Latest news with #forestpolicy
E&E News
24-07-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
House panel backs total suppression for wildfires
The House Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday endorsed a return to forest policy of a bygone era, approving a measure to once again suppress wildfires within 24 hours of detection. In approving a bill by Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) on a voice vote, the committee backed a more aggressive approach to suppressing fire as a debate swirls about the Forest Service's firefighting capacity. 'We need to return to policies that proved they work, and this is one of them,' said McClintock, who told colleagues he's pursued the bill, H.R. 178, at the urging of local fire departments around the Sierra Nevada region he represents. Advertisement Democrats opposed the bill, saying it would bring back a total suppression policy that allowed forests to become overgrown in much of the last century and thus more vulnerable to wildfire. The practice officially ended in the 1970s.
E&E News
30-05-2025
- General
- E&E News
Another clash emerges between USDA nominee and Forest Service
The Trump administration's nominee to oversee forest policy at the Department of Agriculture is facing new scrutiny from the Forest Service, this time for diversion of a geothermal stream to a home on his Idaho ranch. Michael Boren, whose family owns multiple properties, has had longstanding conflicts with the Forest Service over his use of land in and bordering the Sawtooth National Forest, and he and the agency have had extended negotiations to settle them, according to a person closely familiar with many of the details. Boren is the administration's nominee for undersecretary for natural resources and environment, which oversees the Forest Service. His nomination hearing in the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee is scheduled for Tuesday. Advertisement The latest dustup involves a Boren property called West Pass Ranch LLC, according to the person familiar with the situation. Details of this person's account match with information a USDA employee and former employees shared with POLITICO's E&E News, all requesting anonymity for fear of retribution.
