S-0667.1  _______________________________________________

                    SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 8007

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      54th Legislature     1995 Regular Session

By Senators Morton, Hargrove, Oke, Winsley and Rasmussen

Read first time 01/19/95.  Referred to Committee on Natural Resources.

Requesting that a state of forest health emergency be declared and that salvage sales of dead and dying trees be expedited.

    TO THE HONORABLE BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, THE SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND THE SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR:

    We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:

    WHEREAS, 1994 was the latest in a series of catastrophic forest fire seasons in the West, and 2.9 million acres were burned, including a total of 285,700 acres in Washington state, and the lives of 25 courageous fire fighters were lost; and

    WHEREAS, The severity of these fires are the result of prolonged drought and deteriorating forest health conditions, and these conditions still exist over very large areas threatening lives, property, and the jobs of residents of timber-dependent communities; and

    WHEREAS, Soil erosion, mudslides, wildlife and fish habitat loss, and other damages will leave an unforgotten legacy for years to come; and

    WHEREAS, Enormous wildfires awaiting ignition on public lands of the West can no longer be seen as uncontrollable acts of nature; and

    WHEREAS, The costs and risks of inaction are greater than the costs of remedial actions; and

    WHEREAS, Millions of acres of dead and dying trees have been left in the wake of the 1994 fire season, and leaving these areas untreated will only exacerbate the spread of insect infestations and disease and increase the risk of future catastrophic fires; and

    WHEREAS, Billions of dollars of timber is burned and will have no value if not salvaged quickly, compounding the cost and difficulty of providing long-term solutions; and

    WHEREAS, The prompt salvage of dead and dying trees will help mitigate these dangerous conditions, improve future forest health, and provide economic resources to affected communities;

    NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the President of the United States declare a state of forest health emergency in Eastern Washington and other affected areas; and that the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior expedite salvage sales of dead and dying trees to mitigate dangerous conditions and improve future forest health in these affected areas.

    BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the United States, the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture, the Secretary of the United States Department of the Interior, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the state of Washington.

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