Heritage Forests Campaign Press Five-Point Roadless Plan at Hearing
12/10/99
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RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:
Title: Heritage Forests Campaign Presses 5-Point Roadless Plan At
Forest Service Public Hearing
Source: Heritage Forests Campaign via PRNewswire
Status: Copyright 1999, contact source for permission to reprint
Date: December 10, 1999
WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Forest Service should
apply a five-point yardstick for permanently protecting wild,
undeveloped ``roadless'' areas on the national forests, the Heritage
Forests Campaign urged at a public meeting here today.
``The time has come, and the public will is clear, to give permanent
protection to some 60 million acres of roadless areas in the national
forests by barring logging, mining, and roadbuilding on them,'' said
Ken Rait, director of the Heritage Forests Campaign. The Campaign is
a coalition of hundreds of citizen groups, educators, economists,
conservation scientists, and faith leaders.
In presenting its ``yardstick'', the Campaign told Forest Service
officials that it's final policy should encompass all national
forests without exception, include roadless areas 1,000 acres and
larger, provide for an open, public process, use the best currently
available science, and be able to withstand hostile political and
legal challenges in the future.
``We know from polling by Democrats and Republican pollsters alike,
that the American public is overwhelmingly in favor of more, not
less, protection of wild lands on its national forests,'' said Rait.
``President Clinton has offered up an historic opportunity to give
future generations the chance to enjoy the national forests in a
wild, unspoiled state,'' said Rait.
That sentiment was on display over and over in recent weeks at Forest
Service hearings around the country. A total of 10 regional meetings
were scheduled around the country with the final one here in the
Washington D.C. area. Previous meetings were held in Atlanta,
Portland, Sacramento, Albuquerque, Denver, Missoula, Juneau,
Milwaukee, and Salt Lake City. More than 2,000 people attended those
nine meetings, and the speaker after speaker supported President
Clinton's roadless protection proposal by a margin of more than nine-
to-one.
In the mid-Atlantic region, national forests such as the Thomas
Jefferson and George Washington in western Virginia, the Monongahela
in West Virginia, and the Allegheny in northwest Pennsylvania are far
and away favorite destinations for outdoor recreation year-round.
Nationwide, the national forests are the single largest source of
outdoor recreation for Americans. According to the Forest Service,
outdoor recreation associated with the national forests will
contribute an estimated $110 billion to the U.S. economy in 2000.
SOURCE: Heritage Forests Campaign