SandBoxBlogs: Summit County Citizens Voice "Forest Service chief fields budget questions"

Bob Berwyn:
"SUMMIT COUNTY — Intertwined concerns about overall forest health, bark beetles, climate change and wildfires took center state Tuesday at a full hearing of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, as lawmakers from both sides of the aisle questioned Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell about his agency’s ability to meet its obligations to address the multiple challenges.

U.S. Senator Mark Udall, a Colorado Democrat, said its critical to engage the private sector and encourage the use of beetle kill products by expanding markets for forest products. That requires streamlining contracting procedures and giving incentives to companies that use beetle-killed wood for construction, as well as wood pellets and biomass for energy production.

“The private sector is key to dealing with this epidemic,” Udall said.  “In a state like Colorado, where there is a large need for forest treatments but few forest-management businesses, the Forest Service should tailor timber sales and stewardship contracts to fit this industry, and work to try to move at the pace of industry as much as possible,” Udall said after the hearing. See a video of the exchange at Udall’s website...."
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SandBox Comments: Summit County Citizens Voice "Ski area water-rights duel now in political arena"

"SUMMIT COUNTY —A showdown over ski area water rights is now in the political arena, as four U.S. Senators have asked the Forest Service to delay implementing a revised permit condition that could require resorts to transfer certain types of water rights to the federal government.

In a Dec. 1 letter to U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell, Colorado Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, along with Senators John Barasso (R—WY) and James Risch (R-ID), asked the Forest Service to consider a moratorium on the new water rights clause.

The ski industry claims the permit conditions are a federal water grab, while Forest Service officials say the intent is to keep the water rights linked with the permitted ski area use. Read more details and background in this Summit Voice story...."

(Bob Berwyn)

Also read more details from the other side by reviewing this press release from Congressman Scott Tipton (R-Colorado).

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