In a perfect world, all forest interest groups would have welcomed the announcement of the proposed Partnership strategy for the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest.
After decades as adversaries, wilderness proponents and logging companies finally realized their best hope for breaking the gridlock on the ground was to sit down and hammer out a compromise.
Four months of intense negotiations later, they were set to release their draft and continue the hard work of compromise with others who had a stake in forest planning.
In a perfect world, agreement would have been reached with these other groups. No one would get everything they wanted, but each would recognize the value in working together and finding the middle. As Montana's largest national forest at 3.35 million acres, the BDNF has room enough for everyone.
Congress would have already passed the plan into law and the Forest Service would be implementing it. Loggers and mills would have a steady supply of timber, and forest restoration projects would be under way. Some of the BDNF's most pristine places would be protected as wilderness, and other areas would be dedicated to motorized use and to mountain bike use.
Well, the big Partnership announcement came April 26, 2006. Three years later, the bickering continues, with some still refusing to come to the table. There's talk about starting from scratch on an alternative plan. Some are still nursing their wounds over not being included in the original negotiations. None of Montana's representatives in Washington has stepped forward to sponsor the federal legislation needed to implement the plan.
It's not a perfect world - far from it.
But a steady base of support has been building since that announcement three years ago, and the goal to create a new dynamic in forest management remains a worthy one.
Representatives of the Partnership sat down with The Standard's editorial board last week, and we all came away with the sense that this is well worth continuing to pursue and those who oppose it need to step up and work toward a compromise. We stand by our original endorsement in 2006.
As Montana Wilderness Association Director Tim Baker said, "This fight over forest management has really hurt everybody." With the pine beetle outbreak spreading, the need for active timber management intensifies as well - to reduce fire danger and improve forest health, while also boosting rural economies dependent on logging.
Opponents stress that this Partnership plan offers no guarantees that a single log will be cut since obstructionist groups will still be free to file lawsuits to block projects. They advocate for "lawsuit-proof" federal legislation that contains "hard release" language, but the Partnership folks say such a law would never make it through Congress. Sun Mountain Lumber Plant Manager Tony Colter said the logging companies learned that lesson 20 years ago. The right to sue is a sacred cow.
But, they say, judges are starting to take notice when disparate groups like loggers and conservationists unite to support Forest Service timber projects, rather than oppose them, and as public pressure mounts in favor of action on the forest, fringe groups will have a harder time prevailing in the courts.
Misinformation is perhaps the Partnership's most formidable adversary. When all is said and done, this proposal would mean only 110 fewer miles of roads open to motorized use in summer than what's called for in the Forest Service's newly released plan for the BDNF. More than 6,000 miles of roads and trails would remain open.
In winter, the proposal would mean 120,000 fewer acres for snowmobile use than what's in the forest plan, but, again, 2 million acres would still be accessible to snowmobilers.
Baker said that often when people take the time to look at the maps and actually learn what's being proposed, they realize the plan won't affect their favorite places to ride and the conflict dissolves.
We encourage more people to really study this plan with an eye toward compromise. It's really about trying to improve the management of our forest and help the economy of western Montana, and those causes should unite us all.
Baker said that of Montana's three representatives in Washington, Democratic Sen. Jon Tester has been the one "most engaged" on this issue. Here's what Tester passed along in an e-mail on Friday afternoon: "Montana's timber industry is hurting and the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership is bringing together Montanans from all walks of life- loggers, mill workers, hunters, anglers, and conservationists. They're working together for solutions to keep our mills open and protect our outdoor heritage. Fishing, hunting, camping, hiking and motorized recreation are important traditions that all Montanans-particularly our children and grand-children-deserve to enjoy."
Tester didn't answer our question on when he'll decide whether to sponsor this, but we hope he or one of the others decides to go for it, and soon.
Learn more More on the proposed Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership is online at http://www.b-dpartnership.org/
