The “Fix Our Forests Act” (H. R. 471) may sound like a good plan, but look closer. Our Rep. Jeff Hurd co-sponsored this bill and helped push it through the House. The Senate will vote on it soon, but Coloradans should know that the law is not what it sounds like.
The “Fix Act” bypasses established processes for issuing logging permits. The law will approve logging permits by avoiding review under the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Protection Act.
The public, as well as scientists and experts, will be cut out of the review process. For this reason, more than 85 conservation groups, including Environment Colorado and Environment America, oppose the law. Millions of acres of our national forests are at risk for reckless commercial logging projects.
Wholesale logging will not slow climate change and may make it worse. Intact forests help cool our planet, store carbon, protect watersheds and wildlife habitat … the list goes on!
Please contact Sens. Bennett (202-224-5852) and Hickenlooper (202-224-5941) immediately, by phone or email. Ask them to vote “no” on this deceptively named bill.
It will not protect us from wildfire and will hurt us and our forests in so many ways. It truly is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
Mary Handrick
Durango