[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 15, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H242-H243]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TIME TO BURN THE BEETLE IN NORTH DAKOTA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
South Dakota (Mr. Johnson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota. Mr. Speaker, this weekend will be time 
to burn the beetle. I am talking about the mountain pine beetle and the 
damage it has done to the majestic Black Hills National Forest. In 
recent years, that pine beetle has infected 430,000 acres in the Black 
Hills, leaving millions of dead trees.
  Now, the pine beetle thrives in an overly crowded forest. It craves 
density. So to tackle this problem, Federal, State, and local 
governments and private citizens have set to work thinning the forest.
  Initially, from the very beginning, it has been the State and local 
partners that have been most proactive and aggressive; but, in recent 
years, Federal policies have helped as well.
  The Forest Service started utilizing the categorical exclusions in 
the 2014 and the 2018 farm bills, allowing them to more quickly utilize 
sound forest management practices like tree thinning and controlled 
burns.
  This picture tells the story well. In areas where the forest has been 
actively managed, the trees live; in areas where they have not been, 
they die. And now, today, after years of battle, it seems as though we 
are nearing the end of this particular outbreak.
  That is good news, but it is no time to take our foot off the gas. 
One key action needed is to continue working with the timber industry 
to set and meet good harvest targets so we can get that excess timber 
out of the forest.
  Mr. Speaker, I started my comments by noting that it was time to burn 
the beetle, and in Custer, South Dakota, this weekend, that is exactly 
what they will do at their Burning Beetle arts festival.
  It is a good opportunity for us to remember the damage that has been 
done--430,000 acres--but also to remember the importance of good 
management, of good stewardship, and of good

[[Page H243]]

Federal policy when it comes to protecting great resources like the 
Black Hills of South Dakota.

                          ____________________