Political Quotes

“The West Fork Complex Fire--acreage burning now in Colorado--is more than 141 square miles and counting. The East Peak Fire--over 13,000 acres and counting. These are just two of the fires that are burning in my district now, and it is still early summer. Tens of thousands of acres of forests are already gone and entire communities are being threatened. Brave men and women are working around-the-clock to be able to stop this devastation. They are truly incredible, and I want to thank all of them for all they are doing to be able to protect property, save lives, and to be able to contain these wildfires. Just like the wildfires that have ravaged our State over the last decade, these fires have destroyed property and are doing irreversible damage to the environment--to the fragile ecologies and watersheds on which we rely. The incident commanders in charge of the suppression efforts on the West Fork Fire--the Nation's highest priority--told me this week that the behavior of the fire is unprecedented. Because of all of the beetle- killed timber, unnaturally dense forest, and dry conditions, the fire has acted in a way that defies computer models and has been incredibly devastating. The most tragic part of all of this is the occurrence of these forest fires could be reduced, if not outright prevented, with commonsense healthy forest management.…”