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WORLDWIDE
FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS
Americans
Overwhelmingly Support Clinton's Forest Protection Proposal
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Forest Networking a Project of Forests.org
http://forests.org/ -- Forest
Conservation Archives
http://forests.org/web/ -- Discuss Forest
Conservation
1/30/00
OVERVIEW
& COMMENTARY
When
will American politicians wake up, and realize that the public
overwhelmingly
favors forest protection? 76 percent of
Americans
support
Clinton's plan to preserve remaining roadless wilderness
lands
in America's national forests. Yet many
major political
figures
just don't get it. Here is a clue: protecting forests and
the
environment wins votes.
g.b.
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TEXT STARTS HERE:
Title: Clinton's plan to protect forests wins
backing
Source: Reuters
Status: Copyright 2000, contact source for
permission to reprint
Date: January 24, 2000
WASHINGTON
- Americans overwhelmingly support President Clinton's
proposal
to protect 54 million acres of national forests from logging
and
commercial development, according to a survey released on Friday.
Some 76
percent of 1,000 registered voters surveyed said they favoured
the
plan to preserve most of the remaining wild roadless areas in
America's
national forests.
American
Viewpoint, a leading Republican polling firm, also found that
62
percent of Republicans included in the survey supported the Clinton
plan to
restrict logging, new roads, mining and oil drilling.
Most
public recreation would be allowed on the protected territory.
"The
survey confirms that Americans, no matter what their political
affiliation,
strongly believe in protecting our national forests,"
said
Ken Rait, director of the Heritage Forests Campaign.
The
roadless issue in America's national forests has been a growing
issue
filtering into this year's presidential election. Critics of
the
policy change say it will devastate economies dependent on the
forests.
Two
prominent New Hampshire politicians - Gov. Jeanne Shaheen and Sen.
Judd
Gregg - earlier this month denounced Clinton's plan because it
would
lock up a large section of the White Mountain National Forest
and
hurt local businesses. Shaheen is a Democrat while Gregg is a
Republican.
New
Hampshire is a politically critical state as Republicans and
Democrats
prepare for the first presidential primary of the election
season
on Feb. 1.
Several
Democratic and Republican senators have blasted the Clinton
plan
for failing to include Congress in federal land management
decisions
that affect the logging, paper, mining and oil industries.
They
have threatened to cut the budget of the U.S. Forest Service,
which
is preparing to issue a proposed rule with details of the plan
this
spring.
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