| Press Release |
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| December 1, 2005 |
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Governor Announces Forest-Planning Agreement With U.S. Bureau of Land Management
(Salem, OR) – Today Governor Ted Kulongoski and the Oregon-Washington State Director of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) signed an unprecedented agreement between a Governor and the BLM, which establishes the State of Oregon as a key cooperator with the BLM in developing forest management plans for the more than 2.5 million acres of BLM forestland in western Oregon.
“This is an important agreement that allows Oregon to work in partnership with the BLM to better manage our federal forestlands,” said Governor Kulongoski. “The state’s ability to work in cooperation with the BLM is critical to successfully managing our lands and is essential to the well-being of Oregon’s rural communities.”
In addition to the BLM and Governor Kulongoski, the new planning agreement covers 10 state natural resources agencies, including the Oregon Departments of: Forestry; Agriculture; Geology and Mineral Industries; Environmental Quality; Fish and Wildlife; State Lands; Parks and Recreation; Transportation; Water Resources; and State Marine Board.
The agreement comes as the BLM begins a major planning process intended to revise its existing land use plans in western Oregon. The Oregon Department of Forestry will serve as the lead state agency under the agreement and will participate in the planning from start to finish, rather than offering input only during designated comment periods. Other federal agencies and affected counties will also be partners in the plan revision process.
Elaine Brong, the BLM’s State Director, said the agreement means that a broad range of expertise and interests will be represented as long-term plans are crafted to provide for sustainable timber harvests, watershed protection and other benefits.
Most of the affected lands are commonly known as the Oregon and California (O&C) lands, which were granted in the 1860s to companies working on rail construction between the two states. The companies were to sell the land to settlers to finance construction of a new rail line from Portland to the California border. However, after the railroad was built, the remaining lands returned to federal ownership, creating a checkerboard of square-mile sections.
“Through the O&C Lands Act of 1937, Congress provided for these lands to play a special role in providing economic stability in rural communities through sustainable, environmentally sound timber harvests,” Brong said. “We welcome broad participation in determining how best to reach this goal.”
According to Brong, the planning process calls for development and consideration of a range of management alternatives for the lands.
Governor Kulongoski has called for a greater state voice in shaping the management of both BLM and U.S. Forest Service lands in Oregon. Federal agencies manage more than half of Oregon’s approximately 30 million acres of both public and private forest lands.
“I’m pleased that the BLM is willing to work with us to produce a balanced, unified vision for the future of these precious resources,” said Governor Kulongoski.
This agreement represents the next step in the Governor’s efforts to increase Oregon’s role in federal natural resource planning and management. In October, 2004 the Governor directed the state Board and Department of Forestry to take the lead among state agencies on federal land management issues: governor.oregon.gov/Gov/speech_102204.shtml.
The lands covered by the new agreement are primarily in the Coast Range and along the lower western slopes of the Cascade Range. They lie in Benton, Clackamas, Clatsop, Columbia, Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Multnomah and Polk counties.
Management plans for the lands covered by the new agreement are expected to be completed in mid-2008.
For the text of the MOU, go to: http://governor.oregon.gov/Gov/pdf/letters/mou_1205.pdf
For more information about the BLM Western Oregon Plan: http://www.blm.gov/nhp/spotlight/state_info/planning/or/wopr/
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