
A: An area within National Forests that has not been damaged by roads,
logging or other activities but is not currently protected. These
areas vary in size and scale but can consist of a block of land over
10,000 acres in the Northern Rockies (but are not limited to such
large blocks) or a special ecologically sensitive area of 250 acres in
heavily fragmented National Forests in the east.
Q: What is so special about roadless areas?
A: Roadless areas often provide the best unprotected fish and wildlife
habitat, backcountry recreation and clean water supplies. Roadless
areas act as refuges for wildlife because they are often remote and
isolated areas surrounded by logging roads and exploitive use. They
are also the lands that are the most at risk to damaging activities.
Q: How many acres of roadless areas are there?
A: Of the 192 million acres of National Forests, roughly 60 million
acres of unprotected roadless areas remain on the National Forests.
The President's announced review will cover about 40 million acres of
"inventoried" areas. "Inventoried" generally refers to areas that are
5000 acres and larger but a growing body of science supports the
protection of smaller areas also. Another 20 million roadless acres
exist outside of "inventoried" areas. Thus, the President's
announcement could safeguard 40 million acres of prime forest that is
undisturbed, but also unprotected.
Q: What happens after the President's announcement?
A: The Forest Service will start an environmental impact statement
(EIS) that will review the future management of roadless areas. The
public will have several opportunities to comment including a 45 day
period starting shortly after the announcement. The EIS process will
likely be completed in early summer of 2000 after another public
comment period on draft alternatives for roadless area management.
Q: Why should the general public care about this announcement?
A: The National Forests are owned by all Americans no matter what part
of the country they live in. The public has the right and the
opportunity to influence the management of their public lands.
Recreation demand on the National Forests increases every year while
dependence on National Forest wood products decreases. Only 4% of the
wood and wood products used by Americans comes from the Natioanl
Forests. Commercial logging on National Forests has lost American
taxpayers $2 billion from 1992-97. National Forests also produce 38
jobs from recreation and fish and wildlife for every one logging job.
Continued subsidized logging, grazing and mining of the National
Forests is an environmental and economic concern for all Americans.
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