U.S. forest chief quits calls for clear direction
10/12/96
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Subject: U.S. forest chief quits, calls for clear direction
Organization: Copyright 1996 by Reuters
Date: Thu, 10 Oct 1996 18:10:50 PDT
WASHINGTON (Reuter) - U.S. Forest Service chief Jack Ward Thomas,
caught in the middle of a dispute over how to manage the nation's
forests, Thursday said he was stepping down and, in a parting shot,
called for a clear mission for the agency.
``It's time for the American people through their elected
representatives to set down and make sure that we have a clear
mission and a clear mandate for what we are expected to do,'' Thomas
said at a news conference to announce his resignation.
The Forest Service, which oversees 191.6 million acres of national
forest and grassland, juggles a dual role as timber supplier and
conservationist. It has been in the hot seat in the battle between
environmentalists and the timber industry over logging in national
forests.
Thomas, the first wildlife biologist to head the agency after decades
of foresters at the helm, said he thought it was a particularly
contentious period for the Forest Service.
``The management of public lands has become more political. I think
that's what one would expect as the population increases and the
amount of public land remains the same or decreases,'' he said.
He said he was stepping down to meet a personal goal of retiring at
age 62. Thomas will leave the Forest Service in mid-November to take
a teaching job at the University of Montana. His successor has not
been named.
Thomas was praised by both sides of the debate, and environmentalists
and industry each blamed the other for his departure.
``I'm not surprised that he's leaving prematurely,'' said
Luke Popovich of the American Forest and Paper Association. ``He's a
man with whom we've disagreed on occasion, but also a man who has
tried to use science and professional forestry to make decisions, and
unfortunately he's working for an administration with little interest
in using science and informed forestry to make decisons,'' Popovich
said.
``Chief Thomas is a good person who was victimized by an agency that
continues to see its mission as log now, ask questions later,'' said
Marty Hayden, senior policy analyst with Sierra Club Legal Defense.
Agriculture Department Secretary Dan Glickman commended Thomas for
leading the Forest Service, which is part of the Agriculture
Department, through a difficult period.
``He has set in motion a series of fundamental changes in the way the
Forest Service does business. Thanks to Jack's vision and tenacity,
science and the principles of ecosystem management are the
cornerstones of Forest Service land management decisions,'' Glickman
said.
Thomas was appointed to the post in 1993 by President Clinton after
making a name for himself in the debate over how to save the spotted
owl from extinction. He played a leading role in studies that said
timber sales in the Pacific Northwest would have to be severely
reduced to save the owl.