Alaska’s Democratic senator re-introduced legislation to repeal the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, saying the “cookie cutter” federal regulations take away local control and drive up unemployment.
The bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), would only apply to National Forest System land in the state of Alaska, though.
“It’s past time to eliminate this cookie cutter federal regulation that is stifling the Southeast Alaska economy,” said Begich. “Southeast communities and small businesses need options to strengthen the region’s economy through responsible resource development like potential mining projects on Prince of Wales Island as well as economic timber sales.”
The rule prohibits new roads and most timber harvest in inventoried roadless areas of Alaska’s two national forests, the Tongass and the Chugach.
The senators are lobbying for greater flexibility to create a timber sale program that keeps the few existing mills alive and allows for expansion into second growth markets.
“Unemployment in the rural portions of Southeast Alaska currently averages more than 15 percent,” said Begich. “Energy costs in those communities without hydropower are too high as well. Instead of adding options, the roadless rule takes them away. The residents of Southeast Alaska don’t need more rules from Washington. They need more jobs and economic diversification.”
Last October, the roadless rule was upheld by the Supreme Court. The challenge was brought by Wyoming.
That charged the government was overstepping its bounds by essentially creating “wildness” with its restrictions on road building and timber harvesting on 45 million acres of undeveloped public lands.
Unfortunately this madness is spreading around the country. Government is steadily buying up forest and farmland and creating parks that no one ever visits. Not only is this destroying local economies because the promised tourism doesn't come close to making up the lost forestry and farming, but it is setting up disasters. Without management, the forests tend to be less healthy and more prone to fires and insects. At the same time, the growing plague of... (show more)
Unfortunately this madness is spreading around the country. Government is steadily buying up forest and farmland and creating parks that no one ever visits. Not only is this destroying local economies because the promised tourism doesn't come close to making up the lost forestry and farming, but it is setting up disasters. Without management, the forests tend to be less healthy and more prone to fires and insects. At the same time, the growing plague of feral pigs can use them as a safe zone to explode their numbers and spread out do damage other forest land. (show less)
Some of you may recall the post the other day quoting a woman from Ketchikn, AK talking about how the mill closed and tournism turned KTN into Disneyland. That roadless rule is the reason the mill in KTN closed and the one in Sitka and most of the logging camps and sawmills in Alaska. What the communists, excuse me, Greenies started with the Spotted Owl they completed with the roadless rule: they've eliminated all logging on public lands in The West, including even in the National Forests,... (show more)
Some of you may recall the post the other day quoting a woman from Ketchikn, AK talking about how the mill closed and tournism turned KTN into Disneyland. That roadless rule is the reason the mill in KTN closed and the one in Sitka and most of the logging camps and sawmills in Alaska. What the communists, excuse me, Greenies started with the Spotted Owl they completed with the roadless rule: they've eliminated all logging on public lands in The West, including even in the National Forests, forests that were intended to provide the Country with a sustainable timber supply.
It is about 800 air miles up the coast from the Alaska-Canada border just south of Ketchikan to Anchorage. Other than a few enclaves of State and private land mostly right around the few towns along the way, everything you see out the starboard windows of the plane is federal land, mostly the Tongass and Chugach National Forests but also several National Parks, including the Glacier Bay National Park near Juneau, Misty Fjords NP, and others. The Greenies are constantly bleating and wailing about the little bit of logging done on Indian lands in Southeast and carry on endlessly about the "Old Growth" timber around Juneau. If you look at pictures of Juneau in the early 20th Century, there wasn't a tree in sight; they'd all been cut down for mine timbers and structural lumber as well as firewood. Trees do grow back and now there is hardly a trace of what was in its day one of the largest industrial complexes in the World, the Alaska Juneau and Treadwelll gold mines. Many of you have seen the tourism ad picture of Juneau's waterfront with the tree covered, snow capped mountains coming right down to the cruise ship docks. There are over 700 miles of tunnel inside that mountain behind the cruise ships. (show less)
For having such a staunch union power base you'd think Fairbanks would have been able to fend off the tourism folks, but the unions there maintain their power by managing job scarcity to their political advantage.
For having such a staunch union power base you'd think Fairbanks would have been able to fend off the tourism folks, but the unions there maintain their power by managing job scarcity to their political advantage.