Timber Sales on National Forests Lost 1.05 Billion Dollars
11/24/98
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Title: Timber Sales on National Forests Lost 1.05 Billion Dollars
Source: American Lands
email wafcdc@americanlands.org
Status: Distribute freely with proper credit to source
Date: 11/24/98
FOREST FOCUS, the bulletin of American Lands, November 24, 1998
To reach us call (202)547-9105, or email wafcdc@americanlands.org
BILLION DOLLAR BOONDOGGLE: A newly released government report shows that
timber sales on the National Forests lost $1.05 billion from 1995-1997.
A previous General Accounting Office (GAO) report concluded the agency
lost $995 million from 1992-94. After spending $1.2 billion in on timber
sales over the three year period, only $157 million was returned the
Treasury.
The vast majority of the money was kept by the Forest Service in various
off-budget funds. "GAO's audit confirms once again that taxpayers pay a
huge price to subsidize commercial logging of our National Forests," said
Rep. George Miller (D-CA) who requested the study. "The current system
provides a perverse incentive for the Forest Service to promote timber
sales to provide funds to support agency operations." A copy of
Distribution of Timber Sales Receipts, 1995-1997 (GAO/RCED-99-24) can be
obtained by calling 202/512-6000 or at http://www.gao.gov
CHILEAN CHIPPING: Native Forest Network, Northern Rockies Preservation
Project, and local citizens staged rally at Boise Cascade's Corporate
Headquarters on November 17 protesting their plans to launch a massive
wood chipping scheme in Chile. The joint venture Cascada Chile project
would turn intact, biologically diverse native Chilean forests into wood
chips and oriented strand board for export from a new facility to be built
at Bahia Ilque. "We are rallying today in solidarity with Chilean
citizens," said Phil Knight of the Native Forest Network. "Chileans are
extremely concerned with the potential impacts of the Cascada Chile
project on their forests and their economy." For more information please
contact Native Forest Network at 406/542-7343 or nfn@wildrockies.org
BUY NOTHING DAYS: This weekend, Friday November 27-Sunday November 29,
protest corporate power by boycotting America's shopping malls. New York
City's Wetlands Preserve is organizing these demonstrations to raise
greater consumer awareness. Shopping malls provide an outlet for huge
corporations to sell unethical products and this weekend is the perfect
time to make your voice heard by boycotting the malls near you. For more
information call Wetlands Preserve at 212/386-3600.
BLACK HILLS SALE WITHDRAWN: The Rocky Mountain Regional Forester has
instructed the Black Hills National Forest to "include a more substantive
economic impact analysis" in its analysis of the Cub Timber Sale, says
Forest Guardians Frontline News. Forest Guardians pressured the Forest
Service to broaden their economic analysis to include the negative impacts
of timber sales on non-timber uses such as recreation, soils and water,
and wildlife species, as well as benefits of standing forests to these
uses. The agency continues to maintain that not cutting public forests
results in no benefit to the American public and in fact is detrimental.
The Cub timber sale would log 4.3 million board feet of timber, build 1
mile of new roads, reconstruct nearly 45 miles of roadways, and obliterate
nine miles in order to "reduce the overall road density" in the area. For
more information, contact Forest Guardians, jhorning@fguardians.org,
505/988-9126.
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Steve Holmer
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American Lands
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Washington, D.C. 20003
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