Commentary
~ July 14, 2004: The Bush administration is chopping down former
president Bill Clinton's ban on building roads through federally-owned
woodland, thereby opening up America's forests to commercial loggers.
Bush’s new rule will replace one adopted by
the Clinton administration, which protects about 58 million of the
191 million acres of national forest nationwide. Bush’s new
scheme will give state governors the power to allow roads and logging
in forests previously off limits to lumberjacks. This is in direct
contradiction to the spirit of “National” Forests, which
are owned by all Americans – not just state governors seeking
to make a quick buck off taxpayer subsidies.
Environmental groups are condemning the decision,
predicting it will lead to the erosion of the remaining pristine
forest areas in the United States. The BBC quotes Environmentalists
and Democrats as saying the plan is a gift to the timber industry.
Amy Mall, a forestry expert at the Natural Resources
Defence Council, told The Guardian that Bush has overturned
"one of the most important conservation measures in recent
history".
The San Francisco Chronicle said the rule,
made public by Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, was a victory
for ranchers, timber companies and Western lawmakers.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer also slammed
the decision in an editorial. “Grab the chain saws, rev up
the bulldozers, open the federal Treasury to subsidize construction
of more logging roads,” it declared.
Commentary
~ July 14, 2004: The Bush administration is chopping down former
president Bill Clinton's ban on building roads through federally-owned
woodland, thereby opening up America's forests to commercial loggers.
