[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12578]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     RESPONSIBLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

  (Mr. GIBBONS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GIBBONS. Mr. Speaker, it is summertime, and out West it is the 
height of the fire season. Every day we ask our brave fire fighters to 
risk their lives to put out these dangerous blazes. Unfortunately, 
their job is made more difficult primarily due to extreme environmental 
groups.
  The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that nearly half of the 
2002 projects to reduce wildfires and wildfire risks have been blocked 
by lawsuits brought by these same extreme environmental groups. These 
delays have significantly slowed efforts to remove the tinder-dry 
overgrowth out of our Federal forests and contributed greatly to the 
West's worst fire year on record. With half of the fire season left, 
more than 3 million acres have been lost to forest fires and wildfires, 
lost for all Americans to enjoy, lost for 100 years to come.
  Today, the Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health of the Committee 
on Resources will hold a hearing to address this issue. We need to find 
a way to end the misguided crusade against responsible forest 
management. Only then will we be able to prevent destructive wildfires 
that decimate our national forests.

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