Building Forests for the Future

Vermont is fortunate to have both a wide array of forest ecosystems and a strong conservation ethic to protect those ecosystems. As we go into the next century, more than 85 percent of Vermont will be covered with trees. Although Vermont has recuperated from a state where almost every acre of land had been forested, forest harvesting and development pressure requires continued vigilance from all Vermonters in protecting our forests. While in the United States Senate, I have been committed to strengthening existing protection of the Green Mountain National Forest and developing new tools to protect forests on private and state lands.

Our goal in approaching the next century should be to figure out how to preserve the rivers, lakes and mountains, and, at the same time, protect and improve the livelihoods of loggers and others who live and work in Vermont's forests. To balance the interests of environmentalists, loggers and landowners, Vermont needs to create a framework of forest policy for the state that utilizes a myriad of conservation tools ranging from wilderness protection in certain sections of the Green Mountain National Forest to economic incentives for local landowners.

Although the Green Mountain National Forest is only 5 percent of the land in Vermont, it provides enormous benefits to all the people of New England that private forests do not. Since public land in New England is scarce and precious, the Green Mountain National Forest should be managed to preserve its unique resources for present and future generations. The Forest offers visitors remote backcountry experiences that can't be found elsewhere in New England.

At the same time, the Forest offers opportunities for research and demonstration projects on various types of forest management. This includes managing for timber in some areas of the Forest. During the next several years, a new Forest Plan will be developed for the Green Mountain National Forest. This plan will set the course for the next decade of management of the Forest. Public participation in the development of the plan is essential to attaining the right balance of all the uses and needs Vermonters have for the Forest.

Outside of the Green Mountain National Forest, Vermont has an increasing diversity of state and private forests that also need to balance many different interests. It has been my belief that the best approach to balancing these interests is to develop partnerships between federal, state and local interests that encourage sustainable use and conservation of the forests. A cornerstone of this philosophy of creating incentives for conservation on private lands are the recommendations put forth by the Northern Forest Lands Council. I will continue to work for legislation that implements these recommendations, capturing the vision of the Council and northern forest communities and providing foresters with the technical and financial assistance they need.

I believe that any national forest legislation for the northeast should embody the conservation ethic of the 1990's -- non-regulatory incentives and assistance to realize community-based goals for sustainable economic and environmental prosperity. The rights and responsibilities of landowners should be emphasized, the primacy of the state reinforced, and the traditions of the region protected. My goal remains to encourage sustainable development in the Northern Forest while protecting the ecological integrity of the natural and biological resources of the region.

On a parallel track, I have championed efforts to develop state and private forestry programs within the U.S. Forest Service. These programs are designed to assist in the management, protection and use of non-Federal forests. Since the majority of forests in Vermont are non-Federal, these national programs are critical to the health of our forests. The Forest Legacy program, which I created in the 1990 Farm Bill, was a result of the recommendations of the Governors' Task Force on Northern Forest Lands to provide incentives to private landowners to manage their forest lands for a range of economic, environmental, and social benefits.

This was an innovative program to emphasize keeping forest land in clear ownership and under wise management while protecting public uses and values. I believe that the current land ownership and management patterns in Vermont have served the people and forests of the region well. We should seek ways to reinforce, rather than replace, these patterns of ownership and use that have characterized these lands for decades.

It is this combination of Federal, state and local cooperation that we need to build upon for the future of our forests. By conserving Vermont's working forests for both their ecological diversity and productivity of renewable resources -- we will meet the needs of Vermont's people without jeopardizing Vermont's environment for future generations.