Healthier forests and more jobs

“We’ve ignored federal forests long enough to take stock of the results: staggering unemployment in rural Oregon, county governments on the brink of bankruptcy, catastrophic wildfires summer after summer, massive bug kill, and threatened habitat and watersheds. Simply put, our federal forests are a national treasure in peril. It’s time to act to put people back to work in the woods, prevent catastrophic wildfires, and improve forest health.”  -- Greg Walden

The Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act (H.R. 1526)

Greg Walden has long been a leader in changing federal forest management. During his service in Congress, Greg has written and helped pass the bipartisan Healthy Forest Restoration Act, the Forest Emergency Research and Recovery Act, and the FLAME Act. This Congress, Greg continues his efforts to reform federal forest policy and helped pass H.R. 1526, the Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act.

“This is our opportunity to make federal forest policy work for Oregonians and all Americans”--  Greg Walden

Click here or on the image below to watch Walden’s closing remarks in support of the bill

The Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act (H.R. 1526) renews the federal government’s commitment to actively manage federal forests to create jobs in the woods, improve forest health, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire, and generate revenue for local communities to provide essential local services like schools and law enforcement.

The bill contains the bipartisan O&C Trust, Conservation and Jobs Act, a plan offered by Walden and fellow Oregon Reps. Peter DeFazio and Kurt Schrader to deal with Oregon’s unique O&C lands. This plan would allow a board of trustees appointed by the Governor to direct the management of these lands. By allowing Oregonians to manage these lands unique to Oregon, this proposal protects or creates over 3,000 jobs, delivers economic certainty for struggling mills that depend on federal forests, provides stable funding for essential county services like schools and law enforcement, protects old growth stands and watersheds, and prevents catastrophic wildfire.  

During debate over passage of the plan, Greg Walden told his colleagues of the dire situation faced in Oregon’s forested communities because of broken federal forest policy. “While these federal forests surrounding our rural communities are burning, rural families are sentenced to live in poverty as the mills close, the jobs disappear, all because we can’t access our abundant and renewable natural resources on federal land. It’s clear the status quo is not working for families in our rural communities. This broken system has to change,” Walden said.

“We have worked though our differences and forged a balanced, common-sense plan that would create or save thousands of forest jobs in Oregon. We would ensure the health of these lands for future generations, and provide long-term funding certainty for Oregon’s rural schools, roads, and law enforcement agencies that lie within these counties. And it would stem the tide of endless litigation,” Walden told his colleagues.

The House of Representatives passed H.R. 1526, including the O&C Trust, in a bipartisan vote on September 20^th, 2013.

Because the Senate has failed to act on active forest management legislation, Walden led a House effort to pass H.R. 1526 for a second time, on September 18^th, 2014. Click here or on the image below to watch Walden’s speech on the House floor

For more information on the Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act (H.R. 1526), click here. For information on the O&C Trust, Conservation, and Jobs Act, click here.