Political Quotes

“this amendment would add $5 million to the grazing management account of the forest service from the general account of the forest service. Mr. Chairman, the bill before us would allow the forest service to automatically renew expiring livestock grazing permits without completing the required environmental assessments. I think that this blanket waiver proposed under the terms of the bill is, from a policy point of view, a bad idea; but I understand the practical reasons for doing this waiver, for proposing this waiver. The problem is the forest service does not have the resources to do all of the environmental assessments that it should do when it renews livestock grazing permits. Everybody agrees that abuse of grazing can be bad for the land. It can jeopardize endangered species. It can pollute streams and lakes, and it can lead to soil erosion; and everybody understands the environmental assessments are a positive step to working cooperatively with the ranching community and with the environmental community through the good offices of the forest service to protect the land, to allow it to be used appropriately for grazing, which is a necessary activity in the West, necessary for the economic stability of the West. In our efforts to be good stewards of the land, the forest service needs the resources to conduct these environmental reviews, and they have at the forest service a huge backlog.”