Forests in the News©
NATIONAL NEWS
Your comments needed on commercial outfitter policy Comments due March 20, 2008, Wild Wilderness
NY Times on Rec Fees, Wild Wilderness
Who pays for Aspen backcounty rescues? - Unlike other places, those saved don't have to pay, Aspen Times
Sawtooth NF: Forest Service raises camping fees near Fairfield - The nightly fees will increase by at least 50 percent to align fee structures in the area and pay for costs, Idaho Statesman
Valles Caldera faces staff cuts - Funding zeroed out - USDA cut the Valles Caldera National Preserve out of its Forest Service budget request to Congress this week, Los Alamos Monitor
War spending hurts again at home - Forest Service shortchanged in Bush budget, planning on increased fees, Idaho Mountain Express editorial
U.S. House OKs bill benefiting club's rifle range - Forest, Bountiful to swap land so Lions Club can upgrade, Deseret Morning News
Congress to Take First Look At Off-Road Ravages on Public Land, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
Multiple resource management is focus of new technical report, USFS Pacific Northwest Research Station

Mining claims rise near Western cities - Fueled by higher metal prices, the upswing in stakes on federal land spurs calls for more local say on industry encroachment, Los Angeles Times

Biologist who took a stand passes away at 48 - Longtime friends and colleagues gathered to build a casket for Glen Ith in Petersburg this week. Ith was a Forest Service Wildlife Biologist who became prominent in recent years for successfully challenging some of his agency's timber-sale work on the Tongass. Those close to Ith knew him as a quiet, family man whose love and respect for the outdoors guided his personal and professional life. He passed away unexpectedly this week of Sudden Cardiac Death, which is when the heart abruptly stops. Ith was 48 years old. KFSK Radio - Petersburg

Big Picture Recreation - What's the Future: National Forest Recreation Association, Wild Wilderness
Forest fines increase, but will they work? - Stiffer penalties only part of the answer to deterring illegal use of public lands, Summit Daily News
Don't starve the Forest Service, Writers on the Range at High Country News
FLAME Act: HR 5541, Library of Congress
Better way to fund firefighting, Helena Independent Record

Another Call for Civility, Bozeman Daily Chronicle op-ed
Roadless Without A Map - Hazy Horizon for West's Roadless Lands - Roadless areas 'protected' in 2001 still at risk, The New West

Forestry: Protected by bars - A groundbreaking computerised forest-protection system is up and running in Liberia, Economist
Smithsonian announces Global Forest Carbon Research Initiative, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

The Last of the Best - Diverse stakeholders with competing interests wrangle over the future of the Tongass National Forest, Forest Magazine
Tension in the Ranks: The Last of the Best, Forest Magazine
By the Numbers: The Last of the Best, Forest Magazine
Beyond Pulp: The Last of the Best, Forest Magazine
Doing the Right Thing: The Last of the Best, Forest Magazine

Tracking down lumber thieves, San Francisco Chronicle
Weyerhaeuser, Chevron look at nonfood source for biofuels - Companies form joint venture called Catchlight, Post-Intelligencer

GE Trees, Cellulosic Ethanol & Destruction of Forest Biological Diversity - Beyond agrofuels: Cellulosic ethanol is not the solution, World Rainforest Movement
The open letter, World Rainforest Movement
Growing networking against GE trees, World Rainforest Movement
Increased poverty, land conflicts and deforestation: The Asian Development Bank's plantations record - The Bank should stop financing industrial tree plantations, World Rainforest Movement
WORLD NEWS
Brazil goes to war against logging, Nature at Forests.org
Predator of the world's largest macaw key to its survival - Hyacinth Macaw requires a very specific home: a pre-existing hole in a mature Manduvi tree, Mongabay News

Uganda's Batwa communities: Climate Change Worsens Old Injustices, Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO)
Gorilla rangers face execution threat - Charcoal for fuel destroying forest, BBC News
Ending Charcoal blog, Wildlife Direct
DCE calls for measures to check illegal logging, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation
Hundreds of families have illegally invaded Mau Forest, posing grave danger to the environment and wildlife - Kenya poll chaos threat to survival of key water source, The Nation

51.54 billion trees planted by ordinary Chinese in 27 years - Tree-planting Day March 12, People's Daily
Alarm at pulp mill 'thirst', Mercury - The Voice of Tasmania



Forestry: Protected by bars - A groundbreaking computerised forest-protection system is up and running in Liberia, Economist

Kyrgyz Greens Warn of Deforestation Risks - Ecologists warn that if logging continues unabated in Kyrgyzstan, the whole of Central Asia will face dire consequences, IWPR News

Logging Giant AbitibiBowater involved in risky business - Greenpeace reacts to release of AbitibiBowater financial results, CNW Telbec
Threat to rain forests isn't easing, San Francisco Chronicle

