harvested from the forest. In spite of possible short-term price in- 

 creases as operators try to protect their timber supplies, if the al- 

 ternative chosen in the forest plan revision results in a lower 

 amount of timber offered, the receipts to the counties would likely 

 decrease over the long term as less timber is offered for sale. In 

 1992, timber receipts to the counties in South Dakota and Wyo- 

 ming were about 3.4 million dollars. 



Management of lands that are components of the National Wil- 

 derness System is also a program that will be covered in the plan 

 revision. As Chairman Pressler is aware, the Black Hills is a rela- 

 tively small forest with much interspersed private ownership. The 

 only existing wilderness is the Black Elk Wilderness, which covers 

 9,862 acres. In the plan revision process, we have identified three 

 additional areas that we believe meet the criteria for designation 

 as set forth in the Wilderness Act of 1964. These areas cover ap- 

 proximately 16,500 acres and are being analyzed in depth as part of 

 the plan revision. Our preliminary findings indicate that if the 

 three areas were added to the wilderness system, the impact on the 

 allowable sale quantity over the next 10-year period would be ap- 

 proximately a 5 percent reduction. 



Although not covered by the forest plan, I would also like to 

 mention several of our other programs that do contribute to the 

 local economy. We recognize the dependencies of some communities 

 in the Black Hills and the possible need to diversify some of those 

 communities. A relatively new program in the Forest Service as a 

 result of the 1990 Farm Bill is the Rural Community Assistance 

 program. Over the last 2 years $95,000 was obtained to assist the 

 communities of Belle Fourche, Custer, Newcastle, and Sundance 

 with their projects. 



Another effect public lands have on small businesses is through 

 our purchasing and contracting of goods and services. In the years 

 1988 through 1991, the Black Hills National Forest spent approxi- 

 mately 88 percent of our procurement dollars with small business- 

 es, which averaged approximately 5.5 million dollars per year. A 

 significant amount of business is done with small businesses 

 through our Job Corps Center in Nemo, SD. 



I would be remiss if I did not mention that the employees of the 

 Black Hills National Forest are also members of the community. 

 As such, we patronize small business in the communities in which 

 we live and work, contributing to the direct economic well-being of 

 those communities. 



Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. 



[The prepared statement of Mr. Sylva follows:] 



Prepared Statement of Stanley G. Sylva 



Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to 

 address the possible effects of the Black Hills National Forest Management Plan 

 Revision including wilderness proposals on the small businesses in this area. In my 

 testimony today I will provide a brief national perspective on the contributions 

 made by National Forest System lands to the economic vitality of small business 

 and of the specific contributions made by activities on the Black Hills National 

 Forest to local business. I will also address how the Forest Plan is to be revised, and 

 how that might affect local businesses. 



The USDA Forest Service includes over 191 million acres of National Forest 

 System lands and grasslands all across the United States. National Forests provide 

 commodities such as timber, minerals, and forage, and amenities such as recreation 



