ALLIANCE FOR CITIZENS RIGHTS

NATIONAL FOREST SERVICE IMPLEMENTING AGENDA 21
Could heavily impact the economy of counties.
by Don Casey

Seventeen rural Alabama counties will likely face extinction if the National Forest Service's Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) is implemented as written. The DEIS was seven years in the making and should become final this fall. The plan describes several land use management alternatives for the management of Alabama's National Forests. All alternatives are in compliance with United Nations Agenda 21 (sustainable development). (Officials of the National Forest Service (FS) have neither confirmed nor denied the previous statement.) This report will rely on the USDA's written word to affirm the DEIS compliance with the United Nations Agenda 21. The United States Department of Agriculture website is http://www.usda.gov/sustainable. There you may view USDA's Memorandum 9500-6. This Memorandum proclaims: "the philosophy and concepts of sustainable development shall be...incorporated into" rules and regulations written by the USDA. The top of the web page contains two logos - the USDA's and the United Nations.
In addition to the USDA's Memorandum 9500-6, the United States reports its progress in the implementation of Agenda 21/Sustainable Development every five years to the United Nations. The UN maintains a website which contains reports from every nation that is signatory to Agenda 21. The 2002 report for the United States may be viewed at http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/natlinfo/natlinfo.htm. The 1997 report is available at http://www.un.org/esa/earthsummit/usa-cp.htm. The following quote is from the 1997 report: "....the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of the Interior (USDI) have embraced the Ecosystem Approach to land management. The Ecosystem Approach to land management entails a comprehensive evaluation of all natural resource areas when making land management decisions within both federal and non-federal territory." CHAPTER 10 INTEGRATED APPROACH TO THE PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT OF LAND RESOURCES - AGENDA 21 (emphasis added)

The Forest Service acknowledges their DEIS plan will implement "ecosystem management".
All plans (A through I) will negatively impact Alabama. The evaluation for all alternatives is published in five tables on pages 3D-472 through 474 in the DEIS - National Forest in Alabama.¹ Alternative I, preferred by the FS will, if implemented, produce the worse possible economic outcome within a ten year time frame.

Page 3D-473 Table C.1.22 forecast the value of labor will be reduced by 85.6%.
Table C.1.21 forecast that employment will be negatively impacted by 80%.
Table C.1.23 - "Forest Service Revenues and Payments to Counties" states that under the current plan seventeen counties in Alabama would receive 37.9 million dollars. But under Alternative I, the plan preferred, "Revenues and Payments to Counties" would be cut to four million dollars, a reduction of 33.9 million dollars or 87%.

The "responsible line officers" from Talladega and Bankhead Forest, James A. Gooder, Forest Supervisor for Alabama National and Roberta Moltzen, Deputy Regional Forester for Natural Resources acknowledged in a meeting that the Forest Service published a set of tables in the DEIS which indicates a drastic reduction in the economy over a ten year period in and around the National Forest in Alabama. The Forest Service officials did not refute the published information nor make any further comment.
On September 6, 2003, a public meeting was held in Double Springs. The discussion during the meeting focused on the Forest Service "plan" for management of Alabama's National Forests. Activist in the area asked Ken Freeman and Don Casey, from the Alliance for Citizen Rights, to make their presentation regarding the Forest Service land use management plan. During the presentation Don Casey stated that in his opinion a reduction of 80.5% in employment as forecast in Table C.1.21 would mean the elimination of 8 out of ten jobs over a ten year period.
Glen Gaines, Responsible Line Officer for the Forest Service asked and was granted time to present the Forest Service position. His presentation took issue with the FS forecast of a bleak economic outlook for Alabama. He presented a pie chart of Table C.1.24 which shows the "Current Role of Forest Service-Related Contributions to the Area Economy". The chart depicts the Forest Service current contribution to the economy is less than 2%. Officer Gaines then posed the idea to the audience that it would be impossible for the Forest Service to reduce the economy by 80% over ten years given the FS current 2% input.
His comments did not address the question - why did the Forest Service publish 5 tables that clearly indicate an 80% reduction the economy.
The table Officer Gaines referenced seemes to make it clear that the Forest Service's current effect on the economy is only 2%. The table did not reflect a computer generated forecast of what effects the "preferred" land use management plan (DEIS) will have on the economy in the future. Therefore the table referenced by Officer Gaines does not present data that is inconsistent with the drastic downward trend forecast in the five preceding tables.
Asking the question - how can a plan with a current input of 2% cause a reduction of 80% in ten years is valid in light of Officer Gaines assertions. This author cannot authoritatively answer the question because he does not have access to the Forest Service information that was fed into their computers to produce the five tables, which forecast a severe economic downturn. He can pose to the reader a plausible answer that would cite the "spotted owl" syndrome of the northwest. The Red Cockaded Woodpecker (RCW), the spotted owl's counterpart, will be reintroduced in the Talladega National Forest. The bird has been declared "endangered" by the Federal government and as such requires treatment that takes precedence over your personal property rights. The habitat for each nesting bird requires 60 to 125 acres. Under Federal guidelines entering the 125 acres zone of protection could violate the birds rights. This could effectively end productive use of your property.
JOE McGLINCY, International Paper Company, explains: "How does the Endangered Species Act affect private landowners? ESA, Section 9, makes it unlawful for any person to take an endangered fish or wildlife species. Regulations apply the same prohibition on taking to threatened fish or wildlife species. Take is defined to mean harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct. " Mr. McGlincy's article, "Proposed RCW Guidelines for Private Landowners" was published in the Treasured Forest magazine.²
The Talladega National Forest is currently holding a public comment period on a plan that will reintroduce the RCW in the Talladega Forest. How many nesting pairs of birds will call the Talladega Forest home is unknown. If the data fed into the USDA's computers factored large numbers of nesting RCWs the effect for rural Alabama could be compared to the economic knockout blow delivered to the northwest by the spotted owl. The RCW is one factor that likely played an important role in creating a devastating computer forecast for the area's economy. Other "locally rare species" may also come into play as factors in an economic downturn.
The seventeen counties listed by the Forest Service are listed below. If society adopts the attitude that nothing can be done, it will ensure the implementation of the UN's "Agenda 21". Time is important; if you reside in one of the listed counties your participation is important. Please contact me, Don Casey, at 205-744-4132 to discuss this growing concern. Bibb; Franklin; Calhoun; Hale; Cherokee; Lawrence; Chilton; Macon; Clay; Perry; Cleburne; Talladega; Covington; Tuscaloosa; Dallas; Winston; Escambia

Footnotes:
1. The DEIS is available free from the US Forest Service and on line at http://www.southernregion.fs.fed.us/planning/sa_plans/Alabama/welcome.htm
2. http://www.forestry.state.al.us/publication/Endangered/proposed_rcw_guidelines_for_priv.htm

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	Page 3D-473 Table C.1.22 forecast the value of labor will be reduced by 85.6%.
	Table C.1.21 forecast that employment will be negatively impacted by 80%.
	Table C.1.23 - "Forest Service Revenues and Payments to Counties" states that under the current plan seventeen counties in Alabama would receive 37.9 million dollars. But under Alternative I, the plan preferred, "Revenues and Payments to Counties" would be cut to four million dollars, a reduction of 33.9 million dollars or 87%.