OF
THE HONORABLE ANN M. VENEMAN,
SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE,
AND
THE HONORABLE GALE A. NORTON,
SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR,
BEFORE THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES
SEPTEMBER 5, 2002
“Chairman Hansen and Members of the Committee:
“We appreciate the opportunity to meet with you today
to discuss the President’s Healthy Forests Initiative and legislation that will
improve fire management and forest health on our public lands.
“We would like to provide for the record written
comments on the legislation that is being heard today. Our Departments are reviewing these bills
and evaluating how they compare with the Administration’s proposals. We want to commend the Committee and
particularly, Subcommittee Chairman McInnis, for his active attention to the
issue and the energy he has put into drafting a legislative proposal. We would also like to thank Representatives
Rehberg and Shadegg for their proposals.
There are common themes in our legislation and we look forward to
working with you as the legislation moves through the process.
“The need for a plan to restore our forests and
rangelands to long-term health has never been greater. Today, the forests and rangelands of the
West have become unnaturally dense and ecosystem health has suffered significantly. When coupled with seasonal droughts, these
unhealthy forests, overloaded with fuels, are vulnerable to unnaturally severe
wildfires. Currently, a 190 million acres
of public land are at increased risk of catastrophic wildfires. It is in this context, and during this
severe and ongoing wildland fire season, that we discuss President Bush’s
recently introduced Healthy Forests Initiative and legislation designed to
promote efficiency and timely and more effective implementation plans to restore
and sustain healthy forests and rangelands.
“The nation is experiencing one of the worst wildfire
seasons in modern history. The Hayman fire in Colorado, the Rodeo-Chediski
fires in Arizona, the McNally fire in California and the Biscuit fire in Oregon
have come in sequence over the last several months. These incredibly fast moving, destructive fires have resulted in
catastrophic environmental, social and economic impacts. They have been the worst in each state’s
history. These infernos, along with over
60,000 other wildfire starts, have burned over six million acres so far this
year, matching the pace of the previous record-setting 2000 fire season and
doubling the 10-year average. Based on
current fuel conditions and weather predictions the potential for more fires
remains high through the fall.
The cost of fighting these fires has been
staggering. Firefighting costs for the
Forest Service alone will exceed $1.25 billion. Hundreds of communities and thousands of people have fled their
homes, and, most tragically, 20 brave firefighters have lost their lives. Our
firefighters are more effective than ever, controlling over 99% of all fires on
initial attack. Yet, as the severity of
the season demonstrates, even our best firefighting efforts are not enough
without an effective strategy to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. In May of this year, working with the
Western Governors’ Association and a broad cross-section of interests including
county commissioners, state foresters, tribal officials and other stakeholders,
we reached consensus on a 10-Year Comprehensive Strategy and Implementation
Plan to reduce fire risks to communities and the environment. The plan sets forth the blueprint for making
communities and the environment safer from destructive wildfires. The plan calls for active forest management
focusing on hazardous fuels reduction both in the wildland-urban interface and
across the broader landscape. Active
forest management includes: thinning trees from over-dense stands that produce
commercial or pre-commercial products, biomass removal and utilization, and
prescribed fire and other fuels reduction tools. We want to thank Representative Pombo and the members of the
House of Representatives for initiating and passing House Concurrent Resolution
352 endorsing the Collaborative 10-Year Strategy. We take seriously our responsibilities under the Implementation
Plan. For example, within five weeks of
signing the Agreement, we completed detailed work plans to address the 23
implementation tasks identified in the Plan.
“Timely and strategically placed fuels treatment
projects are effective in preventing or stopping fires. A recently published study by the Western
Forest Fire Research Center concluded that treated stands experience lower fire
severity than untreated stands that burn under similar weather and topographic
condition. This report was released in
March before this fire season, but we have many examples from this summer including
the Squires Fire near Medford, Oregon, where untreated forest burned intensely
while fire dropped to the ground in the treated areas giving firefighters the
chance to attack the fire safely. On
the Rodeo-Chediski and Cache Mountain Fires, damage to forest stands was
minimized in areas treated to reduce hazardous fuel 3-5 years earlier.
“In order for the 10-Year Implementation Plan to
succeed, the Forest Service and Interior agencies must be able to implement
critical fuels reduction and restoration projects associated with the plan goals
in a timely manner. Too often, however,
the agencies are constrained by procedural requirements and litigation that
delay actual on-the-ground implementation.
A June 2002 Forest Service study, The Process Predicament, identified
three factors most contributing to project delay: 1) excessive analysis; 2)
ineffective public involvement; and 3) management inefficiencies.