House Passes Crucial Fire Protections (and Roadless Conservation!)

Grant Lake, California, with low water. Photo credit: Ross Stone.

Wildfire and drought are two of the biggest problems facing the West, and the House just passed a package to address wildfire risk, drought, and protect backcountry areas on our National Forests.

On Friday, the full House of Representatives voted on the Wildfire Response and Drought Resiliency Act, which passed 218-199.

The package includes dozens of tremendously valuable fire and drought policy measures, as well as a few items of particular importance for outdoor recreation: permanent protection of areas protected under the Forest Service’s Roadless Rule and direction to the Forest Service to fill recreation staff vacancies.

The Wildfire Response and Drought Resiliency Act also includes a number of additional good policy ideas that will improve wildfire resilience and enhance outdoor recreation. They include:

• Permanently protecting Roadless Areas on our National Forests;

• Directing the Forest Service to fill recreation staff vacancies;

• Supporting firefighters through better pay;

• Authorizing funding to support fire and land management programs (including recreation);

• Supporting wildfire mitigation and forest resilience projects;

• Embracing prescribed fire;

• Protecting core conservation laws like the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) while supporting more efficient NEPA implementation to address wildfire mitigation; and

• Advancing environmental justice by ensuring that disproportionately affected communities are better accounted for through the NEPA process and through other measures included in Rep. Grijalva’s Environmental Justice for All Act.

If passed through the Senate, these measures would help our country actively address the growing threat of fire through sound management actions and invest in environmental justice, conservation, and recreation. Please take a moment to drop your lawmakers a line today.