[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 10]
[House]
[Pages 13791-13793]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT FEDERAL LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCIES IMPLEMENT 
  WESTERN GOVERNORS ASSOCIATION ``COLLABORATIVE 10-YEAR STRATEGY FOR 
   REDUCING WILDLAND FIRE RISKS TO COMMUNITIES AND THE ENVIRONMENT''

  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 352) expressing the sense of 
Congress that Federal land management agencies should fully implement 
the Western Governors Association ``Collaborative 10-year Strategy for 
Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment'' to 
reduce the overabundance of forest fuels that place national resources 
at high risk of catastrophic wildfire, and prepare a National 
Prescribed Fire Strategy that minimizes risks of escape, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res 352

       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) in the interest of protecting the integrity and 
     posterity of United States forests and wildlands, wildlife 
     habitats, watersheds, air quality, human health and safety, 
     and private property, the Forest Service and other Federal 
     land management agencies should--
       (A) fully support the ``Collaborative 10-year Strategy for 
     Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the 
     Environment'' as prepared by the Western Governors' 
     Association, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of 
     the Interior, and other stakeholders, to reduce the 
     overabundance of forest fuels that place these resources at 
     high risk of catastrophic wildfire;
       (B) use an appropriate mix of fire prevention activities 
     and management practices, including forest restoration, 
     thinning of at-risk forest stands, grazing, selective tree 
     removal, and other measures to control insects and pathogens, 
     removal of excessive ground fuels, and prescribed burns;
       (C) increase the role for private, local, and State 
     contracts for fuel reduction treatments on Federal forest 
     lands and adjoining private properties; and
       (D) pursue more effective fire suppression on Federal 
     forest lands through increased funding of mutual aid 
     agreements with professional State and local public fire 
     fighting agencies;
       (2) in the interest of forest protection and public safety, 
     the United States Department of Agriculture and the 
     Department of the Interior should immediately prepare for 
     public review a national assessment of prescribed burning 
     practices on public lands to identify alternatives that will 
     achieve land management objectives to minimize risks 
     associated with prescribed fire; and
       (3) results from the national assessment of prescribed 
     burning practices on public lands as described in paragraph 
     (2) should be incorporated into any regulatory land use 
     planning programs that propose the use of prescribed fire as 
     a management practice.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Pombo) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Stenholm) each 
will control 20 minutes.

[[Page 13792]]

  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo).
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, citizens in the West are bracing this year in fear of 
catastrophic fires. The summer is not even over, and we have seen 3.6 
million acres burn on State, Federal, and private lands. These 
catastrophic fires are so intense the fire literally destroys every 
sign of life and can rage for thousands of acres.
  But this is not a new phenomenon or a 1-year event. During the 
wildfire season, 81,681 fires burned 3.5 million acres that killed 15 
firefighters and threatened rural communities nationwide. Congress must 
take action. Our current Federal strategy to handle catastrophic 
wildfire is not adequately addressing a looming crisis. The Federal 
Government must take action to prevent loss of wildlife habitat and to 
protect rural communities.
  This is why I am here today offering H. Con. Res. 352 before the 
House of Representatives. This wildfire resolution expresses the sense 
of the U.S. Congress to fully implement the Western Governors 
Association collaborative 10-year strategy for reducing wild land fire 
risk to communities and the environment and to prepare a national 
prescribed fire strategy to minimize risk of escape.
  America needs to know Congress understands the forest health crisis 
is causing these fires and that Congress is taking action. It is 
important to keep in mind our forests are in constant transformation. A 
particular forest now will look much different in 10 years and in about 
50 years will not look like the same forest. Sometimes a forest can get 
overpopulated with trees. Some of these trees become diseased, creating 
enormous amounts of dry timber fuel to spur a catastrophic fire. 
Reducing forest density and improving the ability of healthy forests to 
survive expansive wildfires must become the number one priority of 
Federal forest managers. It is time for Members of Congress to make the 
tough decisions necessary to end catastrophic losses of wildlife 
habitat, forest resources, and, most importantly, human lives on all 
Federal forest lands.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. STENHOLM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 352, a resolution 
expressing the sense of Congress that Federal land management agencies 
should fully support the collaborative 10-year strategy for reducing 
wild land fire risk to communities and the environment as prepared by 
the Western Governors Association, the Department of Agriculture, and 
the Department of Interior and other stakeholders.
  Mr. Speaker, the risk of wild land fires to the 192 million Forest 
Service acres is higher today than ever before. The potential for loss 
of life and property is also increased in areas where more people are 
building homes within the wild land urban interface.

