AP - Bush Promotes Forest-Thinning Initiative

[disgruntella]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=533&ncid=533&e=4&u=/ap/20030810/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_forests

CRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush (news - web sites) surveys a fire-ravaged community in Arizona on Monday as part of a push to get the Senate to approve steps aimed at preventing catastrophic wildfires.

<snip>

Bush proposed his "Healthy Forests" initiative last year, and has implemented portions of it through new government rules.

They no longer require environmental studies before trees are logged or burned to prevent forest fires. The rules also limit appeals of such projects.

The House passed a bill that calls for aggressive logging on up to 20 million acres of federal land at high risk of fire. It would eliminate some environmental reviews and limit appeals on overgrown woodlands so forest projects could be completed within months.

<more>

Here's one alternative view on the "Healthy Forests" initiative:

http://www.montanaforum.com/rednews/2003/08/01/build/forests/deeppockets-op.php?nnn=5

[Ohio Dem]

1. Preemptive war on trees.

:eyes:

[DemNoir]

2. I cant recall the name of the cartoon character that used to say

I,ll do the thinnin around here... Who was that?

[ozymandius]

6. Quick Draw McGraw n/t

[DemNoir]

7. Oh right thanks

Quick and W have a lot in common I think

[Fridays Child]

3. He's flying in to Davis-Monthan, then going by helicopter to...

...the town of Summerhaven on Mount Lemmon and speaking to an invitation-only audience. He is what you get when you breed a chicken with a reptile.

On the other hand, when President Clinton comes to Tucson, he drives through town, shakes hands with as many folks as possible, then stops in at his favorite Mexican restaurant (Mi Nidito) for a meal.

[Cha]

4. That sounds like bush all right! The "chicken and the retile".

barbara and pappy.

[PsN2Wind]

9. Damn

Him being a cowboy and all, I expected he'd come down to the Cow Palace or Longhorn.

[Bozola]

5. Reduce everything to the level of a Bush....

[NickB79]

8. Stupid plan

The idea of forest-thinning itself isn't that bad if done correctly. This is NOT the correct way, though. Over the decades, we've suppressed naturally occurring forest fires for so long that far too many young seedlings survive to maturity. Growing so close together, they turn into skinny toothpicks of trees. These are totally unsuitable for logging and are a major fire danger. The large, mature trees aren't much of a fire danger and are required to provide seed for regeneration, but are also the best to log. So, if you want to prevent forest fires, you'd best log the skinny, worthless trees and leave a few dozen mature trees per acre. However, no one will do that because they want to make money off the logging. So, they log the mature trees that should be left and leave the skinny, tightly packed trees that are the true fire danger. What do you think, the logging companies will do this for free, out of the kindness of their hearts? End result is that Bush's "Healthy Forests" initiative will do dick to prevent future forest fires.

[ninkasi]

15. That's the same way

a gardener thins seedlings. They don't do well crowded together, so you leave the strongest, healthiest ones, and pull out the rest. Then they are spaced correctly, and can thrive.

[yellowcanine]

17. Yep, and also

"Thinning" too many of the large trees stimulates the growth of understory shrubs and trees - which increases the risk of catastrophic fires. What is needed is "sustainable forest management" where the trees which have stopped growing are removed, as well as trees which are too close together. This leaves large trees which are still growing and thus adding timber value to the stand as well as smaller trees which now have an oppurtunity to grow rapidly. If done correctly, there is enough shade to suppress the growth of the dangerous understory plants but some "Controlled burning" may still be necessary. I don't believe this is what Bush has in mind when he talks about "thinning", otherwise why not require the environmental impact studies which would tell us what management practices are needed to minimize the danger of fires AND maintain a productive forest.

[Lefty48197]

10. He is finally thinking logically

"Those trees wouldn'ta burned if we'd cut them down".

[fabius]

11. "Healthy Forests", my ass.

A healthy forest is one that's on its way to the sawmill...

We'll give Shrub a warm welcome up here in Portland. USFS has been trying to do an end-run for years to log the last old-growth, stopped only by the environmental activists - "tree-sitters". I suspect Bush-Ashcroft will want to brand them "terrorists" now to facilitate the "Healthy Forest" thing.

I can see why Shrub wouldn't want to drive thru Tucson, it's the liberal hotbed of AZ. Better to fly over and avoid it. Of course, he wouldn't know a good chile relleno if it hit him in the face. (Thinking about Mi Nidito which I discovered before Bill Clinton, altho' they have his big photo on the wall).

[Best_man23]

12. According to Dumbya

Only trees cause forest fires.

[yellowcanine]

18. Why do Republicans hate trees?

Reagon once maintained that trees cause more pollution than cars. One wag noted that we should have challenged Reagan to close himself up in a room with a running automobile while someone else closed themselves in a room with a live tree to test this hypothesis.

[symbolman]

13. Always wondered if BUsh's were

jealous of actual TREES..

He might as well fly in on the helicopter upside down and take as many out as possible..

scumbag.

[dusty64]

14. Nothing but another giveaway

to his corporate donors. I guess the pravda press forgot the word "quid pro quo" after President Clinton left office, as it is the word that describes everything our regime does.

[hatrack]

16. Yeah, uh-huh, THIS'LL boost his shitty environmental poll numbers

Right.

And soon, Koko the talking gorilla will replace Peter Jennings at ABC News.

[ellie]

19. I sent my Congressperson

a letter about this issue and he apparently agrees with Chimpy. Him and I are on the wrong side of every issue. It looks like there needs to be regime change in Michigan District #9. I know that I didn't vote for this idiot!