Number: 1978-06
WHEREAS, the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (RPA, P.L. 93-378) requires that the Secretary of Agriculture, through the U.S. Forest Service, periodically (every 5 to 10 years) prepare an assessment of the conditions and uses of forests and rangelands of the United States and a long-range program for the protection, management, and development of the National Forest System, including roads and trails, cooperative forestry programs, and research; and
WHEREAS, this Act also requires the Secretary to prepare for the Congress statements expressing in qualitative and quantitative terms the extent to which the programs and policies projected in the budget conform to the Statement of Policy as well as an explanation, as appropriate, when the project programs fall short; and
WHEREAS, the first set of RPA documents, while prepared in relative haste to meet 1975 deadlines, have proven to be helpful in achieving a better balance in the Forest Service’s multiple use programs, especially in terms of appropriations; and
WHEREAS, a similar periodic (every five years) appraisal of the Nation’s soil, water, and related resources and the related conservation programs to be used in carrying out activities of the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) now are required by the Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977 (P.L. 95-192); and
WHEREAS, it is expected that submission of the first soil and water appraisal and program documents at the end of 1979 will provide conservationists with a useful tool for effecting needed environmental changes in SCS-administered programs; and
WHEREAS, the inability of the Bureau of Land Management to manage national resource lands in the most environmentally-effective manner, at least in part, stems from a lack of statutory requirements to prepare comprehensive renewable resource and long range programs based on identified needs and opportunities for enhancing the renewable resources of the public lands;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation, in annual meeting assembled March 16-19, 1978, in Phoenix, Ariz., hereby recommends the enactment of RPA-like legislation for the Bureau of Land Management, chief administering agency for 450 million acres of federal lands.