207 



1996, we committed to offer ISO million board feet; to date, we have offered 128 million, and will 

 meet our target. We are committed to offering the full sustainable amount of 21 1 million board 

 feet in fiscal year 1997. 



One of the BLM's customers, the Northwest Forestry Association, recently commended the BLM 

 for not only meeting, but exceeding, its Forest Plan timber sale commitments for FY 1995. The 

 Association's June 14, 1996, "Forest Forum" newsletter further reported, "the BLM is offering 

 timber sales on a regular basis in most districts and is expected to meet or exceed its FY96 

 target," and declared, "the Bureau should be congratulated for meeting these timber sale 

 commitments." We appreciate this customer's vote of confidence in our ability to meet our 

 targets this year and into the future. 



Goal #3 Protect and enhance the environment 



At this point, it is useful to recall the reasons why the record-setting timber harvesting of the mid- 

 1980's came to an abrupt halt in the early 1990's. New information about the harm caused by 

 traditional logging methods — not only on the northern spotted owl but also on other fish and bird 

 species — flooded the agencies. The Federal government failed to take that information into 

 account. Then we were sued. Several Federal judges in the Ninth Circuit decided that the BLM 

 and the Forest Service had violated a number of laws; their injunctions shut down the industry. 

 That was the situation facing President Clinton when he convened the Forest Conference, just 

 over two months into his Administration. 



At its core, the goal of the Forest Plail was to restore some level of timber harvesting by methods 

 that also protect and enhance the environment. Our first priorities were watershed analysis and 

 expedited consultations in timber sale preparation. 



To protect and restore watersheds, the BLM began to do watershed analysis for the entire area, 

 systematically characterizing the aquatic, riparian, and land features within a watershed. 



