|
191 millions acres of national forests threatened
The Forest Service has proposed changes that would weaken protections for 191 millions acres of national forests and grasslands. At issue is the National Forest Management Act (NFMA), the law that is supposed to ensure sound scientific analysis and public participation in land management decisions.
| Sample Letter for Campaign |
Subject: Don't Rollback Protections For Our Forests!
Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,
USDA FS Planning Rule
Docket No. 02-30683
Content Analysis Team
PO Box 8359
Missoula, MT 59807
Fax #: (406)329-3556
Email: planning_rule@fs.fed.us
I am writing to express my opposition to the proposed changes to the National Forest Management Act (NFMA) regulations as printed in the Federal Register on December 6, 2002.
I object to these changes because they will reduce protection for roadless areas, weaken the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and eliminate public participation opportunities. The new regulations mark a drastic departure from the 2000 NFMA regulations on many fronts, most notably by ignoring common sense scientific and environmental analyses.
The changes proposed to NFMA eliminate the requirements for evaluating and protecting the ecological integrity of roadless areas. I find this unacceptable as roadless areas play an important role in preserving critical habitat for fish and wildlife, safeguard clean drinking water and provide recreational opportunities for millions of Americans.
The proposed NFMA regulations exempt entire forest management plans from NEPA environmental review. These management plans determine which forest lands are to be protected and which are subject to commercial activity and therefore should adhere to full scientific and environmental documentation as required by current laws.
Public participation is an important part of the decision-making process for national forests and should not be weakened or eliminated. The proposed NFMA regulations limit a citizen's ability to participate in the appeals and objection processes and reduce public notice availability. I believe it is irresponsible for the Forest Service to silence many citizens through these efforts especially since these lands belong to the American people and are managed by our tax dollars.
Finally, I object to the elimination of the requirement to maintain viable native wildlife species, the loosening of environmental standards governing industry activity on national forest land and the removal of the Committee of Scientists from the NFMA regulations.
In summary, the proposed NFMA regulations ignore commonsense science, further open national forests to the oil, gas, mining and timber interests and attempt to silence the American people. As Forest Service Chief, you are responsible for protecting the health of the national forests and ensuring that forest management decisions serve the best interest of the American people. Unfortunately, the proposed regulations fail both the public and commonsense scientific forest management.
I strongly object to these proposed changes to the National Forest Management Act regulations and urge you not to adopt this misguided approach to managing my public lands.
Sincerely,
|
