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On national forests, 88 wilderness areas encompassing almost 15 

 million acres are afforded special protection as class I areas under 

 the Clean Air Act. 



My written testimony addresses all of the questions that you 

 asked in your letter of invitation. What I would like to do now is 

 summarize based on three major points. First, an overview of the 

 activities we had since 1990; two, the combination that our re- 

 search and management programs offer; and three, the collabo- 

 rative efforts that are so important to trying to solve these prob- 

 lems. 



Since 1990, the Forest Service has doubled its visibility monitor- 

 ing budget. We have added emphasis to our air quality programs 

 since 1990 by increasing our specialty staff by 20 percent and ex- 

 panding the budget for these programs by 15 percent. 



Since your last hearing, Mr. Chairman, the Forest Service has 

 also conducted 10 air quality related value screening workshops for 

 agency specialists and managers. One outcome of these workshops 

 is the identification of air quality related values and the develop- 

 ment of specific screening criteria for all 88 class I areas, which fo- 

 cuses our efforts on the most critical pollution threats. 



Our research has expanded by 25 percent, and it focuses on the 

 response of ecosystems to air pollution. We plan to have a com- 

 plete, full inventory of class I areas by the year 2000. 



My second point is that what is necessary to help solve these 

 problems is a clear combination of research efforts and manage- 

 ment efforts. The two must be combined. A better understanding 

 of the relationships between air pollution and forest ecosystem 

 health is vital to making informed decisions to protect all 

 ecosystems from damage by air pollutants. 



In 1990, we began implementation of a national forest health 

 monitoring program in six New England States. Six additional 

 Eastern States were added to this program in 1991, and in 1993, 

 this initiative was expanded to include the first Western States; 

 California and Colorado. 



One area that we feel requires additional research and develop- 

 ment is the application of computer models for long distance trans- 

 port of air pollution. 



The commonly used models are not really designed for complex 

 terrain or for long distances. And the long distance situation is 

 often the factor in class one areas. A cooperative effort has been es- 

 tablished between EPA, the Park Service, and the Forest Service 

 to adapt and refine models for this purpose. 



Management aspects of our program absolutely depend on infor- 

 mation from our research programs. The Forest Service role in im- 

 plementation of the Clean Air Act is to evaluate the level of effects 

 and present this information to the State regulatory agencies and 

 the Environmental Protection Agency in support of our rec- 

 ommendations. However, while we have the responsibility to ad- 

 minister and protect the designated class I areas, the authority to 

 take action on those recommendations lies with the States and 

 with EPA. 



Therefore, coordination with EPA and any regulation that the 

 EPA develops are extremely important to us. Since 1990, the For- 

 est Service nas made source-specific adverse impact determinations 



