Ok, this is beyond insanity

[badguybuster]

The complete destruction of the US Forest Service

https://www.hatchmag.com/articles/trump-administration-orders-dismantling-us-forest-service/7716263

 

[Danjet500]

Yeah, this doesn't look good.

 

[Yaworski]

Nobody cried when the Bureau of Mines was eliminated.

 

[protoolman]

There is a way different view of this in the Western States. Some of this is an end to something locally called " The War on the West" Logging companies today with regulation don't clear cut and ruin land. They use rotation and selective cutting to leave forests healthy and vibrant. A "renewable" resource. Feds do stupid things like designate an area a wilderness and then put out fires and not allow logging. An example is Yellowstone park. For years they put out small fires that are part of the natural cycle. This increased the fuel load of dry trees, dead trees and branches on the forest floor. The inevitable result was the huge fire 20 years back when it all burned at once and wiped out buildings burned up a lot of wildlife etc. People then thought it was all destroyed. Not really it popped right back and 5 years later it was green and healthy with all that dead fuel gone. States managing timber sales and working with the timber companies works far better. The state forests of montana, idaho and montana do great. Headquartering the forest service regionally and getting them out of DC makes a lot of sense!

 

[KIR]

Nobody cried when the Bureau of Mines was eliminated.

Were those mines, mostly coal mines?

 

[turd]

I would ask where the "rules" for rotation and selective cutting come from if not from the research? Yes, unfettered lumber companied used to rape those forests and walk away.

 

[Sugar River]

Boy, that article sure was fair and balanced.........NOT.
Liberals wailing and gnashing teeth...oh cry me a river !!!!!!!!!!

 

[turd]

Of course it is not fair and balanced, unless you missed the whole point. It is an article decrying the end of the US Forest service.

 

[Yaworski]

Were those mines, mostly coal mines?

Bureau of Mines dealt with all sorts of mines except the ones that go boom.

 

[Neon Vernon]

It'll be interesting how this goes down. For years the Forest Service has been eliminating access to the forests, closing roads and trails all over the West. Our forest managers here appear to be urban types who've likely never spent a night in the woods.

Getting the management of many agencies away from the Beltway is a smart move in my book.

 

[s4s4u]

Another bureaucracy eliminated may not be a bad thing, depending on intentions.

 

[gnappi]

Of course it is not fair and balanced, unless you missed the whole point. It is an article decrying the end of the US Forest service.

I would "think" fair and balanced doesn't co-exist with differentiating the difference between DISMANTLING and relocating?

I read that they have 10,000 employees, and I'll bet like Florida's Ag service many are useless professional chair warmers that will not affect operational critical mass.

I'll wait and see but hysterical crying is just more (look it up if necessary) TDS.

 

[s4s4u]

Foresting practices, or lack thereof, have been responsible for the most devastating wildfires in history.

A change in operations may not be a bad thing.

 

[Jeepnik]

It didn't eliminate the Forest Service. It did move the HQ out of DC. Probably a good thing. It does away with regional offices. And let's face it, Covid proved those offices weren't needed. All the admin stuff can be done on the Service's network. Seems like that could seriously reduce the overhead.

 

[Joe Chartreuse]

Not just USFS. LIfted the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico for oil drillers. Trying to do as much damage as possible wherever he can for as long as he can....

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-god-squad-chose-oil-161239475.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

 

[protoolman]

Running forest operations out of DC seemed pretty stupid to begin with. Never saw too many forests there. States like Montana already manage millions of acres of forest. Seems like the US forest service doesn't do anything "better". Decentralizing seems like it might work. Forest research seems pretty well established. I'm not sure how much new info there is to be learned at this point either.

 

[GSP7]

US Dept of Agriculture

Lassie's owner is going to loose his job

Yogi Bear is going to go on the rampage stealing pick-nick baskets

 

[Mobuck]

USFS and BLM swing pretty big loops not always for the benefit of the resources.

