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from fire exclusion. Let us restore frequent fire dependent forests 

 before they are consumed by wildfire. If we do, in the long run we 

 will reduce the number of acres burned by catastrophic wildfire and 

 save millions of dollars in fire suppression, rehabilitation, 

 reforestation, and asset replacement. 



Thank you for the opportunity to respond. 



Dr. Leon F. Neuenschwander is a Professor of fire ecology at the 

 University of Idaho. He teaches Rx burning, fire ecology, and 

 management and is an instructor in many of the national fire training 

 programs. He has been at the University of Idaho for 20 years 

 teaching and conducting research. Many of his students are today's 

 outstanding fire managers. 



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