TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST 



TUESDAY, APRIL 25, 1989 



U.S. Senate, 

 Subcommittee on Pubuc Lands, 



National Parks and Forests, 

 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 



Sitka, AK. 



The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 8 a.m., in the Sitka 

 Centennial Center, Sitka, AK, Hon. Timothy E. Wirth presiding. 



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

 SENATOR FROM COLORADO 



Senator Wirth. Thank you for coming. 



The Chair welcomes you all to the hearing of the Subcommittee 

 on Public Lands, National Parks and Forests, of the Senate Energy 

 and Natural Resources Committee. 



I am Senator Tim Wirth from Colorado, and I will be chairing 

 today's hearing. With me here are Senator Conrad Burns of Mon- 

 tana and our host. Senator Frank Murkowski, whom you all know. 



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

 my appreciation to Senator Dale Bumpers from Arkansas, the Sub- 

 committee Chairman, and Senator Bennett Johnston, the Chair- 

 man 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, a bill I introduced. 

 Both of these bills concern the Tongass National Forest; and we 

 have come here to hear your opinions, your concerns, and your 

 ideas. 



Of course, how the Tongass is run affects all of you and that is 

 why you are here, to let us know your concerns. We are aware of 

 that and I repeat, that is why we are here as well. 



The question of how to run the Tongass National Forest is con- 

 troversial. It is controversial in Washington, D.C., it is controver- 

 sial in my home state, and it is controversial here. We deal with a 

 lot 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 than our own and to respect their right to ex- 

 press those opinions. It is my intention to see that this hearing is 

 run in that manner. 



I expect I will be hearing a lot about my bill today. Before we 

 start, I would like to say a few things about what I think it does 

 and why I proposed it. 



The Tongass is more than just an Alaskan issue. This is not just 

 any national forest. It is the largest national forest. It has interna- 



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