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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Emergency services, Oct. 16 ... Since You Asked: Park resurfacing delayed during winter ... SOU training gives tips on what to do if there's an active shooter ... Emergency services, Oct. 16 ... Since You Asked: Park resurfacing delayed during winter ... SOU training gives tips on what to do if there's an active shooter ... OUR VIEW Our View: Fund firefighting first, fight forest battle later Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Aug. 6, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted Aug. 6, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News U.S. Rep. Greg Walden is right about changing the funding for fighting wildfires. He's right about easing the logjam over timber harvests, too. But he's wrong to lump the two issues together in one bill that's unlikely to pass the Senate. First the firefighting: Federal law provides for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to pay for natural disasters such hurricanes and floods — but wildfires on federal lands ignited by lightning strikes and made worse by drought conditions don't qualify. As a result, the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management must pay for fire suppression out of their own budgets. When the costs exceed what the agencies have budgeted for fire suppression, a common occurrence, they must raid other parts of their budget, typically forest thinning and other prevention activities aimed at reducing the severity of wildfires. That this makes no sense goes without saying. It needs to be fixed. As it happens, Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden has a bill, with bipartisan support, to do that, and only that. Walden's House bill would fix firefighting funding, too. But it would also implement some controversial new policies aimed at discouraging lawsuits by environmental groups challenging logging proposals. Among other things, it would require environmental groups to post bonds in some cases to cover the federal government's potential litigation costs should the courts rule against the suits. It would also limit legal challenges to large salvage logging projects and remove environmental review of the use of some herbicides on federal forests. Some of those provisions may make sense, and are worth debating. Timber harvests need to increase and the legal logjams that are preventing that need to be remedied. But controversial changes in timber policy that will require lengthy negotiations shouldn't be tied to a funding solution for fighting wildfires that already has bipartisan support. That virtually guarantees the fix won't happen for yet another year, while thousands of acres of forests — and millions of fire prevention dollars — go up in smoke. MailTribune.com Writer Posted Aug. 6, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501