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• The Sequoias Are For Humans, Not Cows 



Grazing, like "commercial" logging, is the other subsidized use of the SNF by special 

 interests at a loss to forest and watershed health as well as to taxpayers. I am not involved 

 in the grazing business as I am in timber and am not an expert I am, however, a conmion 

 sense observer who has witnessed the culmination of years of stomped-out meadows and 

 eroded streams. Bill H.R. 2153 will phase out grazing, saving the grandeur of the 

 Sequoias for humans instead of sacrificing it to cows. 



• Positive Benefits For The Vast Majority 



I am inserting into my testimony part of a comment as to why the Tule River Conservancy 

 supports the Giant Sequoia Preservation Act: The Conservancy is composed largely 

 of a group of long time Sequoia Forest citizens who see past the exploitative frenzy that still 

 plagues the big trees and into the future of the Sequoia Forest as a treasure belonging to the 

 American people. I urge the members of this hearing to take time to read this comment if 

 you haven't already done so. It is the local voice of informed reason: 



ITie Board of Directors of the Tule River Conservancy (TRC) unanimously and strongly 

 supports the legislation [HR 2153]. The Bill specifically proposes that a large portion of 

 Sequoia National Forest be managed to protect and restore its biological, scenic and 

 recreational resources. After studying this bill carefully, discussing it with many coruxmed 

 and informed local residents and visitors, and after years of intensively monitoring and 

 studying past and present forest management practices, we are absolutely convinced that 

 this bill, if passed, will have only positive benefits for the vast majority of the public, 

 including all private property owners and residents in the area. 



A Global Preserve For The Human Spirit 



I want to conclude my testimonial for support of the Giant Sequoia Preservation Act by 

 reminding all of us that we are talking about a Bill that proposes to enhance the stewardship 

 of the largest, oldest commimity of life on this planet Maintaining the Sequoias and their 

 surrounding habitat is, to me, as a forester, a sacred trust The Great Sequoia groves are a 

 living Mecca for all humans who wish to rest their souls in the closest place to the Garden 

 of Eden left on earth. In this fearful and hectic age, the value of preserving the peaceful 

 Giant Sequoias as a global preserve for the human spirit by far exceeds the dubious 

 "losses" to one petty arm of bureaucracy or one small timber company. 



