Search Results for: collaboration

Elections Have Consequences: EPA Version

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I am posting this because, while some may be shocked, it seems to me that this is what actually happens. You can get all the advantages of learning this, without having to live in Washington D.C.! People get elected. They have friends who helped elect them. Friends want favors. Agencies grant them. Scandalous, or the … Read more

A New Year of Forest Planning under the 2012 Rule

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The Sierra, Sequoia and Inyo national forests have released their first ‘decisions’ in their plan revision process as early adopters under the 2012 planning rule.  Their ‘Preliminary Need for Change’ can be found here: Click to access stelprdb5444578.pdf Some things I found interesting: “Under current plan revision timeline, it is possible to address only a … Read more

In-Depth: How Tester’s mandated logging bill has divided conservationists

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“If there’s any reason that the Tester bill has not moved along better than it has, it’s because of its mandates that there not only be logging, but that certain amounts of timber be extracted.  Conservation-minded Senators are very hesitant to vote for that, even though they recognize the Montana wilderness dilemma. They don’t want … Read more

Another invite-only “collaborative” leads to unprofessional Forest Service conduct

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Yet another invite-only, exclusive “collaboration” involving public U.S. Forest Service land management has sprung up in Montana. This time the collaborative group is called the Whitefish Range Partnership (WRP), and they are focused on roughly 350,000 acres of the Flathead National Forest’s portion of the Whitefish Range above the cities of Columbia Falls and Whitefish. … Read more

Planning Rule Advisory Committee Recommendations

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Received a press release today (copied below) about an independent advisory committee’s “recommendations for the implementation of the U.S. Forest Service’s 2012 Planning Rule.” The release doesn’t say much about those recommendations. Here’s a more direct link to the committee’s report: http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/planningrule/home/?cid=stelprdb5346267 A transmittal letter says “The committee spent the last year carefully reviewing, learning … Read more

Could You Participate in Gallatin Collaborative’s 3 Day, 27 Hour Workshop on Thurs, Fri, Sat?

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We’ve had many discussions and debates on this blog over the past few years about the roll of collaboration in federal public lands policy and management. For example, last week we shared an opinion piece from the Swan View Coalition (Montana) offering up that organization’s perspective on how some of the collaborative processes in their … Read more

Newton’s Paradox: Why fish prefer clearcuts to regulated buffers

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Native trout in full sunlight on a warm day in the headwaters of Blue River, Lane County, Oregon, August 24, 2013. Photograph by Aaron L. Zybach. This post is generally specific to western Oregon salmonid (salmon and trout) populations in relation to current streamside vegetation buffer regulations. The “paradox” in the title refers to the … Read more

What Rep Daines Mandated Logging Bill Would Mean for National Forests in Montana

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Here’s some new information to consider regarding Rep Doc Hastings (R-WA) and Rep Steve Daines (R-MT) mandated logging bill, the so-called “Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act” (HR 1526), which passed the US House on September 20. In Montana, it’s estimated that Rep Daines’ mandated logging bill would result in a 6 fold increase … Read more

Planning in HR 1526 – Guest Post by Jon Haber

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This recent article on the ‘Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act’ got me to look at the actual bill. Neither the Administration nor the previous discussion on this blog really addressed the ‘forest planning’ implications of this bill. Section 505 is titled ‘Clarification of National Forest Management Act of 1976 Authority,’ and it addresses … Read more