BP ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY OP-ED
Two legislative proposals tackle challenges to Washington forests Todd Myers Two proposals have emerged for the next legislative session to address Washington’s forest health crisis and the impact of recent wildfire. The Outdoor Recreation and Climate Adaption (ORCA) proposal from Rep. Mary Dye, the ranking Republican on the House Environment Committee, would allocate funding from the recently passed climate tax to treat unhealthy forests. The entire ORCA package includes other elements related to recreation, the cleanup of Puget Sound, and reducing the risk from flooding, but the forest health funding delivers on a promise legislators made in 2021 to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire in state forests. Additionally, Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz introduced the “Keep Washington Evergreen” plan to reforest burned areas and purchase land at risk of being converted to development. Her proposed legislation requests funding from the capital budget to purchase at-risk forestland. These bills demonstrate that forest health and conservation have again become a major environmental focus in the state. Unlike the timber wars of the 1990s, both proposals are premised on the recognition that forests that are actively managed with thinning and sustainable harvests, are environmentally beneficial.
ORCA – Funding forest health restoration There is bipartisan agreement that Washington faces a forest health crisis, with 2.7 million acres of unhealthy forest in central and eastern Washington. Earlier this year, the legislature unanimously adopted HB 1168 which creates a budget account to “monitor, track, and implement certain wildfire preparedness, prevention, and protection purposes.” The Legislature allocated $131 million for the 2021-23 biennium, and HB 1168 notes that “The legislature intends to provide $125,000,000 per biennium over the next four biennia for a total of $500,000,000,” but does not provide a predictable source of funding for those biennia. Additionally, up to 60 percent of the funding promised in HB 1168 can be used for firefighting preparedness, rather than projects that reduce the risk of catastrophic fire. Ultimately, even if the legislature allocates the funding, as little as $15.6 million a year could be used for “Fire prevention activities to restore and improve forest 28 health and reduce vulnerability to drought, insect infestation, disease, and other threats to healthy forests.” Meaningful progress in treating fire-prone and unhealthy forests has been difficult because harvesting and thinning often costs more than it yields, even when some timber revenue is generated. Without a source of funding, there will be very little progress toward reducing the risk of recurring
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BUSINESSPULSE.COM | JAN/FEB 2022
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