Information about the vote from special interest groups and other information providers in our Report Cards:
League of Conservation Voters
Salvage Logging.
Scientists have found that logging forests after fires and weather events not only impedes forest
recovery but could damage ecosystems and actually increase fire risk. Nevertheless, Representative
Greg Walden (R-OR) introduced H.R. 4200, the deceptively titled Forest Emergency Recovery
and Research Act, to expedite logging in national forests.
The bill denies protections to roadless areas, old-growth forests, critical wildlife habitat and
other important areas. It also exempts logging projects from the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA), which requires meaningful public involvement and the use of the best available science to determine appropriate actions. In addition, the bill waives the Clean Water Act, the National Historic Preservation Act and any other act that requires consultation prior to project implementation. Finally, H.R. 4200 creates incentives that could shift Forest Service efforts away
from much-needed community protection and forest restoration toward destructive logging.
Representative Nick Rahall (D-WV) introduced an amendment to H.R. 4200 that would strike
the bill’s waivers of the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental laws. House Amendment 824 was rejected.