Recently there has been much talk about a Community Forest Trust pilot project proposed by county commissioners from Idaho. Commissioners from Boundary, Clearwater, Idaho, Shoshone and Valley counties have advanced this proposal to dedicate some federal lands in Idaho as “Community Forests” which would be managed to sustainably harvest timber and utilize other resources while protecting the environment we live and play in, at the same time providing needed jobs and revenues for local schools and roads.

Historically, the timber harvest revenues from federal forests were granted to states with public lands to compensate local governments for removing the federal lands from the tax base. By congressional action it was the Forest Service’s obligation to return 25 percent of the receipts from selling timber and other resources to the local counties for schools and roads. When timber harvest happened in the 20th century, it not only provided valuable funding to Idaho’s counties and money to help educate our children, it also sent money back to the Treasury.

Today, after two decades of litigation designed to block management of the federal forests, this source of funding for local communities has been eliminated. Now there is broad and growing recognition that some of the federal forest lands are in desperate need of timber harvest and other management to address forest health problems and ensure resilient, healthy forests in the future.

New legislation proposed by Congressman Raul Labrador would allow the Idaho Department of Lands to manage pilot projects of 200,000 acres within the national forest to demonstrate that these lands can be environmentally and sustainably managed to produce reliable revenues for local schools and roads and help create more jobs for Idaho. Labrador’s proposal is entirely consistent with our County Community Forest concept and ensures it will not impact the wilderness areas, public access, hunting, fishing, berry picking or other similar activities that occur in the public lands. A local board will be appointed by the governor to oversee the pilot and ensure the lands are properly managed and the environment is protected.

The recent wildfires in Colorado, New Mexico and even here in Idaho where hundreds of homes have been lost shows we need to do something differently. Harvesting a portion of the timber and reducing the vegetation in a responsible manner will help reduce the fire risk to our communities, provide jobs that are so desperately needed and protect the environment we cherish. Millions of dollars are spent after a fire starts to stop them. However little is spent to prevent them.

Collaborative groups have been working with counties and the Forest Service in Idaho for the past several years to help solve the problems of overgrown vegetation in the forests. Agreements have been reached on lands that should be managed for timber harvest and other purposes. Yet those agreements are frustrated by an impossible federal planning process and those who prefer to litigate.

At the same time the federal government is cutting spending wherever it can and the county payment program formerly known as Craig/Wyden is likely to be to be cut or eliminated. This year Idaho counties will receive about $30 million of direct federal funds to offset the lack of timber harvest revenues. The rural economy of Idaho will not survive when this funding is lost — unless there is an alternative like our Community Forest Trust proposal.

We all understand the need to protect the environment for the benefit of all. We are committed to environmental protections in our Community Forest Trust concept. We invite all agencies and organizations to review the proposal and sit down with us to discuss their concerns.

We also urge all Idahoans to support Labrador’s Self-Sufficient Community Lands Act. This includes our proposal and it is a worthy idea.

For those who say no to this idea, we ask, what’s your proposal that protects the rural communities and public lands in Idaho and creates jobs by utilizing the natural resources?

Gordon L. Cruickshank is a Valley County commissioner.

projects of 200,000 acres within the national forest to demonstrate that these lands can be environmentally and sustainably managed to produce reliable revenues for local schools and roads and help create more jobs for Idaho. Labrador’s proposal is entirely consistent with our County Community Forest concept and ensures it will not impact the wilderness areas, public access, hunting, fishing, berry picking or other similar activities that occur in the public lands. A local board will be appointed by the governor to oversee the pilot and ensure the lands are properly managed and the environment is protected.

The recent wildfires in Colorado, New Mexico and even here in Idaho where hundreds of homes have been lost show we need to do something differently. Harvesting a portion of the timber and reducing the vegetation in a responsible manner will help reduce the fire risk to our communities, provide jobs that are so desperately needed and protect the environment we cherish. Millions of dollars are spent after a fire starts to stop them. However, little is spent to prevent them.

Collaborative groups have been working with counties and the Forest Service in Idaho for the past several years to help solve the problems of overgrown vegetation in the forests. Agreements have been reached on lands that should be managed for timber harvest and other purposes. Yet those agreements are frustrated by an impossible federal planning process and those who prefer to litigate.

At the same time, the federal government is cutting spending wherever it can and the county payment program formerly known as Craig/Wyden is likely to be to be cut or eliminated. This year Idaho counties will receive about $30 million of direct federal funds to offset the lack of timber harvest revenues. The rural economy of Idaho will not survive when this funding is lost — unless there is an alternative like our Community Forest Trust proposal.

We all understand the need to protect the environment for the benefit of all. We are committed to environmental protections in our Community Forest Trust concept. We invite all agencies and organizations to review the proposal and sit down with us to discuss their concerns.

We also urge all Idahoans to support Labrador’s Self-Sufficient Community Lands Act. This includes our proposal and it is a worthy idea.

For those who say no to this idea, we ask, what’s your proposal that protects the rural communities and public lands in Idaho and creates jobs by utilizing the natural resources?

Gordon L. Cruickshank is a Valley County commissioner.