[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 4 (Monday, January 7, 2019)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 45-48]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-00014]
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 84 , No. 4 / Monday, January 7, 2019 /
Presidential Documents
[[Page 45]]
Executive Order 13855 of December 21, 2018
Promoting Active Management of America's Forests,
Rangelands, and Other Federal Lands To Improve
Conditions and Reduce Wildfire Risk
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. It is the policy of the United
States to protect people, communities, and watersheds,
and to promote healthy and resilient forests,
rangelands, and other Federal lands by actively
managing them through partnerships with States, tribes,
communities, non-profit organizations, and the private
sector. For decades, dense trees and undergrowth have
amassed in these lands, fueling catastrophic wildfires.
These conditions, along with insect infestation,
invasive species, disease, and drought, have weakened
our forests, rangelands, and other Federal lands, and
have placed communities and homes at risk of damage
from catastrophic wildfires.
Active management of vegetation is needed to treat
these dangerous conditions on Federal lands but is
often delayed due to challenges associated with
regulatory analysis and current consultation
requirements. In addition, land designations and
policies can reduce emergency responder access to
Federal land and restrict management practices that can
promote wildfire-resistant landscapes. With the same
vigor and commitment that characterizes our efforts to
fight wildfires, we must actively manage our forests,
rangelands, and other Federal lands to improve
conditions and reduce wildfire risk.
In recognition of these regulatory, policy, and
coordinating challenges, the Secretary of the Interior
and the Secretary of Agriculture (the Secretaries) each
shall implement the following policies in their
respective departments:
(a) Shared Management Priorities. The goal of
Federal fire management policy for forests, rangelands,
and other Federal lands shall be to agree on a set of
shared priorities with Federal land managers, States,
tribes, and other landowners to manage fire risk across
landscapes.
(b) Coordinating Federal, State, Tribal, and Local
Assets. Wildfire prevention and suppression and post-
wildfire restoration require a variety of assets and
skills across landscapes. Federal, State, tribal, and
local governments should coordinate the deployment of
appropriate assets and skills to restore our landscapes
and communities after damage caused by fires and to
help reduce hazardous fuels through active forest
management in order to protect communities, critical
infrastructure, and natural and cultural resources.
(c) Removing Hazardous Fuels, Increasing Active
Management, and Supporting Rural Economies. Post-fire
assessments show that reducing vegetation through
hazardous fuel management and strategic forest health
treatments is effective in reducing wildfire severity
and loss. Actions must be taken across landscapes to
prioritize treatments in order to enhance fuel
reduction and forest-restoration projects that protect
life and property, and to benefit rural economies
through encouraging utilization of the by-products of
forest restoration.
Sec. 2. Goals. (a) To protect communities and
watersheds, to better prevent catastrophic wildfires,
and to improve the health of America's forests,
rangelands, and other Federal lands, the Secretaries
shall each develop goals and implementation plans for
wildfire prevention activities and programs in their
respective departments. In the development of such
goals and plans:
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(i) The Secretary of the Interior shall review the Secretary's 2019 budget
justifications and give all due consideration to establishing the following
objectives for 2019, as feasible and appropriate in light of those budget
justifications, and consistent with applicable law and available
appropriations:
(A) Treating 750,000 acres of Department of the Interior (DOI)-
administered lands to reduce fuel loads;
(B) Treating 500,000 acres of DOI-administered lands to protect water
quality and mitigate severe flooding and erosion risks arising from forest
fires;
(C) Treating 750,000 acres of DOI-administered lands for native and
invasive species;
(D) Reducing vegetation giving rise to wildfire conditions through forest
health treatments by increasing health treatments as part of DOI's offering
for sale 600 million board feet of timber from DOI-administered lands; and
(E) Performing maintenance on public roads needed to provide access for
emergency services and restoration work; and
(ii) The Secretary of Agriculture shall review the Secretary's 2019 budget
justifications and give all due consideration to establishing the following
objectives for 2019, as feasible and appropriate in light of those budget
justifications, and consistent with applicable law and available
appropriations:
(A) Treating 3.5 million acres of Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest
Service (FS) lands to reduce fuel load;
(B) Treating 2.2 million acres of USDA FS lands to protect water quality
and mitigate severe flooding and erosion risks arising from forest fires;
(C) Treating 750,000 acres of USDA FS lands for native and invasive
species;
(D) Reducing vegetation giving rise to wildfire conditions through forest
health treatments by increasing health treatments as part of USDA's
offering for sale at least 3.8 billion board feet of timber from USDA FS
lands; and
(E) Performing maintenance on roads needed to provide access on USDA FS
lands for emergency services and restoration work.
(b) For the years following establishment of the
objectives in subsection (a) of this section, the
Secretaries shall consider annual treatment objectives
that meet or exceed those established in subsection (a)
of this section, using the full range of available and
appropriate management tools, including prescribed
burns and mechanical thinning. The Secretaries shall
also refine and develop performance metrics to better
capture the risk reduction benefits achieved through
application of these management tools.