 

[Danjet500]

Another bureaucracy eliminated may not be a bad thing, depending on intentions.

And the results.

 

[Yaworski]

Not just USFS. LIfted the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico for oil drillers.

Actually, he just opened it up for expert review. Species come and species go. Who worried about the masodons?

 

[pisgah]

It is a good-faith effort at a sorely-needed complete reformation of the USFS. Will it work? Who knows? But at least it is an honest effort to provide the American people some accountability for the tax monies spent. So far, the biggest outcry against it is from groups who still believe manmade global warming is a real thing and dye their hair green and blue to show it...

 

[RadioTech]

It'll be interesting how this goes down. For years the Forest Service has been eliminating access to the forests, closing roads and trails all over the West. Our forest managers here appear to be urban types who've likely never spent a night in the woods.

Getting the management of many agencies away from the Beltway is a smart move in my book.

Getting management away from the beltway is one half an idea! Just shutting down but not replacing is just STUPID!

 

[s4s4u]

Not just USFS. LIfted the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico for oil drillers. Trying to do as much damage as possible wherever he can for as long as he can....

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-god-squad-chose-oil-161239475.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

The Endangered Species Act is largely responsible for the extreme damage of wildfires that plague CA every year, as well as other areas in this country. Not allowing the removal of underbrush, preventive burns and firebreaks for the sake of a few insects...

There needs to be some common (sense) ground and compromise, but the greenies ignore fact, for fellings.

 

[Chief 101]

It's about time

 

[Neon Vernon]

Getting management away from the beltway is one half an idea! Just shutting down but not replacing is just STUPID!

If you look for a less fear-mongering and hysterical source of information on this, and I did, you'll find that half of FS management will be remaining in DC. Also the Research Facilities are being consolidated, not eliminated.

 

[peachhead]

Not just USFS. LIfted the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico for oil drillers. Trying to do as much damage as possible wherever he can for as long as he can....

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-god-squad-chose-oil-161239475.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

So freaking what? I don't give one damn about the spotted half marmaloot in the Gulf. I care about the price of oil. Drill, baby, drill.
Species come and species go. It's part of life.
Some of y'all just need some damn help. I swear.

 

[Jeepnik]

Sadly the USFS was once a great outfit. But when outdoorsmen were replaced with college graduates it's death knell was rung.
An example of the type of folks that work for such organizations is my neighbors kid. Good kid, smart and willing to work.

As part of his college work he got involved with a project to return a local wetland to it's "natural" state. This involved removing all of the non native plant species. So the group he was with worked diligently to do so. Within a few months they had done a fair job. But only a few months later all of the non native plants started coming back. These kids just didn't realize that once the plants and animals were here, you aren't getting rid of them.

 

[John in WYO]

So freaking what? I don't give one damn about the spotted half marmaloot in the Gulf. I care about the price of oil. Drill, baby, drill.
Species come and species go. It's part of life.
Some of y'all just need some damn help. I swear.

Yeah, but what about the striped half marmaloot?
You insensitive Neanderthal….

 

[Ale-8(1)]

Actually, he just opened it up for expert review. Species come and species go. Who worried about the masodons?

Good question. I'm sure those few homo sapiens who were alive with them worried about them as being dangerous along with the possibility of them as a somewhat difficult food source.

"Mastodons for at least a few thousand years prior to their extinction coexisted with Paleoindians, who were the first humans to have inhabited North America. Evidence has been found that Paleoindians (including those of the Clovis culture) hunted mastodons based on the finding of mastodon remains with cut marks and/or with lithic artifacts." -- Wikipedia

 

[Mobuck]

Last Monday, I had a meeting with several 'officials' representing 4 state and Federal agencies regarding property boundaries and how they were marked. They informed me that they had 'easements' that didn't follow property boundaries. I reminded them they had no easements on MY property and they'd better have their boundaries legally marked before the logger got here in November. I think they took me seriously but we'll see.
Many, many instances of agency overstepping legal precedent and getting away with it by way of threats and badgering.