I'm forwarding another environmental message of great importance to us in
the NW.

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> 11 Apr 1996 13:53:09 -0700 (PDT)
>Date: Thu, 11 Apr 1996 13:39:26 -0700 (PDT)
>X-Conference: mlist.wafcdc
>From: Western Ancient Forest Campaign <wafcdc at igc.apc.org>
>Subject: President Waffles on Rider Repeal
>To: Recipients of conference <mlist.wafcdc at conf.igc.apc.org>
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>TO: All Forest Activists
>FROM: Steve Holmer & Jim Jontz
>DATE: April 11, 1996
>
>SUBJECT: President Waffles on Rider Repeal
>
> Despite stating "The timber rider must be repealed as soon as
>possible," in a March 13 letter to Sen. Patty Murray, President Clinton
>has yet to take significant action to bring about its repeal. The
>President and the White House staff have made other promises to
>forest activists in the past to protect the Ancient Forest Ecosystem of
>the Pacific Northwest and to ensure that all salvage sales under the
>logging rider comply with all environmental laws. Thus far, we are
>seeing Ancient Forests falling and numerous salvage sales consisting of
>green, healthy trees causing significant environmental damage
>according to the government's own scientists.
>
> To his credit, President Clinton has admitted that he made a
>mistake by signing the rider. For the first time the Administration
>took action to stop a destructive salvage sale (the Barkley Salvage Sale
>in California) which was a positive development. New rules were
>issued to ease the trading of timber sales such as the First and Last
>sales on the Umpqua National Forest which contained thousand year
>old trees. While the timber trading worked in this case, it is not
>viewed by conservationists as viable solution for most sales.
>
> Meanwhile numerous other Ancient Forest sales have been cut,
>and we have no assurance that these administrative actions can limit
>the cumulative damage of the hundreds of sales expected under the
>rider this spring and summer. Only a complete repeal of the rider
>will protect the forests by restoring our environmental laws and the
>public's right to fully participate in decisions affecting public lands.
>
> According to Administration officials, the White House "is doing
>everything it possibly can" to repeal the rider and mitigate its impacts.
>But the Administration has not made repealing the rider an issue as
>part of the negotiations over the Omnibus Spending agreement to
>fund the government for the remainder of 1996. Nor have they
>offered any other strategy to bring about a repeal. The President must
>make repealing the rider an issue in negotiations with Congress, and
>he ought to endorse Rep. Elizabeth Furse's rider repeal bill.
>
> According to legal experts, the Administration can cancel the
>timber sale contracts and reimburse the timber companies for any lost
>expenses. But the Justice Department has taken the opposite view, so
>the Administration is refusing to pursue this option. This is another
>step the President can take to show he is ready to stop the waffling
>and get serious about repealing the rider and stopping destructive
>sales already moving forward.
>
> Please contact President Clinton at 202/456-1111 (9-5) EST, fax
>202/456-2883, email president at whitehouse.gov and tell him you are
>tired of all the waffling on his promises to repeal the rider and protect
>our nation's forests. Urge the President to insist on complete repeal
>of the rider as part of the 1996 Omnibus Spending bill, to endorse
>H.R. 2745 the rider repeal bill in the House, and to use their
>Administrative authority to cancel the contracts of environmentally
>destructive sales.