Oregon delegation split on forest lands bill, first steps in wildfire prevention

By Connor Radnovich
Statesman Journal
November 4, 2017
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A bill reshaping federal forest land management passed the U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday, splitting Oregon’s delegation on the vote and underscoring their disagreement on how best to prevent dangerous and expensive wildfires. Not only is there long-standing debate among lawmakers and activists on how best to balance environmental protection, stewardship and business enterprise, but also on which step of fire prevention comes first: funding or management. …Two Oregon delegates, bill co-sponsor Republican Rep. Greg Walden and Democratic Rep. Kurt Schrader, voted for the legislation, praising it for providing flexibility to the forest service in fighting fires and giving more access for salvage logging after a large fire. “Bottom line is what we’re doing now is obviously not working,” Schrader said. …The Oregon lawmakers who voted no fell more on the funding and environmental side of the arguments. 

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