NATIONAL FOREST WORK 



President Taft Makes Changes in National 

 Forests 



A number of changes in the national 

 forests of California, Oregon, Idaho, and 

 Wyoming, made in the interest of more con- 

 venient and economical administration and 

 especially of better protection against fire, 

 have just been announced. These changes 

 have been accomplished by President Taft 

 through a series of proclamations signed at 

 different times in June, but all becoming 

 effective July 1. The proclamations were 

 drawn so as to dovetail into one another, 

 with the result that taken all together they 

 substitute twenty-six national forests for 

 a former seventeen. 



The only increase in area is in Califor- 

 nia, in which two small additions, involving 

 a total of a little over 17,000 acres, are 

 made. On the other hand the proclamations 

 eliminate a total of nearly 242,000 acres, as 

 follows: 85,000 acres in California, nearly 

 126,000 acres in Oregon, about 6,000 acres 

 in Idaho, and about 25,000 acres in Wyom- 

 ing. Thus the rearrangement which puts 

 twenty-six national forests in place of 

 seventeen is accomplished by a neat reduc- 

 tion in area of 225,000 acres. It is explained 

 by officials of the U. S. Department of Agri- 

 culture that last summer's fire experience 

 in the Northwest made it clear that many 

 of the forest supervisors were in charge of 

 units which were too large for efficient ad- 

 ministration. The changes are a part of a 

 general movement to develop, with the aid 

 of last year's experience, the most efficient 

 system of fire protection possible at the 

 present time. 



In Idaho the Clearwater, Coeur d'Alene, 

 and Nezperce National Forests were re- 

 duced by the establishment of two new 

 units, to be known as the Selway and St. 

 Joe National Forests, with headquarters at 

 Kooskia and St. Marie, Idaho. This was 

 brought about as follows: From the Coeur 

 d'Alene to the St. Joe there was trans- 

 ferred 810,200 acres; from the Clearwater 

 to the St. Joe, 223,300 acres; to the Selway, 

 1,684,860 acres; to the Nezperce, 16,640 

 acres, and from the Nezperce to the Selway, 

 117,140 acres. There was eliminated from 

 the Nezperce several small tracts aggregat- 

 ing 5,920 acres, which upon examination 

 were found to be non-forest land. 



In Wyoming the Bonneville was divided 

 into three national forests. The former 

 Sweetwater Division, the southern portion 



of the Bonneville, embracing 393,950 acres, 

 becomes the Washakie Forest, with head- 

 quarters at Lander; the Green River Divi- 

 sion, the central portion of the forest, em- 

 bracing 577,850 acres, becomes the Bridger, 

 with headquarters at Pinedale; and the 

 northern portion of the forest, embracing 

 631,270 retains the name of Bonneville, with 

 headquarters at Dubois. Eliminations ag- 

 gregating 24,936 acres were made from the 

 Bonneville; 2,564 acres from the southern 

 division; 14,175 acres from the central divi- 

 sion, and 8,197 acres from the northern 

 division. These areas consist of small 

 tracts lying along the borders of the forest 

 which upon examination were found to be 

 non-forest lands. 



In California changes were made affect- 

 ing the Klamath National Forest, as fol- 

 lows: A total addition to the Klamath of 

 3,480 acres of forest land; an elimination 

 of 85,000 acres in various small tracts con- 

 sisting principally of alienated lands lying 

 along the eastern border of the forest; two 

 small transfers from the Siskiyou and the 

 Crater forests to the Klamath; and a trans- 

 fer of 352,000 acres of land from the Kla- 

 math to the Siskiyou, embracing all of the 

 Smith River drainage lying within the for- 

 est. In connection with the latter transfer, 

 13,755 acres of valuable timber land located 

 within the state of California were added 

 to the Siskiyou National Forest. 



In Oregon changes were made in the Cas- 

 cade, Chelan, Crater, Deschutes, Fremont, 

 ]\Ialheur, Oregon, Siskiyou, Umpqua, Wal- 

 lowa, Whitman, and Umatilla forests and 

 the new Minam. Ochoco, Okanogan, Paulina 

 and Santiam forests were established from 

 transfers from the other forests mentioned. 

 Transfers occurred as follows: From the 

 Umpqua to the Cascade, 168,508 acres; 

 from the Cascade to the Santiam, 216,821 

 acres, to the Deschutes, 504,864 acres, and 

 to the Paulina, 147,720 acres; from the Che- 

 lan to the Okanogan, 1,732,820 acres; from 

 the Crater, 9,200 acres to the Klamath, and 

 61,370 acres to the Paulina; to the Des- 

 chutes 174,130 acres from the Oregon, 

 504,864 acres from the Cascade, and from 

 the Deschutes 699,720 acres to the Ochoco 

 and 407,120 acres to the Paulina; from the 

 Fremont to the Paulina, 411,000 acres; to 

 the Malheur from the Umatilla 179,550 

 acres, from the Malheur to the Ochoco 119,- 

 310 acres; from the Oregon to the Santiam 

 493,349 acres, to the Deschutes 174,130 

 acres, from the Siskiyou to the Crater 12,400 



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