                              {time}  1830

  The local communities situated near our unmanaged national forests 
experience firsthand the ecosystem problems resulting from fires that 
cannot be controlled. As we consider H. Con. Res. 352, 29 forest fires 
are burning in our Western states and six of these fires are out of 
control. Our efforts to extinguish these fires are stretched to the 
limit because more than one area in the West is experiencing incidents 
that have the potential to exhaust all agency fire resources.
  I applaud President Bush for providing the necessary emergency funds 
to fight these fires. However, we must continue to think of long-term 
solutions with four essential goals in mind: The prevention and 
suppression of wildfires, the reduction of hazardous fuels, the 
restoration of fire-adapted ecosystem, and the promotion of community 
assistance. As we focus on these goals, Mr. Speaker, we must encourage 
the Federal agencies involved to work with the governors in their 
efforts to deal with the wildland fire and hazardous fuel situation.
  The Western Governors 10-year Comprehensive Strategy Implementation 
Plan provides Federal land management agencies with a plan to reduce 
the overabundance of forest fuels that place national resources at high 
risk of catastrophic wildfire. In addition, the plan provides a 
national assessment of prescribed burning practices to minimize risks 
of escape.
  I urge my colleagues to support passage of H. Con. Res. 352.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte), chairman of the subcommittee.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and I 
commend him for his leadership in bringing this important resolution 
before the House. I strongly support it and was pleased to cooperate in 
seeing it move through the Committee on Agriculture, and I urge my 
colleagues to adopt it here.
  The gentleman is quite correct. We are not facing an ordinary 
situation here. These are not natural forest fires, and as a result, 
this resolution would clearly establish Congress' commitment and 
support for a proactive forest management strategy.
  The strategy cannot simply be to let these fires burn. They consume 
the entire forest from the ground to the top of the tallest and oldest 
and most extensive trees. They leave behind bare mineral soil, dead 
trees and vegetation, hot running streams and rivers, and the threat of 
more devastation from massive mudslides. The historic efforts of 
managing fire suppression will only lead to an increase in the forest 
health crises and the probability of more catastrophic wildfires like 
the ones we are experiencing today. We must actively manage by focusing 
on forest health and if we want to protect our firefighters, our 
communities, or forests, we must work to create healthy, sustainable 
ecosystems through good stewardship. Healthy forests burn more 
predictably and can be more easily controlled when necessary.
  The Western Governors Association comprehensive strategy does this 
very thing. It calls for moving quickly to plan programs that will 
reduce hazardous fuels and implementing restoration efforts on fire-
ravaged landscapes.
  Therefore, I strongly urge my colleagues to support House Concurrent 
Resolution 352, to reinforce Congress' commitment to the health of our 
forests.
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Herger).
  Mr. HERGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution. 
We are in the midst of what could be the most costly and destructive 
fire season for which records have been kept. More than 3\1/2\ million 
acres have burned so far this year, almost 2\1/2\ times the 10-year 
average, and close to a million acres more than at this time in 2000 
which was then the worst fire season in 50 years.
  It is an ominous glimpse of what the future holds if Congress and the 
administration do not make a dramatic commitment and take immediate 
steps to manage our forests aggressively to protect public health and 
safety. Our forests are incredibly unhealthy and literally choking from 
an unnatural accumulation of forest fuels. Some areas are up to 10 
times denser than historically. Because of this dangerous buildup of 
trees, instead of the healthy fires that clean up the forest floor, we 
are now seeing wildfires of catastrophic size and intensity that cannot 
be controlled, threatening entire communities, lives and property, and 
leaving charred forests that will not recover for a century or more. 
These fires are not natural. They are not inevitable. They are not 
environmentally healthy. They are a very serious threat to public 
health and safety.
  According to the Forest Service's own estimates, the number of acres 
at risk for such catastrophic fire events has grown to alarming 
proportions. Today close to 80 million acres of our Federal forest 
lands are threatened and, Mr. Speaker, this devastating fire season is 
further proof that time is quickly running out.
  The 1999 GAO, Government Accounting Office, report that provided the

