Action Alert
A New Forest Planning Rule -- Now in the Making
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Please mark your calendars and plan to attend one of the upcoming Forest Planning Rule Roundtable sessions on April 6, 2010.
Meetings will be held in the afternoon (1:00 - 5:00 PM, Planning Session) and also in the evening (6:30 - 8:30 PM, Information Session) on April 6th at four different locations: Sacramento, Redding, Bishop, and San Bernardino. Registration (RSVP) is encouraged prior to March 31, 2010. Seating is limited at all locations except Sacramento, so register as soon as possible. Locations are listed below.
Also don't miss this related event:
Science Forum (March 29 and 30, 2010) webcast from Washington, D. C.
Check the Forest Planning website for more details, video will be posted at this link.
What is the planning rule?
It’s the set of regulations that guide the Forest Service in implementation of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (NFMA). The act compels the Forest Service to manage the forests for a variety of societal values – not just timber production. It also requires that each national forest revise their land management plans every 15 years.
The first set of regulations promulgated under NFMA were approved in 1982. They were revised again in 2000, in order to bring the regulations up to date and increase the scientific basis for decision making. Those rules were never fully implemented, as the Bush administration issued a complete revision in 2005 and again in 2008. Both revisions were found to be unlawful in federal court in June 2009. Hence, a new revision process has now begun under the Obama administration.
A lot has changed since 1982, but one thing is certain: society can no longer permit special interests to dominate national forest management. With climate change threatening the very survival of many species and forests, now is the time to take science seriously and put the conservation of biodiversity and ecological processes foremost. Forests are essential to clean and abundant water, clean air, carbon sequestration, and climate moderation. Their role as refugia and essential habitat for countless species of plants and wildlife is unquestioned.
What to expect
The purpose of the roundtable events – which will be held at locations throughout the country – is to provide a collaborative process for the public to interact with Forest Service representatives, to learn about the planning rule and the National Forest Management Act, and to provide group feedback to the agency to help develop the proposed rule.
The afternoon sessions (1:00 to 5:00 PM) will provide the most opportunity for public input for development of the new planning rule. They will be convened around small group roundtables. Come prepared to discuss the 8 proposed principles identified in the Federal Notice of Intent for the planning rule (see background documents, below).
The evening sessions (6:30 to 8:30 PM) will be more aimed to providing information to the public, and will include a summary of the afternoon sessions. Public feedback will be encouraged also.
This is our opportunity to demonstrate our commitment to a transparent and science-based forest planning rule to secure lasting protection and conservation of our treasured national forest lands. We hope you can attend.
Locations:
Sacramento: Sacramento Convention Center, 1400 J Street, Sacramento
Bishop: Inyo National Forest Supervisors Office, 351 Pacu Lane, Suite 200, Bishop
Redding: Shasta Trinity National Forest Supervisors Office, 3644 Avtech Parkway, Redding
San Bernardino:
San Bernardino National Forest Supervisors Office, 602 South Tippecanoe Avenue, San Bernardino
More details, background and supporting materials are at the Forest Service Region 5 (California) website.
********
Background documents:
February 16, 2010: Read our detailed comments (22 pages) on the Notice of Intent developed with 30 conservation organizations nation-wide.
February 16, 2010: Read the comments on the Notice of Intent signed by more than 100 conservation organizations nation-wide (3 pgs).
December 18, 2009: The Forest Service issued a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an environmental impact statement to analyze and disclose potential environmental consequences associated with a new National Forest System land management planning rule. The new forest management planning regulations will replace the 2000 rule.
June 30, 2009: Federal Court overturns and remands the 2008 Bush Administration's Planning Rule...Read the court opinion here....
All of this and more can be found in the NFMA section of Sierra Forest Legacy’s website.
Thank you for helping to protect the last remaining wild places of the Sierra Nevada's publicly owned National Forests.
"A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it does otherwise."
~Aldo Leopold