The Kootenai National Forest is slated to start five salvage timber sales in areas that burned last year, and one more is pending. The projects focus on getting rid of trees in burn zones that can pose hazards to humans and cars, and on providing more work to the local timber industry. The largest of the approved projects – Cub Creek and West Fork – were expedited through an Emergency Situation Determination. This means that the projects didn’t require the objection and response period normally instituted for timber sales of this scale. Each of these periods is about 30 days. Some conservationists think this cuts off the opportunity for valuable public input. “It accelerates the process and leads to more controversy and more mistakes,” Jeff Juel, a consultant for the Alliance for the Wild Rockies, says.