Forest Service to justify its existence at summit

The US Forest Service is struggling: earth haters in Congress keep trying to cut its budget, morale is abysmal, and exhaustion is overtaking its ranks.

Now, the FS is issuing propaganda in an effort to bolster its image after failing its mission year after year. From a press release announcing a joint summit with Canadian forest managers:

“The borders that separate the United States and Canada don’t segregate threats to our natural resources,” said U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “The countries share common environmental concerns. It is critical that we continue to collaborate and address current and future land management challenges as partners.” The mission of the U.S. Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the nation's forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. Recreational activities on our lands contribute $14.5 billion annually to the U.S. economy. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world.

Poor things.

Until stakeholders realize that the battle is against pine and not the beetle we're fucked.

President Obama: salvage what is left of the FS and divide it among agencies within BIA, Park Service and BLM.

Rewild the West.