🚀 go-pugleaf

[I curse my newsreader installation for failing to post this, causing it
now to be a day late.  Here goes a third attempt, by an alternate method:]

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Sorry if this is redundant for any of you, but it's really down to the wire now,
hence the unusually many rallying cries.  

My honest belief is that practically all other political battles before us
today will, in hindsight, be viewed as relative folly when compared to the
pending continued liquidation of priceless, ~2000-year-old forest habitats
which face intense endangerment.  Will the world of our great grandchildren
ever genuinely enter into x-term election Campaigns or corpos' Quarterly
Reports?


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Date: Mon, 11 Mar 1996 15:32:41 -0800 (PST)
From: Western Ancient Forest Campaign <wafcdc@igc.apc.org>
To: Recipients of conference <mlist.wafcdc@conf.igc.apc.org>
Subject: Critical Time for Input on Rider Repeal

To:       Forest Activists
From:     Jim Jontz
Date:          Monday, March 11, 1996
 
Subject:  MONDAY: CRITICAL TIME FOR INPUT
 
The Western Ancient Forest Campaign cannot endorse the Murray
proposal, without major improvements.  However, we are
encouraging everyone -- whether they are for Murray or against --
to push to correct its major problems. We still have a few, critical
hours to keep up the pressure.  We are expecting a vote on the
Murray amendment after 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, thus there is still time
for changes.
 
TIMBER STANDS, OR FOREST ECOSYSTEMS?
 
A great deal of attention has been focused on the provisions of Title
IV of Murray which direct the Forest Service, on a district by
district basis, to identify and prioritize the forest stands which need
"treatment."  Some had hoped the impact of this title -- which we
believe amounts to direction from Washington to district rangers to
plan their timber sales based on a new "hit list" of "unhealthy"
timber stands, would be mitigated by the Bradley study language.
  
However, that does not appear to be the case, so we are urging
people to ask for both correction of the Bradley language and Title
IV by replacing "timber stands" with "forest ecosystems" in this
title.
 
This is our opportunity to get across this fundamental point: the
well being of forest ecosystems, including watersheds, fish and
wildlife, must be the goal of our policies.  Excessive focus on timber
stand "health" is what brought us the pollution of rivers, loss of
fish, and extinction of species in the first place.  
 
We can do better than the language now in the Murray bill on
"timber stand" health.  There are other problems with Murray, too
(weak definitions of roadless areas and salvage, a new "slush fund"
for the Forest Service, procedural sufficiency, allowing buyers to
mark trees, reduced time for appeals, FACA exemptions, and NEPA
concerns). Please raise these issues -- particularly the "timber stand"
point -- with staff for Sen. Murray, Wyden, Boxer, and other
Senators.  
 
Here's what we expect to happen the rest of the week: Senate
consideration of amendments Tuesday (after 2:00 p.m.) and
Wednesday (including the Reid amendment to halt the ESA listing
moratorium), passage by the Senate perhaps Wednesday, a quick
conference committee with the House, a conference report back for
a second vote perhaps Thursday, and then to the President's desk.
 
The White House is critical.  The President can insist that the
measure include full repeal of the "logging without laws" rider, and
that no new riders go in the law, for him to sign it. These next few
days are key to getting citizen input in to President Clinton for
complete repeal.  The President must make a major decision on the
rider repeal by Friday.  Call the White House comment line at
(202)456-1111 or president@whitehouse.gov    Thanks! 
 
 
 
 


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