c/hackernews · by rssbot@lemmy.bestiver.se · 145d

Trump administration orders dismantling of the U.S. Forest Service

https://www.hatchmag.com/articles/trump-administration-orders-dismantling-us-forest-service/7716263

57 points · 10 comments · view on lemmy.world

10 Comments

The Forest Service, headquartered in Washington, D.C., has 27,062 permanent, full-time employees as of Sept. 20, 2018, including 541 in the headquarters office and 26,521 in regional and field office.[15]

The USDA Forest Service's mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation's forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations.[16] Its motto is "Caring for the land and serving people."

As the lead federal agency in natural resource conservation, the Forest Service provides leadership in the protection, management, and use of the nation's forest, rangeland, and aquatic ecosystems. The agency's ecosystem approach to management integrates ecological, economic, and social factors to maintain and enhance the quality of the environment to meet current and future needs. Through implementation of land and resource management plans, the agency ensures sustainable ecosystems by restoring and maintaining species diversity and ecological productivity that helps provide recreation, water, timber, minerals, fish, wildlife, wilderness, and aesthetic values for current and future generations of people.[17]

The everyday work of the Forest Service balances resource extraction, resource protection, and providing recreation. The work includes managing 193 million acres (780,000 km2) of national forest and grasslands, including 59 million acres (240,000 km2) of roadless areas; 14,077 recreation sites; 143,346 miles (230,693 km) of trails; 374,883 miles (603,316 km) of roads; and the harvesting of 1.5 billion trees per year.[16] Further, the Forest Service fought fires on 2.996 million acres (12,120 km2) of land in 2007.[16]

The Forest Service organization includes ranger districts, national forests, regions, research stations and research work units and the Northeastern Area Office for State and Private Forestry. Each level has responsibility for a variety of functions.[18] >

From Wikipedia, if you wondered what the forest service was

altphoto@lemmy.today · 14 pts · 145d (5 replies)

Wow! What a total dick move. This should backfire pretty good... No toilets or trashcans at the parks will basically stop people from visiting.

Monument@piefed.world · 9 pts · 144d (1 reply)

And if no one visits, they can justify selling the land, leasing the oil and mineral rights, or handing over ‘management’ to some random company that’ll run it like any public good that has been entrusted to capitalism.

bitjunkie@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 144d

So "into the ground".

WesternInfidels@feddit.online · 3 pts · 143d

The National Park Service is a different department. The Forest Service is part of the agriculture department, it's about managing forests as exploitable natural resources.

So that's good news, in the bleakest way, I guess.

WalleyeWarrior@midwest.social · 3 pts · 144d (1 reply)

And since no one is visiting they will give someone the land rights for $10 to clear cut all those forests in the next 10 years

altphoto@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 144d

Welcome to the home depot! Our lumber is dimensionally stable, cut from trees that where here before everyone else. Definetly not splintered and twisted and only 1.5"x3.25" when you need a 2x4.

aReallyCrunchyLeaf@lemmy.ml · 13 pts · 144d (1 reply)

This country is such fucking ass, I’m sure they’ll privatize it and find some way to ENSHITTIFY NATURE

TheOSINTguy@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 144d

I go outdoors for days on end to get away from the hustle of life, and they pretty much already have. Let me give you a few examples.

Your handicapped? Well let's slap a gate here so handicapped accessible vehicles can't get through, but a 4x4 can just go around the gate. Most of the time there isn't even a boulder or fence stopping that from happening.

You want to camp overnight out in the woods with just a tarp and bivvy sack? Well you better hand over that money, oh and your going to do it were we tell you too. (I just camp wherever, some good camouflage is all you need)

God damnit I have to use a QR code to get a pass WHEN THERE IS NO CELLULAR SIGNAL ON ALL MAJOR CARRIERS. (sorry, just hate how stupid some people are)

Honestly I could go on in more detail but I don't want to write a 10 page essay on this.

ironchico@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 144d

They need the parks land to build data centres. They are literally gonna pave paradise and put up a parking lot.