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Timber production in the United States is set to expand, following an executive order signed by President Trump earlier this month
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The federal directive calls for a 25 percent increase in American timber output, citing what it calls an unnecessary reliance on foreign imports and a need to eliminate dangers posed by wildfires
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Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins issued an emergency declaration directing the U.S. Forest Service to open up approximately 112.5 million acres of national forest land across the country to logging operations
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According to Rollins, the goal is to boost timber supply, reduce wildfire risks, support economic growth through job creation, improve wildlife habitats, and decrease costs of construction and energy
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Meanwhile, an internal memo from the Forest Service reportedly outlines plans for each of its nine regional offices
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to develop a five-year strategy to meet the targeted 25 percent uptick in timber production
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It is currently unclear which forests nationwide will be affected or the amount of impacted acreage in each
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But the Department of Agriculture did confirm the expansion will impact all of the national forests in California
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a state leading the U.S. in wildfires, though some experts claim allowing large-scale logging
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projects will actually make the landscape more flammable because the removed vegetation is often
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replaced by invasive grasses, which catch fire easier. Environmental groups are raising concerns
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about Trump's executive order, arguing it sidesteps legal protections, endangered species considerations, and public input processes. An official with the Center for Biological Diversity
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said the organization will use every legal tool at its disposal to stop the implementation of this directive
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For Straight Arrow News, I'm Jack Elmer
