The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed the Resilient Federal Forests Act, a bill to expedite management activities on federal forests that supporters – including the measure’s co-sponsor, Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Montana – say are needed to improve the health of the nation’s overgrown and fire-prone federal forests.
The House voted in favor of the reforms 262-167 after a floor debate that included effusive support from Zinke, who lives in Whitefish, and other Republican lawmakers from western states.
Opponents say the bill undermines the public’s right to challenge poorly planned or illegal timber projects, weakens bedrock environmental laws and paves the way for dramatic increases in logging.
“Dramatically increasing logging based upon little to no environmental analysis is like racing down the highway with your windshield painted black,” said Jamie Rappaport Clark, president of Defenders of Wildlife. “You know that the outcome will not be good. The public will be looking at irreparable habitat damage, polluted watersheds and drinking water and a devastated outdoor economy.”
Under the measure, litigants who do not take part in a collaborative timber planning process would have to post a bond before they could sue. If they lose, they’d be required to cover the federal government’s legal bill. Opponents say that impairs the public’s right to challenge poorly-planned projects.
Zinke disagreed, saying the bill merely weeds out frivolous lawsuits that stall and derail logging projects, and that the bonds would only apply to groups who do not participate in a collaborative planning process, which he said leads to smart, healthy logging projects.
At one point, Zinke cited a recent tour of the Glacier Rim fire burning along the North Fork Flathead River, an area that previously burned in 2003. He said the recent fire is evidence of poor forest management, and that the Forest Service was hamstrung by the specter of litigation.
“It’s burning the same ground that burned in 2003. I was told by people on the ground that the reason why this fire is burning is the Forest Service was not able to conduct a salvage operation for fear of lawsuits among other reasons, and those lawsuits left standing timber which cannot be addressed by crews, which only can be addressed by helicopters, and that’s a million dollar project,” he said. “We need more scientists in the woods and less lawyers.”
The Resilient Federal Forests Act, or H.R. 2647, will now go for a vote before the Senate, where Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, has pledged his support.
“I’m encouraged that the House of Representatives has passed critically-needed legislation to improve the health of forests and create good-paying jobs across Montana,” Daines said in a prepared statement. “Representative Zinke’s provisions to discourage litigation and protect Montana-made collaborative projects reflect what I’ve heard repeatedly from Montanans and are vital to restoring active management.”