A Forest Falls, and Sea Turtles Die, NY Times dot earth blog

Increased poverty, land conflicts and deforestation: The Asian Development Bank's plantations record - The Bank should stop financing industrial tree plantations, World Rainforest Movement
CONGRESS & WASHINGTON
Oversight Hearing On "The Impacts Of Unmanaged Off-Road Vehicles On Federal Land"' - See testimony from 9 witnesses, Committee on Natural Resources
Congress to Take First Look At Off-Road Ravages on Public Land, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
Key Witness at Off-Road Congressional Hearing Pulled, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility
Read the un-delivered testimony of Deputy Alan Franzoy, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility [pdf]
Read the testimony of Rangers for Responsible Recreation, Committee on Natural Resources [pdf]
Off-Highway Vehicle Exec Tells Congress Active Trail Management is Working, National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council
View Archived Webcast of the Forest Service Budget Hearing, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
Valles Caldera faces staff cuts - Funding zeroed out: USDA cut the Valles Caldera National Preserve out of its Forest Service budget request to Congress this week, Los Alamos Monitor

Senators hear case for mine cleanup, Independent Record AP
Opening Statement: Mining Law Reform -- Abandoned Mines, Uranium, U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Hardrock Mining: Issues Relating to Abandoned Mine Lands and Uranium Mining - A dozen testimonies, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
Domenici: Abandoned Mines Underscore Need for Reform - Senator Notes Need for Robust Uranium Mining Industry, Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
View Archived Webcast of Hardrock Mining Hearing, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee

Hearing: Testimony regarding old-growth forest science, policy and management in the Pacific Northwest region, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee: Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests
View Archived Webcast of Old-Growth Hearing, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
Congress moves closer to preserving Western beauty - It is considering designating millions of US-owned acres as a permanent conservation system, Christian Science Monitor
Full Committee Hearing April 1st to consider S. 2593, a bill to establish a program at the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior to carry out collaborative ecological restoration treatments for priority forest landscapes on public land, Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

FLAME Act: HR 5541, Library of Congress
Better way to fund firefighting, Helena Independent Record
General Mining Law: Digging up reform, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Kaibab NF: A grand place to mine?, The Keene Sentinel - Pew/EWG op-ed
NORTHERN REGION (Region 1):
Montana and Northern Idaho
Rangers, others clear trees from wind-ravaged area - 100-mph gusts blew down thousands of trees along Beartooth front, Billings Gazette
Park trespassing raises flags, Bozeman Daily Chronicle

Another Call for Civility, Bozeman Daily Chronicle op-ed

Pine-beetle lecture Wednesday night, Helena Independent Record
Of fires and forests, Montana Standard
Better way to fund firefighting, Helena Independent Record

Judge angrily scolds court, and it responds - 9th Circuit case - Sen. Gordon Smith's brother sparks a rare review of a timber sale ruling that he said went much too far, The Oregonian
ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION (Region 2):
Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming
Who pays for Aspen backcounty rescues? - Unlike other places, those saved don't have to pay, Aspen Times
Coalition hopes to add 700,000 acres of wilderness in Colorado - Hidden Gems campaign pushes designation for more lands, Summit Daily News
Breck balks at land swap, Summit Daily News
Mountain biking gets pinched - Forest Service wants to close Telluride and Ridge trails to biking this summer, The Daily Planet - Telluride, CO
Collapsed bridge creates boating hazard on Piedra - Forest Service is making plans to remove the bridge, Durango Herald
Residents consider reviving Cuchara ski area - Forest Service revoked permit, The Pueblo Chieftain

Agencies extend San Juan plan's comment period to April 11 - Land-management draft proposes 55,000 acres of new wilderness, Durango Herald
Pawnee burn postponed, Greeley Tribune

Protecting big game habitat in Browns Canyon - We, the hunters, anglers, and NRA members of Colorado support the proposed Browns Canyon Wilderness, Rocky Mountain News

SOUTHWESTERN REGION (Region 3):
Arizona and New Mexico
Santa Fe County: Community Wildfire Protection Plan, SWCA Environmental Consultants [pdf]
Valles Caldera faces staff cuts - Funding zeroed out - USDA cut the Valles Caldera National Preserve out of its Forest Service budget request to Congress this week, Los Alamos Monitor

Groups sue over drilling near Grand Canyon - A British mining firm is allowed to drill at as many as 39 locations in Kaibab National Forest, Los Angeles Times
Uranium Mine Exploration Threatens Grand Canyon, Center for Biological Diversity
Meetings on mine next week, Arizona Daily Star

Keep Off-Road Vehicles on Private Land, Albuquerque Journal op-ed
Traditionally Speaking - USFS land swap proposed to avoid mining law, Apache Moccasin at Globe, Arizona Silver Belt
Slash pile on 4,300 acres to be burned - Smoke will drift into Payson from massive Forest Service burns for next three weeks, Payson Roundup
Lincoln NF: Mining threatens Capitan wellhead protection area - Mining means pet, calf losses, Ruidoso News
It's Time to Dig in and Reform Mining, Albuquerque Journal op-ed
Hiking season approaches - Adventure abounds in local mountains of Lincoln NF, Alamogordo Daily News
UNM students to track wolves, Silver City Sun-News

