TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST 



MONDAY, APRIL 24, 1989 



U.S. Senate, 

 Subcommittee on Public Lands, 



National Parks and Forests, 

 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 



Ketchikan, AK. 



The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 7 a.m. in the 

 Ketchikan High School Auditorium, Ketchikan, Alaska, Hon. Tim- 

 othy Wirth presiding. 



OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. TIMOTHY E. WIRTH. U.S. 

 SENATOR FROM COLORADO 



Senator Wirth. The Committee will come to order. I want to 

 start by thanking Senator Murkowski and his staff who have been 

 very gracious and helpful in setting up this hearing and we appre- 

 ciate their assistance. This is a hearing of the Subcommittee on 

 Public Lands and National Parks and Forests, the Committee on 

 Energy and National Resources. I am Senator Tim Wirth of Colora- 

 do and ril be chairing this hearing. 



With me of course are our host. Senator Frank Murkowski, and 

 Senator Conrad Burns from Montana. Senator Burns, we are de- 

 lighted you are here. 



I am pleased to be here today and I want to start by expressing 

 my appreciation to Senator Dale Bumpers, the Subcommittee 

 Chairman, and Senator Bennett Johnston, the Chairman of the full 

 Committee, for agreeing to schedule this hearing. 



The purpose of this hearing is to receive testimony on two bills, 

 S. 237, Senator Murkowski's bill and S. 346, legislation which I in- 

 troduced. Both of these bills concern the Tongass and how it's run. 



How the Tongass is run of course affects all of you. We are very 

 aware of that and that's why we are here. You live here surround- 

 ed by the Tongass and we have come to hear your opinions and 

 your concerns and your ideas. 



The question of how to run the Tongass is controversial in Wash- 

 ington, D.C., in my home State of Colorado and it is controversial 

 here. We deal with a great number of controversial issues in the 

 Senate and we do our best to listen to all sides, to respect the right 

 of people to hold opinions that are different from our own and to 

 respect their right to express those opinions. It is my intention to 

 see that this hearing is run in that manner. 



I expect that I will be hearing a good deal about my own legisla- 

 tion today. Before we start therefore I would like to say a few 

 things about what I think it does and why I proposed it. 



(1) 



