From Jerry Neff, perhaps Iowa's most articulate spokesperson on forest issues... Letters to the Editor By REGISTER READERS September 5, 2004 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Putting timber cutters ahead of recreation The Bush administration has announced plans to revoke the Roadless Conservation Rule, a plan that protected wilderness areas from logging and motorized use in our national forests, and replace it with a burdensome process whereby governors must petition the federal government to protect roadless wild forests in their states. Although Iowa is not home to any of our national forests, these areas offer untold economic and recreation benefits for the entire country. Nationally, recreation, including hunting and fishing in national forests, contributes at least $111 billion to the gross domestic product each year, and generates 2.9 million jobs a year. These uses contribute 31 times more value to the economy and generate 38 times more jobs than the U.S. Forest Service's money-losing timber-sale program. By eliminating the wildly popular roadless rule, the Bush administration is putting the interests of the timber industry ahead of the American people and their wild forests - the forests that provide wildlife habitat, clean water and prevent flooding. Gerald Neff Sierra Club's National Forest Protection Committee Pleasant Valley IA ___________________________________________________ Lyle R. Krewson Sierra Club Conservation Organizer 6403 Aurora Avenue #3 Des Moines, IA 50322-2862 515/276-8947 515/238-7113 - cel [log in to unmask] ___________________________________________________ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp