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THE LOCAL LEVEL TO PROVIDE A HIGHER QUALITY OF WORK IN LESS 

 TIME OVERALL BECAUSE MORE TIME CAN BE SPENT ON THE GROUND. 

 THE REDUCTION IN PAPER WORK AND DOCUMENTATION HAS ALLOWED 

 THEM TO PROVIDE SMALLER PROJECTS AVAILABLE TO A GREATER 

 ARRAY OF OPERATORS AND CONTRACTORS. 



RELATIVE TO THE ACCUSATION THE CURRENT LAW ALLOWS 

 "LAWLESS LOGGING", OUR OBSERVATIONS HAVE BEEN AS FOLLOWS: 



1) THE FOREST SERVICE APPEARS TO BE EXECUTING THE SAME 

 LEVEL OF ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AS BEFORE, INCLUDING 

 PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT, AND APPEARS TO BE CONTINUING 

 COMPLIANCE WITH ALL ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS, WITH THE ADDED 

 ADVANTAGE OF HAVING MORE TIME AVAILABLE ON THE GROUND 

 TO "PROOF' THEIR ANALYSES AND COMPLIANCE. 



2) THE AGENCY HAS CONTINUED TO CONSULT WITH USFW ON ALL 

 SALES THAT MAY AFFECT THREATENED AND ENDANGERED 

 SPECIES. 



3) THEY APPEAR TO BE USING A CONSISTENT DEFINITION OF 

 SALVAGE. THE LESS THAN TEN PERCENT "GREEN" VOLUME 

 INCLUDES ONLY THOSE TREES NECESSARILY HARVESTED FOR 

 TRAILS, LANDINGS, ETC, AND THOSE IN EXTREME RISK OF 

 MORTALITY - 



AS FOR THE ACCUSATION THAT THE AGENCY IS USING THE 

 APPEALS EXEMPTION AS LICENSE TO "RAPACIOUSLY DENUDE" THE 

 VAST AREAS AFFECTED BY FIRE IN 1994, THE FACTS INDICATE 

 OTHERWISE. FOR EXAMPLE, ON THE KNF, 53O00 ACRES WERE 

 BURNED, YET ONLY ABOUT 4500 (LESS THAN 10%) ARE PLANNED FCR 

 SALVAGE THIS IS HARDLY INDICATIVE OF AN "EXCESSIVE" USE OF 

 THE APPEALS EXEMPTION LEGISLATION. IN FACT MANY LOCAL 

 OBSERVORS FEEL THAT THE FOREST MANAGERS ARE BEING MORE 

 CONSERVATIVE THAN IS REASONABLE. 



I WOULD CONCLUDE THAT, AT LEAST IN THE INLAND NORTHWEST 

 FORESTS OF WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTHERN IDAHO, THAT THE 

 RESPONSIBLE ACTION OF CONGRESS IN PROVIDING FOR SOME RELIEF 

 PROM A LITANY OF FRIVOLOUS APPEALS AND LITIGATION HAS 

 PROVIDED ADDITIONAL BASIS FOR IMPROVED FOREST MANAGEMENT 

 THAT SHOWS SIGNS OF RESOUNDING SUCCESS AS WITNESSED BY: 

 -INCREASED UTILIZATION OF VALUABLE RESOURCES 

 -IMPROVED FOREST HEALTH 

 -REDUCED THREAT OF CATASTROPHIC FIRES 

 -SUBSTANTIAL FINANCIAL RETURN TO BOTH LOCAL AND U.S. 



GOVERNMENTS 

 -SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE IN RAW MATERIALS DESPERATELY 

 NEEDED BY FOREST DEPENDENT COMMUNITIES THAT WERE 

 PROMISED A STABLE FLOW OF FEDERAL TIMBER 

 -INCREASED EFFICIENCY AND MORALE AMONG FOREST SERVICE 



PERSONNEL 

 -ALL THE ABOVE WITHOUT A REDUCTION IN SENSITIVITY TO 

 THE ENVIRONMENT. 



