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STATEMENT OF MARY A. MUNSON 



PUBLIC LANDS ASSOCL\TE 



DEFENDERS OF WILDLIFE 



ON 



H.R. 3659--THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT 



TIMBER CONTRACT EXTENSION ACT OF 1996 



FOR 



THE HOUSE RESOURCES COMMITTEE 



THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 



JULY 11, 1996 



ON BEHALF OF 



DEFENDERS OF WILDLIFE 



Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: 



My name is Mary Munson, Pubhc Lands Associate for Defenders of Wildlife. On behalf 

 of Defenders, a national conservation organization with over 150,000 members 

 nationwide, I thank you for the invitation to provide testimony on H.R.3659, the 

 Environmental Improvement Timber Contract Extension Act. Defenders has been a 

 leading proponent of the protection of wildlife and wildlife habitat in the Tongass 

 National Forest, and is a member of the steering committee of the Alaska Rainforest 

 Campaign. 



H.R. 3659 would modify the Ketchikan Pulp Company's 50-year logging contract in 

 Tongass National Forest by extending it an additional 15 years. It would also establish 

 minimum annual volumes of timber for the company, and guarantee that rates paid 

 reflect those assessed in forests of the Pacific Northwest. We strongly oppose H.R. 3659 

 because of the damaging impacts the existing Ketchikan Pulp Company (KPC) contract 

 is already having on wildlife, and the fact that KPC has a long record of violating federal 

 environmental laws. We also believe that H.R. 3659 would undermine an essential 

 forest plan revision process now taking place on the Tongass. 



The Tongass National Forest is owned not only by Alaskans, but by all Americans, and 

 the issues involved with the Ketchikan Pulp Company's performance are of national 

 significance, and are not simply parochial economic or jobs issues. The Tongass is the 

 world's largest intact temperate rainforest, home to over 300 wildlife species, many of 

 which depend on old-growth forest habitats. Sustainable management of this beautiful 

 and unique resource is properly a matter of national concern. All Americans have an 

 interest in making sure Tongass wildlife thrives, so that current and future generations 

 will benefit from the recreation, beauty, and resources of this jewel in the National 

 Forest System's crown. As protector of this national interest. Congress has a duty to 

 oversee its management by allowing only sustainable and responsible logging at a level 

 consistent with habitat protection. Extending the KPC contract would be a violation of 

 this duty. 



