Monthly Archives: July 2012

Large timber sale ready to go

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Baker City Herald 7/13/2012
Excerpt:   “The first in a series of five large timber sales planned on the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest in eastern Baker County is slated to be offered to mills this summer.

A local environmental group, meanwhile, is considering whether to go to court to challenge the Snow Basin project, which is also designed to reduce the risk of wildfires on 28,500 acres in the southern Wallowa Mountains.    ….”

Read entire article at http://www.bakercityherald.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=82796&Itemid=31

House bill would cut environmental review time for mines

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Duluth News Tribune 7/13/2012
Excerpt:   “The U.S. House on Thursday moved to speed up the environmental process for mining projects and to apply those new rules to projects already in the works, such as the PolyMet copper mine proposed near Hoyt Lakes.

The legislation is aimed at strategic mineral projects on federal lands, limiting the review time, public input and legal challenges. “Strategic” is defined as having value for national defense, energy, economic security, trade balance and domestic manufacturing.

The bill, HR 4402, sponsored by Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., passed the House by a 256-160 margin.   ….”

Read entire article at http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/236802/

Northwest Forest Plan Working to Preserve Old-growth Forests and Clean Water

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Kansas City InfoZine 7/13/2012
Excerpt:    “National and regional conservation organizations have called on President Barack Obama to conserve the mature and old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest.

Kansas City, MO – infoZine – In a letter sent, American Bird Conservancy, Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Cornell Lab of Ornithology and over fifty other organizations sought to remind the President that “These magnificent forests provide clean drinking water for millions of Americans, a world-class tourism destination, sustainable forestry, and habitat essential to the survival of hundreds of species of wildlife.”     …..”

Federal judge explains decision to block Seeley-Swan timber sale

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Missoulian 7/12/2012
Excerpt:   “A federal judge filed a lengthy opinion Wednesday explaining his decision last month to block the Colt-Summit timber sale, ruling that the U.S. Forest Service’s analysis of the project’s cumulative effects on lynx – as required by the National Environmental Policy Act – was not sufficient.

The Forest Service will now have to conduct that analysis before the plan can move forward. The proposed timber sale is located in the Seeley-Swan Valley off of Montana Highway 83.    ….”

Read entire article at http://missoulian.com/news/local/federal-judge-explains-decision-to-block-seeley-swan-timber-sale/article_40ea781c-cbcd-11e1-9624-0019bb2963f4.html#

Bill Opening Logging of Tongass Old-Growth Heads to Senate

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Epoch Times 7/12/2012
Excerpt:    “There are 14 different bills packaged together in H.R. 2578, the Conservation and Economic Growth Act, many of which would roll back some form of environmental protection—particularly around state parks—opening up new areas for hunting, fishing, logging, and other activities where they are currently banned.

Among these is logging of old-growth in the Tongass National Forest, in Southeast Alaska. The forest is one of the world’s largest temperate rain forests, and is home to some of the world’s last old-growth forest. Old-growth forest is characterized by very large, very old trees and exceptional bio-diversity. Lumber cut from old-growth trees is also the most valuable.    ….”

Read entire article at http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/united-states/bill-opening-logging-of-tongass-old-growth-heads-to-senate-264290.html

U.S. Forest Service to bill $5.1 million state denies it owes

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Gadsden Times 7/12/2012
Excerpt:   “MONTGOMERY — The U.S. Forest Service soon will bill the Alabama Forestry Commission for unsubstantiated grant spending of $5.12 million that the state forester said isn’t owed.

Thelma J. Strong, the Forest Service’s acting chief financial officer, told state Forester Linda Casey in a June 29 letter that the federal agency soon will bill Alabama.

“The payment terms are on the bill; we have also provided an enclosure stipulating payment options for you to consider,” Strong’s letter said.

The Forest Service said the state will have 60 days to pay in full or agree to a payment plan. The state also may petition for a waiver of part of or all of the debt.

Casey said in an interview on Tuesday the federal action is a result of the U.S. Forest Service’s misunderstanding of Alabama’s grant accounting procedure. “We don’t owe anything,” she said.  …..”

Read entire article at http://www.gadsdentimes.com/article/20120711/NEWS/120719960?tc=ar

Fracking debate reaches Alabama with forest drilling plan

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CBS 42 TV (Birmingham)  7/10/2012
Excerpt:   ” HEFLIN, Ala. (WIAT) – Plans by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service to lease 43,000 acres of the Talladega National Forest for oil and gas development have people in surrounding counties voicing their opposition.

Heflin is one community where some people are frightened about hydraulic fracturing or “fracking.”

The Southern Environmental Law Center issued notice of intent to sue the Bureau of Land Management and the National Forest Service under the Endangered Species Act.  Keith Johnston with the SELC says they are concerned about the lack of specific information about how interested companies would access the oil and gas reserves under the forest land.   ……”

Read entire story and see video news clip at http://www.cbs42.com/content/localnews/story/Fracking-debate-reaches-Alabama-with-forest/YWljqeiVTUifL-lR6yNGlg.cspx?rss=1659

Lawsuit Launched to Protect Rare Alaskan Wolf

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Environmental News Network 7/11/2012
Excerpt:   ” ANCHORAGE, Alaska— The Center for Biological Diversity and Greenpeace notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Tuesday of their intent to file suit against the agency for delaying Endangered Species Act protection for the Alexander Archipelago wolf, a rare subspecies of gray wolf found only in the old-growth forests of southeast Alaska. In August 2011 the groups filed a petition to protect the wolves, which are at risk of extinction because of the U.S. Forest Service’s unsustainable logging and road-building practices in the Tongass National Forest. The Service, which was required by the Endangered Species Act to determine whether listing may be warranted within 90 days of the filing, has not yet responded to the petition.

Read entire CBD news release at http://www.enn.com/press_releases/4041

Obama orders health insurance for government’s seasonal firefighters

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Chicago Tribune 7/11/2012
Excerpt:   ” WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama has ordered his administration to offer health insurance to seasonal firefighters employed by the U.S. government, after an outcry over the lack of affordable coverage available to thousands of such workers.

Obama’s directive, confirmed by the White House on Tuesday, capped a 2-month-old electronic petition drive started by a member of a U.S. Forest Service “hot-shot” crew based in South Dakota that has drawn more than 125,000 signatures.   ….”

Read entire story at  http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-usa-obama-firefightersbre86a03q-20120710,0,4845063.story

National Forest Foundation Launches National Public Awareness Campaign to ‘Protect America’s Backyard’

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National Forest Foundation News Release 7/10/2012
Excerpt:   “MISSOULA, Mont., July 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – The National Forest Foundation (NFF) today announced the launch of its first national public awareness campaign to encourage Americans to get involved in the enjoyment and restoration of the nation’s forests and grasslands.

The campaign features a public service announcement, which will make its national primetime premiere on Discovery Communications’ Destination America network at 8:00 pm ET on Monday, July 16. In a PSA created by Discovery Communications, the talented children of the Public School 22 Chorus from Graniteville, Staten Island, highlight the importance and urgency of caring for America’s national forests.  …”

Read entire press release at http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/national-forest-foundation-launches-national-120000883.html