{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=3ef9b8ad-4994-47af-aa75-cecaefd9e45f", "Thune Calls on Forest Service to Increase 2015 Investment in Timber Harvest Program", "2014-10-23", "2014", "2014-10", "Republican", "House", "SD", "John Thune", "T000250", "www.thune.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, D.C.\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\tU.S. Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota) today sent a letter to U.S. Forest Service (FS) Chief Tom Tidwell calling on the FS to increase its 2015 investment in the timber harvest program to help fight mountain pine beetle infestation and maintain forest health in the Black Hills National Forest (BHNF).\r\nIn January, the FS announced an additional $1.5 million for BHNF timber harvest in 2014. Thune\u2019s letter notes that increased investment in the timber harvest program has received national acclaim and the Black Hills received the 2013 \u201cChief\u2019s Award\u201d as a result of the innovation and increased ability for the BHNF to reduce the spread of mountain pine beetle.\r\n\u201cThe timber industry is vitally important to the Black Hills region and supports hundreds of local jobs,\u201d said Thune. \u201cAdditional support for the timber harvest program will allow more timber to be harvested and sold, stimulating the local economy, decreasing the chance of devastating wildfires, and combatting the pine beetle epidemic.\u201d\r\nThune also introduced legislation in March of 2013, the Emergency Forest Rehabilitation and Restoration Act (S. 661), that would require the U.S. Department of Agriculture to implement necessary procedures to thin more acres of federal forestland every year. The bill would also restrict the Forest Service from purchasing additional land for the next five years and redirect those funds to finance increased timber harvest.\r\nThe text of Thune\u2019s letter follows:  __\r\nOctober 23, 2014\r\nChief Tom Tidwell  U.S. Forest Service  1400 Independence Ave., SW  Washington, DC 20250\r\nDear Chief Tidwell:\r\nI write today to thank you for your efforts to restore\u00a0 the health of our forests and\u00a0 request\u00a0 your continued support for the timber harvest program, particularly in Region 2 and the Black Hills National Forest (BHNF).\r\nThe timber harvest program has proven to be a successful management tool that has improved forest health, especially in the Black Hills of South Dakota.\u00a0 Although the Black Hills forestlands continue to face a significant threat from bark beetles, including the mountain pine beetle, the Black Hills remain much healthier than many forests in the Rocky Mountain Region due in large part to the active management and timber harvests on federal, state, and private land within the Black Hills.\u00a0\r\nIn December 2012, the Forest Service announced it would begin implementing the Mountain Pine Beetle Response Project in the Black Hills National Forest.\u00a0 This plan included designating 250,000 acres of the forest as \u201chigh risk for mountain pine beetle infestation\u201d and outlined the Forest Service\u2019s intention to thin 122,000 acres over five to seven years.\u00a0 This project has received national acclaim and the Black Hills received the 2013 \u201cChief\u2019s Award\u201d as a result of the innovation and increased ability for the BHNF to reduce the spread of mountain pine beetle.\u00a0 Increased investment in the timber harvest program is vital to meeting the goals of this project and retaining forest health in the Black Hills.\u00a0\r\nNot only has the timber harvest program proven beneficial to forest health, it also has provided a major boost to the economy.\u00a0 The timber harvest program contributes $120 million to the economy in the Black Hills, and provides 1,500 jobs in the Black Hills area.\u00a0 Currently, ten forest products companies in the Black Hills region depend on adequate and consistent volume from the BHNF.\u00a0\r\nIt is for these reasons the Forest Service must continue its support forest management through the timber harvest program.\u00a0 For the past 10 years, the Forest Service has made a significant investment in the timber harvest program.\u00a0 Region 2 has exceeded timber sale targets for the past 11 years, and will exceed 95% of its timber sale target for Fiscal Year 2014.\u00a0 I request that the Forest Service continue making necessary investments that would not only maintain but grow the timber harvest program, and ask that your timber target for the BHNF be increased to at least match the sold volume for Fiscal Year 2012.\u00a0\r\nThank you for your consideration of this request, and I look forward to continuing to work with you to improve the health of our nation\u2019s forests.\r\nSincerely,", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.thune.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=3ef9b8ad-4994-47af-aa75-cecaefd9e45f"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.8745148554444313, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}