Forest Committee devotes itself to affecting plans

Influencing the long-range management plans that the Forest Service is developing for our Southern California's national forests will be a major focus of the Angeles Chapter's Forest Committee this year. At bimonthly meetings, the committee will help stimulate an effective response to the final plans when they are made public this summer. The plans cover two national forests in the Chapter's area, the Angeles and Cleveland, as well as two other Southern California forests, the San Bernardino and Los Padres.

A tentative plan chosen for each forest by the Forest Service last year as its preferred management choice tilted heavily toward motorized recreation and off-highway vehicles, while slighting wildlands. The May 25 meeting of the Forest Committee will examine off-highway vehicles in the national forests. The OHV program officer for the Angeles National Forest has been invited to attend and describe how OHV routes are chosen and administered, and the problems arising from illegal OHV uses.

The July 27 meeting will feature a program 'How Best to Protect Our Threatened Forest Species,' dealing with the need for forest plan protections, by Monica Bond, a biologist at the Center for Biological Diversity. Endangered species can be an indicator of the general health of forest ecosystems, yet the Endangered Species Act recently has come under increasing political attack.

After the release of the final Forest Service plans, anticipated in August, the Forest Committee will hear from Angeles Forest Supervisor Jody Noiron on Sept. 28. She will have the lead role in implementing the plans and she will discuss just what the plan means for the Angeles National Forest.

Forest Committee meetings are held at 7:30pm on the fourth Wednesday of odd months, at the Chapter office. All are welcome to attend. For information, call Don Bremner at 626-794-2603.