Today’s Missoulian has a pretty good status report — with video, no less — on Senator Jon Tester’s proposed Forest Jobs and Recreation Act.
Here’s the lead-in . . .
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester’s Forest Jobs and Recreation Act awaits committee action in Washington, D.C., but back home his fellow Montanans are busy pushing and pulling at the proposed wilderness set-asides and logging mandates.
Watching Senator Jon Tester’s “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act” make its way through the system is a real lesson in practical politics. It made it past the initial, more or less pro forma hearings in front of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Now, Congressman Denny Rehberg is getting into the act with a series of “listening sessions” around Montana.
An AP article by Matthew Brown posted today offers a good overview of the situation with Rehberg and some interesting analysis. Here’s the money quote:
As Rehberg tours the state this week to gauge public support for the measure, observers say where the Republican comes down could either help seal Tester’s biggest legislative achievement since his 2006 election — or put up a major roadblock to the bill’s success.
Congressman Denny Rehberg is still testing the waters when it comes to taking a position on Senator Jon Tester’s “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act.” Rehberg has lined up five “listening sessions” on the proposal at various sites around Montana.
An AP article posted in today’s Missoulian summarizes some of the concerns with Sen. Jon Tester’s Forest Jobs and Recreation Act expressed by Agriculture Undersecretary Harris Sherman during today’s hearings on the bill. (Sherman is the Forest Service’s boss.) This is one of those read-between-the-lines articles, not to be taken entirely at face value. Nevertheless, it has some useful information.
Here’s the lead-in . . .
The Obama administration said Thursday it has several concerns about Sen. Jon Tester’s plan to create more wilderness and mandate more logging in Montana’s national forests.
From today’s Flathead Beacon . . .
The governor says he is backing U.S. Sen. Jon Tester’s plan to both create more wilderness and mandate more logging.
Gov. Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat, submitted the testimony in advance of Thursday’s hearing on the bill in the U.S. Senate. He says it will create good jobs with more logging.
Yesterday’s New York Times carried coverage, with a minimum of snark, on Senator Jon Tester’s proposed “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act” bill. The article includes a pretty good discussion of the issues likely to be covered during the upcoming hearings on the bill, which are scheduled for this Thursday.
Trying to satisfy everyone from wilderness advocates to timber companies, Sen. Jon Tester has proposed a new model for managing national forests.
The Democrat’s controversial proposal, which he has dubbed the “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act” to emphasize its economic aspects rather than its wilderness components, would guide how federal agencies manage large swaths of land in his home state of Montana.
This story posted to last Friday’s Great Falls Tribune has some additional information on potential gold mining activity in the Canadian Flathead . . .
U.S. Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester on Thursday urged U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to help them stop continued gold exploration north of Glacier National Park in Canada.
The Montana Democrats urged Clinton to engage Canada in bilateral talks, with the focus on conducting an environmental assessment of the mining activities before they continue.
From yesterday’s Missoulan . . .
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester’s plan to both create more wilderness and mandate more logging is going to get a Senate hearing.
The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests will look at the “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act” on Dec. 17.
From yesterday’s Flathead Beacon . . .
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester says fellow Montana Sen. Max Baucus has co-signed a proposal to both add more wilderness and require more logging on federal land.
Tester made the announcement Monday during a public meeting in Missoula meant to answer questions about the “Forest Jobs and Recreation Act.”
Here is the press release from last Tuesday’s visit to the North Fork by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, accompanied by Montana Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester. It’s also available online at 7thSpace Interactive.
It’s worth reading. There are a few gems buried in the midst of the obligatory political verbiage.
Salazar, Baucus, Tester Announce Study of Potential Threats to Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park
KALISPELL, Mt – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester today announced the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the World Heritage Center will conduct a review early this fall of the potential threats, such as proposed coal mining and oil and gas development, to the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park in Montana and Alberta, Canada.
In June, the 21-nation World Heritage Committee, part of the United Nation’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO), called for the review as it considers whether the park should be placed on its list of World Heritage Sites that are in danger. The scientific review will take place September 20 to 26.
“Senators Baucus and Tester and I have serious concerns about the potential impact of energy development on the park’s water, wildlife and other resources,” Salazar said. “With the support of Canada, I am pleased that just three months after the World Heritage Committee called for this review, scientists will be on the ground to give us an objective assessment of the possible threats to the park.”
“The North Fork is a gem for Montana. I’ve been working for decades to keep it protected, and I wanted to bring Secretary Salazar out here so he could see it with his own eyes. When you see how magnificent this place is it is a no brainer that we need to protect it. Secretary Salazar is a westerner and a friend, and I am so glad that he is going to be such a strong ally in our fight. This review is a good step and will give the world a chance to see the value of this resource and the threats it will face until we have long-term protections in place. I will never rest until this place is protected for our kids and grandkids,” said Senator Baucus.
“Glacier National Park is one of the world’s most important places,” said Tester, a member of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee. “Taking inventory of any challenges we face in the future will help us protect Montana’s clean water and make sure that Glacier will always inspire visitors from around the world.”
Glacier National Park in northwestern Montana on the United States side and Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta on the Canadian side, were designated by law as the world’s first International Peace Park in 1932. The Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park is traversed by the Lewis Range and contains outstanding glacial lakes and alpine scenery and is significant as a habitat exceptionally rich in plant and mammal life.
The park protects an important biological crossroads at the point where the Rocky Mountains reach their narrowest width. It also serves as a celebration of the longest undefended contiguous border between two nations and a reminder that our natural resources have no boundaries.
The United States is concerned that proposed mining and energy developments in the mostly pristine Canadian Flathead region could potentially threaten the Flathead River in Montana which forms the western boundary of Glacier National Park.
The 21-nation World Heritage Committee oversees the list of World Heritage Sites that are of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity. Sites that are deemed to be in jeopardy are placed on the endangered list. Both the United States and Canada would have to agree to the designation before it could be made.
The Committee requested the mission take place as soon as possible so that the results can be considered by the Committee in its next session in the summer of 2010. The United States and Canada have committed to complete a State of Conservation Report by February 1, 2010.
Contact: Hugh Vickery (202) 208-6416