The pace and scale of active forest management must increase substantially to begin to restore our federal forests to a more sustainable & resilient condition and to provide the continued benefits of clean air, clean water, recreation opportunities, wildlife habitat, forest products, jobs, and other benefits of a viable forest products business sector. State foresters are pleased that the Committee on Energy & Natural Resources continues to discuss ways to improve forest health through active management on federal lands.
On February 6, 2014, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a hearing to consider Senator Wyden’s O&C Bill and Senator Barrasso’s National Forest Jobs & Management Act. Says NASF President and Alaska State Forester Chris Maisch, “State foresters appreciate the leadership of Chairman Wyden and Ranking Member Murkowski in holding this hearing and hope that we can move forward with real federal forest management reform…NASF looks forward to further reviewing Senator Barrasso’s bill and we are committed to working to find a bi-partisan solution to break the current management gridlock on federal forests across the entire country to improve forest health and ensure continued delivery of the social, economic and ecological benefits forests provide.”