Kaibab NF: A grand place to mine?, The Keene Sentinel - Pew/EWG op-ed
Saguaros under siege from non-native plant - Buffelgrass threatening symbol of statehood, Tucson Citizen
INTERMOUNTAIN REGION (Region 4):
Southern Idaho, Nevada, Utah, and SW Wyoming
Dixie National Forest gets OK to thin timber - Utah Environmental Congress likely to challenge project again, Salt Lake Tribune
Wilderness for all, Salt Lake Tribune letter from U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey
Sawtooth NF: Forest Service raises camping fees near Fairfield - The nightly fees will increase by at least 50 percent to align fee structures in the area and pay for costs, Idaho Statesman

Mining legal battle brewing, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Large Crowd Voices Wilderness Concerns, Smith Valley Views -Reno Gazette-Journal
We are not ready for Land Bills, Reno Gazette-Journal

Wilderness proposals cause concern, Mineral County Independent
'Alarmist and extreme', Las Vegas Review-Journal editorial
It's Jarbidge, not Jarbridge, Reno Gazette-Journal

PACIFIC SOUTHWEST (Region 5): California
Too little done to protect endangered species, lawsuit says - Environmental groups target federal agencies over policies covering national forest lands, Riverside Press-Enterprise
Suit Filed to Protect Endangered Species on Southern California National Forests - Forest Plans Disregard Rarest Plants and Animals, Center for Biological Diversity
'Green' storage in forests may be going up in smoke - Study by Bonnicksen: Wildfires emit more global warming gases than thought, Sacramento Bee
Tahoe NF: Open versus closed - Ski resort boundary policy often comes down to whether they're on public or private land, Sierra Sun at Nevada Appeal
Officials show tree cutters no tolerance - At Lake Tahoe and other places across the country, people are cutting trees to improve their view, Reno Gazette-Journal
Trees torn limb from limb - Stop the carnage caused by chain saw operators running amok in L.A., Los Angeles Times

Commercial tours nixed, Forest Magazine Inner Voice
PG&E to fund forest projects, San Francisco Chronicle

Tracking down lumber thieves, San Francisco Chronicle
Getting clear with Sierra Pacific Industries - FSC & Forest Ethics confuse the issue of forest protection, San Francisco Chronicle
Bringing forests 'up to date'?, San Francisco Chronicle
If a tree's owner falls ..., Los Angeles Times
PACIFIC NORTHWEST (Region 6):
Oregon and Washington
"Salvage" logging dispute: When is a tree dead? - A lawsuit challenges the Forest Service's assessment of burned trees, The Oregonian
Definition of 'old growth' getting in way of Senate bill, E&E Daily at American Lands Alliance
Hearing: Testimony regarding old-growth forest science, policy and management in the Pacific Northwest region, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee: Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests
View Archived Webcast of Old-Growth Hearing, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
Fremont-Winema NF: Lawsuit Filed to Protect Oregon Spotted Frog From Livestock Grazing, Center for Biological Diversity, FSEEE, Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Center



FWS shelves plan to shrink murrelet habitat, E&E Daily at American Lands Alliance
Spotted owls declining, Forest Magazine Inner Voice
Oregon's forests: The wood and the trees - A dispute over logging obscures the real problem with Oregon's economy, The Economist
Downed trees ideal for chips, costly for owners to pick up - Economy: Paper mills want the timber and ask the state to help bring it to market quickly, The Oregonian
Range Con Brad Lathrop wins national Forest Service award - "Grazing is constantly changing, but it will always be part of public lands", The East Oregonian

Largest Sitka is but a shadow of the old champ - Trees: The Cape Meares Sitka is striking, but smaller than the Klootchy giant was, Oregonian
Mount Hood runs into a senator - The wilderness expansion waits, stopped under Senate rules by a single member, The Oregonian
The Devil's Staircase - The elusive Devil's Staircase is worth the hunt, Forest Magazine
Environmental activists gather at law conference - Conferees look for common ground - Annual environmental law conference at the UO focuses on collaboration, The Register-Guard

Judge angrily scolds court, and it responds - 9th Circuit case - Sen. Gordon Smith's brother sparks a rare review of a timber sale ruling that he said went much too far, The Oregonian
Green policies backfire, rural group says - Eastern Oregon - Timber and wildfire management may lead to animal deaths, a public-private alliance says, The Oregonian
SOUTHERN REGION (Region 8):
Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
Tiny fly could aid the mighty hemlock, Raleigh News & Observer
Thanks, Forest Service, Chattanoogan letter

SCC staff, AG endorse coal-fired southwest Va. plant - Forest Service now OK with plant after emissioins cut in half, Times Union AP

EASTERN REGION (Region 9):
Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, Maine, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin
Tree-restoration program begins, Jackson Citizen Patriot


ALASKA REGION (Region 10): Alaska
Biologist who took a stand passes away at 48 - Longtime friends and colleagues gathered to build a casket for Glen Ith in Petersburg this week. Ith was a Forest Service Wildlife Biologist who became prominent in recent years for successfully challenging some of his agency's timber-sale work on the Tongass. Those close to Ith knew him as a quiet, family man whose love and respect for the outdoors guided his personal and professional life. He passed away unexpectedly