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Working to preserve our rural heritage and quality of life in southern Indiana since 1985 |
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ALERT! April 2, 2006: US Forest Service releases Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for Hoosier National Forest 2006 Proposed Land Management PlanThe announcement of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Hoosier National Forest Proposed Land Management Plan was published in the Federal Register on March 24th, 2006. This proposal, among other things, would allow a return to clearcutting on the Hoosier National Forest, including 40 acre clearcuts in Perry County; 10 acre cleacuts in many other areas in the Hoosier, mineral development in many areas of the Hoosier, and the spraying of chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides in the forest interior.Your comments are needed by May 8, 2006. You can make official comment using the methods outlined here: E-Mail your comments by clicking here. Mail: Judi Perez, Forest Planner Hoosier National Forest 811 Constitution Avenue Bedford, IN 47421 Phone: (812) 275-5987 -- and / or -- Kenneth G. Day, Forest Supervisor Hoosier National Forest 811 Constitution Avenue Bedford, IN 47421 Phone: (812) 275-5987 In 2000, Protect Our Woods played an integral role in the Indiana Public Lands Coalition, which was a unique coalition of members of Indiana's environmental community. This coalition submitted a Management Plan, "The Conservationists Alternative" to the US Forest Service, which best reflected the wishes and desires of a great number of Indiana citizens on how they want the Hoosier National Forest to be managed. The The Conservationist's Alternative asked the US Forest Service to: * Prohibit commercial logging * Discontinue commercial uses beyond existing commercial rights and leases * Discontinue the forest openings program * Restrict the use of prescribed fire to barrens * Designate additional wilderness areas * Designate identified roadless areas * Prevent further road construction * Emphasize high quality, primitive recreational experiences * Continue to exclude off-road vehicle use * Develop a system of hiker only trails * Place a moratorium on land exchange until a plan is in place that assures the public of fair compensation for Federal lands. Unfortunately, the Forest Service has ignored Indiana citizens' requests to implement the The Conservationist's Alternative, and has chosen to once again focus on resource extraction, rather than preservation, of the Hoosier National Forest. Please send your comments, in your own words, to the US Forest Service, and let your voice be heard. We only have a chance of taking back control of our national forests if we begin to act now. This is the first step toward that goal. Remind the Forest Service that: 1) National Forests should be exempt from commercial logging. It is a money losing, and environmentally destructive practice; 2) Mining should not be allowed anywhere on the Hoosier National Forest. Rather, the nation needs to focus on renewable forms of energy and conservation in order to meet its energy budget demands; 3) The proposed Land Management Plan does not go far enough in protection of the summer habitat of the federally endangered Indiana bat; 4) The Hoosier National Forest should be managed for forest wildlife, which prefer older, mature forests; 5) Road building, which impacts forest wildlife through fragmentation and erosion, should be off limits in the Hoosier National Forest; and, 6) Stop the spraying of dangerous chemical pesticides and herbicides in the forest interior. Tell the US Forest Service that you prefer Alternative 2, the Citizens' Alternative. Thanks for your help! Protect Our Woods
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