Ecosystem Plan is not user-friendly
The Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project (ICBEMP)
is another byproduct of President Clinton's Northwest Forest
Plan. No federal statue requires ecosystem management and Congress
has never authorized any agency with ecosystem management as
its primary mission.
The goal that is being held up as the yardstick is the pre-European
settlement condition of the land.
ICBEMP will require updates of 74 federal land use plans for
45 national forests and BLM [Bureau of Land Management] districts.
BLM and the Forest Service have worked on this project for more
than four years, and spent $35-40 million, none of it authorized
by Congress. There are more than 4,000 pages in the DEIS [Draft
Environmental Impact Study] and supporting documents.
The Interior Columbia Basin encompasses 144 million acres
of forest and rangeland, an area slightly smaller than the 13
original colonies.
The area covers most or parts of seven states and contains 100
counties and 476 cities, towns or villages.
Former Chief Jack Ward Thomas, U.S. Forest Service, has stated,
"I promise you I can do anything you want by saying it is
ecosystem management. It's incredibly nebulous..."
- The DEIS proposes detailed standards and guides that could
close up to 50 percent of the roads and an unspecified number
of trails in some areas.
- The DEIS claims that recreation provides more jobs than any
other use of public lands, and that will increase - inconsistent
with the proposal of closures that will decrease recreational
access.
- The DEIS ignores motorized recreation, its contribution to
recreation choices, and how it benefits local economies.
- The DEIS does not sufficiently consider the impact of its
alternatives on small rural communities.
- The DEIS is not authorized by existing federal laws nor has
it been mandated by Congress.
The comment period has been extended to April 6. Comments
should be made to ICBEMP Staff, 304 N. 8th St., Rm 250, Boise,
ID 83702.
(Information from BlueRibbon Magazine, 3/98)
|