Resource Management Policy (Chapter 9, pages 192-196)
Introduction:
Historians have suggested that a significant environmental policy was implemented in the 1960s and 1970s in part because the political climate was ripe with a supportive public and leaders who were willing to act.
By the 1980s, the political climate in the United States changed and while public support for environmental protection remained high, it was countered by an increasing concern for the economic burdens of an environmental policy.
Since the 1980s, numerous efforts have been made at the federal level to roll back environmental laws.
The rollbacks that directly impact forest resource management include the National Forest Management Act, which was rolled back by the Bush administration in 2004. This Act mandated that plans for renewable resource management be drawn up for every national forest.
In 2005, the Bush administration repealed the roadless rule by which 58.5 million acres of U.S. land was put off-limit for further road construction or maintenance.
Tasks:
Select either the National Forest Management Act or the roadless rule.
Conduct research on it using the ITT Tech Virtual Library and briefly describe the highlights of the selected legislation.
Review a few articles that outline the arguments for and against the rollback or repeal of the legislation.
Describe the implications of the rollback of this legislation from ecological and economic perspectives.
Deliverables and Format:
