Stop this all-out attack on our forests

Congress is considering a bill that would undermine protections for forests and endangered species, harm our drinking water, and worsen deadly wildfires.

Last year, the House passed the so-called Fix Our Forests Act (FOFA). What seems like a bill to protect communities from wildfires is, in reality, a Trojan horse that weakens environmental protections, exposes our forests to clear-cut logging, stifles the public’s voice, and diverts resources that could be used for wildfire defense away from the communities that need them the most. On top of all that, it could further roll back crucial environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. 

FOFA will hand the keys to the Trump administration to expand on their efforts to harm our forests. Last year, Trump signed an executive order that seeks to massively ramp up logging across federal forests. More recently, the administration announced plans to rescind the Roadless Rule, a bedrock conservation policy that had protected over 58 million acres from clear-cutting and development. And just this month, they announced a “reorganization” of the Forest Service that will decimate its workforce and focus the agency's remaining parts on timber production. And let’s not forget the big, ugly bill, which mandates increased logging for public lands, causing irreparable harm to our climate and increasing the likelihood of devastating fires. 

At a time when our forests face deadlier wildfires and endangered species are facing a biodiversity crisis, further weakening environmental laws and regulations like the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Roadless Rule is not the answer.  

We can’t allow Congress to politicize wildfires and ram through a bill that would only increase logging companies’ profits. This cynical, industry-driven bill would not provide impacted communities with the proven tools and techniques to keep themselves safe. Join Earthjustice Action in opposing the Fix Our Forests Act.