[[Page 13793]]

first insight into the extent of our forest health crises also 
predicted that the window for taking effective action is quickly 
closing. They indicated that we have only 10 to 25 years within which 
to take action before these fires become widespread. We are not going 
to prevent forest fires, but by implementing a fire protection and fuel 
reduction strategy, setting aggressive goals, and giving land managers 
the tools and flexibility they need, we can reduce their size and 
intensity and give our firefighters a fighting chance. Congress 
approved such a plan in 1998. The Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group 
Forest Recovery Act, which this House passed by the overwhelming margin 
of 429 to 1, requires implementation of a locally developed bipartisan 
pilot project based on a system of environmentally sensitive fuel 
breaks and thinning that would reduce the risk of fire and protect 
communities. It would protect wildlife and enhance their habitat. With 
a $3 return for every $1 expended and $2.1 billion in economic benefit 
for rural communities, it is proof that there are win-win, cost-
effective fire protection solutions out there that are ripe for 
immediate implementation.
  Mr. Speaker, this resolution is a critical step toward giving this 
emergency and the need for solutions the urgency and the serious 
attention they deserve. I urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. STENHOLM. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this resolution. Fires 
continue to blaze through the western portion of our country. Aided by 
drought the damage stretches into a million acres and billions of 
dollars.
  More than 22,000 communities across the country and over 211 million 
acres of federal lands are currently at risk to these severe wildfires. 
In Arizona alone, over a half a million acres of land burned with more 
than 400 homes and other structures. Nearly 33,000 people were 
evacuated.
  The key to reducing risk of these catastrophic wildfires is to 
actively manage forests not just in the interface but landscape wide to 
ensure forests can withstand drought, insects and disease. Reaching the 
appropriate tree density and promoting native mixes of species ensures 
less severe burns than what we have seen ravage the west already this 
year.
  This is not a commercial logging or timber issue. This is an issue of 
keeping the forests healthy and well maintained through thinning, 
logging and prescribed burns. Policies that slow down this process 
coupled with appeals that further halt necessary treatments must be 
stopped. Without these changes, we will see more years similar to this 
one where the fire year is shaping up as the most devastating on 
record. Some 2.7 million acres have already burned, nearly three times 
the average acreage for this time of year.
  We still have time. The fire season is in its early stages. Thinning 
and forest management practices necessary to ensure our forests are 
able to survive future catastrophic wildfires must begin without 
further delay.
  In a 1999 report, the General Accounting Office report to the U.S. 
House of Representatives, entitled ``Western Forests: A Cohesive 
Strategy Is Needed To Address Catastrophic Wildfire Threats,'' was 
published in 1999. The GAO reported that ``the most extensive and 
serious problem related to the health of national forests in the 
interior West is the overaccumulation of vegetation, which has caused 
an increasing number of large, intense, uncontrolled and 
catastrophically destructive wildfires. According to the U.S. Forest 
Service, 39 million areas on national forests in the interior West are 
at high risk of catastrophic wildfire.''
  The Western Governors Association (WGA) signed it ``Collaborative 10-
year Strategy for Reducing Wild Fire Risks to Communities and the 
Environment'' in 2001. The plan emphasizes preventing catastrophic 
blazes instead of just fighting them.
  I encourage Congress to support the plans of the 10-year strategy. I 
encourage the immediate implementation of practices we know will aide 
in preventing future fires that burn thousands of acres of land and 
homes.
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 352, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution, as 
amended, was agreed to.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read:

       ``Concurrent resolution expressing the sense of Congress 
     that Federal land management agencies should fully support 
     the ``Collaborative 10-year Strategy for Reducing Wildland 
     Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment'' as prepared 
     by the Western Governors' Association, the Department of 
     Agriculture, the Department of the Interior, and other 
     stakeholders, to reduce the overabundance of forest fuels 
     that place national resources at high risk of catastrophic 
     wildfire, and prepare a national assessment of prescribed 
     burning practices to minimize risks of escape.''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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