49 



want to manage a forest. I remember well the discussions about 

 Alaska and the types of timber that were desired in those in- 

 stances. 



So it is a lot more complex than simply suggesting you have all 

 of this timber and that simply just putting it on the market is 

 going to do it, because it is not going to unless you make it profit- 

 able, very profitable, in some cases. Salvage is a loser for the gov- 

 ernment in terms of costing us money in most instances. It is a 

 loser for the government in terms of costing money for the prepara- 

 tion of the roads, and, of course, as we know, we have an ongoing 

 debate about what the costs are in terms of the general sales pro- 

 grams. 



Mr. Herger. Would the gentleman yield? 



Mr. Vento. I would be happy to yield. 



Mr. Herger. I realize the light is red, but would the Chair- 

 woman mind? 



Mrs. Cheng WETH. Yes. 



Mr. Herger. I want to commend the gentleman for pointing out 

 that there are not any bidders for many salvage sales. As the gen- 

 tleman mentioned, the reason is that they are basically below cost. 

 They are not marketable. 



I would like to point out that I noticed throughout my eight na- 

 tional forests that one of the major reasons of this is that once a 

 tree dies, whether it be by fire or by insect infestation depending 

 on the species, we have anywhere from 18 months to three years 

 to salvage that timber before it is non-marketable. 



So when we have those environmental groups that have been so 

 successful at suing and holding up these sales, if they can hold 

 them up for between 18 months and three years, then there will 

 not be any bidders on them. That is the reason that the emergency 

 salvage legislation was intended to expedite — not eliminate, but ex- 

 pedite this process so that we could get these trees out prior to the 

 time that they are unmarketable. 



Mr. Vento. Of course, the salvage rider included roadless areas 

 of Montana. It included 318. It included a variety of things. There 

 are other factors that affect the profitability besides the age of the 

 timber. Certainly, if it takes longer, it is in a position where it is 

 not of value. I mean, I understand that with most species. There 

 are some species that that does not affect as much. So that rep- 

 resents a dilemma in terms of salvage, because, in a sense, by the 

 time you plan, it is an unplanned sale, you have to come in with 

 some sort of a shortened period of time. I disagree, as the gen- 

 tleman knows, strongly with the salvage rider as being the solution 

 to that. 



I also wanted to point out, Madam Chair, while you are tolerat- 

 ing my continued rambling on here, that some of the discussion 

 about what the Appropriations Committee is spending and the vol- 

 ume that they are getting, I think, directly relates to forest health. 

 I think most of us recognize that forest health is something that 

 is going to require an investment in the forest, not spending less. 

 The easiest thing is to go in with these high-volume cuts and chop 

 it up and get some dollars back, but I think that those days are 

 over. 



Mrs. Chenoweth. Will the gentleman yield? 