(c) In conjunction with establishment of goals, and
by no later than March 31, 2019, the Secretaries shall
identify salvage and log recovery options from lands
damaged by fire during the 2017 and 2018 fire seasons,
insects, or disease.
Sec. 3. Coordination and Efficient Processes. Effective
Federal agency coordination and efficient
administrative actions and decisions are essential to
improving the condition of America's forests,
rangelands, and other Federal lands. To advance the
policies set forth in this order and the goals set by
the Secretaries, the Secretaries shall:
(a) Coordinate with the heads of all relevant
Federal agencies to prioritize and promptly implement
post-wildfire rehabilitation, salvage, and forest
restoration;
(b) Streamline agency administrative and regulatory
processes and policies relating to fuel reduction in
forests, rangelands, and other Federal lands and forest
restoration when appropriate by:
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(i) Adhering to minimum statutory and regulatory time periods, to the
maximum extent practicable, for comment, consultation, and administrative
review processes related to active management of forests, rangelands, and
other Federal lands, including management of wildfire risks;
(ii) Using all applicable categorical exclusions set forth in law or
regulation for fire management, restoration, and other management projects
in forests, rangelands, and other Federal lands when implementing the
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.);
(iii) Consistent with applicable law, developing and using new categorical
exclusions to implement active management of forests, rangelands, and other
Federal lands; and
(iv) Immediately prioritizing efforts to reduce the time required to comply
with consultation obligations under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
Sec. 4. Unmanned Aerial Systems. To reduce fire and
forest health risks as described in section 1 of this
order, the Secretaries shall, in coordination with the
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration,
maximize appropriate use of unmanned aerial systems to
accelerate forest management and support firefighting
and post-fire rehabilitation in forests, rangelands,
and other Federal lands.
Sec. 5. Wildfire Strategy. (a) In collaboration with
Federal, State, tribal, and local partners, the
Secretaries shall jointly develop, by December 31,
2020, a strategy to support local Federal land managers
in project decision-making and inform local fire
management decisions related to forests, rangelands,
and other Federal lands, thereby protecting habitats
and communities, and reducing risks to physical
infrastructure.
(b) In developing the strategy described in
subsection (a) of this section, the Secretaries shall:
(i) Identify DOI- and USDA FS-administered lands with the highest
probability of catastrophic wildfires, as well as areas on those lands
where there is a high probability that wildfires would threaten people,
structures, or other high-value assets, in order to direct and prioritize
actions to meet land management goals and to protect communities;
(ii) Examine the costs and challenges relating to management of DOI- and
USDA FS-administered lands, including costs associated with wildfire
suppression, implementation of applicable statutory requirements, and
litigation;
(iii) Review land designations and policies that may limit active forest
management and increase the risk of catastrophic wildfires;
(iv) Consider market conditions as appropriate when preparing timber sales,
including biomass and biochar opportunities, and encourage export of these
or similar forest-treatment products to the maximum extent permitted by
law, in order to promote active forest management, mitigate wildfire risk,
and encourage post-fire forest restoration;
(v) Develop recommended actions and incentives to expand uses, markets, and
utilization of forest products resulting from restoration and fuel
reduction projects in forests, rangelands, and other Federal lands,
including biomass and small-diameter materials;
(vi) Assess how effectively Federal programs and investments support
forest-product infrastructure and market access;
(vii) Identify and assess methods, including methods undertaken pursuant to
section 3(b)(iv) of this order, to more effectively and efficiently
streamline consultation under the Endangered Species Act;
(viii) In conjunction with the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency, identify methods to reduce interagency regulatory
barriers, improve alignment of Federal, State, and tribal policy, and
identify redundant policies and procedures to promote efficiencies in
implementing
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the Clean Water Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), Clean Air Act (42
U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), and other applicable Federal environmental laws; and
(ix) Develop procedures and guidance to facilitate timely compliance with
the National Environmental Policy Act.
Sec. 6. Collaborative Partnerships. To reduce fuel
loads, restore watersheds, and improve forest,
rangeland, and other Federal land conditions, and to
utilize available expertise and efficiently deploy
resources, the Secretaries shall expand collaboration
with States, tribes, communities, non-profit
organizations, and the private sector. Such expanded
collaboration by the Secretaries shall, at a minimum,
address:
(a) Supporting road activities needed to maintain
forest, rangeland, and other Federal land health and to
mitigate wildfire risk by expanding existing or
entering into new Good Neighbor Authority agreements,
consistent with applicable law; and
(b) Achieving the land management restoration goals
set forth in section 2 of this order and reducing fuel
loads by pursuing long-term stewardship contracts,
including 20-year contracts, with States, tribes, non-
profit organizations, communities, and the private
sector, consistent with applicable law.
Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or
the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not,
create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
the United States, its departments, agencies, or
entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
other person.
(Presidential Sig.)
THE WHITE HOUSE,
December 21, 2018.
[FR Doc. 2019-00014
Filed 1-4-19; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F9-P