Two dangerous and deceptively-named anti-Wilderness logging bills, the “Save Our Sequoias Act” (SOSA) and the “Fix Our Forests Act” (FOFA), have been attached to the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act, or Senate Bill 4784.
These anti-Wilderness logging bills, now known as Senate Amendments 6039 (SOSA) and 5890 (FOFA) respectively, have never won a stand-alone floor vote in the Senate on their own merits. This is in part because thousands of our members and supporters have been urging their senators to oppose these bills. Thank you!
So instead, some senators are trying to attach them as riders on the must pass National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which obviously has nothing to do with Wilderness or national forest policy.
Time is of the essence, so please call your two senators at 202-224-3121 and urge them to oppose adding SA 6039 (the “Save Our Sequoias Act”) and SA 5890 (the “Fix Our Forests Act”) and to S. 4784 (the National Defense Authorization Act).
The deceptively-named "Save Our Sequoias Act" would do immense and unnecessary damage to the wild groves of giant sequoias, including in Wilderness. This bill would allow the federal government to log within giant sequoia groves, including cutting down sequoias even in Wilderness. This would be a dramatic departure from the untrammeled and unmanipulated areas called for by the Wilderness Act. Worse yet, all of this could be “categorically excluded” from the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, one of our nation's bedrock environmental laws.
Meanwhile, the falsely-named “Fix Our Forests Act” will dramatically change how America’s national forests will be managed, and Wilderness and its wildlife won't be spared. By overriding bedrock environmental laws, the bill could specifically harm Wilderness by allowing more livestock grazing and widespread use of manager-ignited fire in Wilderness. Livestock grazing and manager-ignited fire not only harm Wilderness and its wildlife, but are antithetical to the very idea of Wilderness, which is meant to be free of human manipulation.
Urgent action is needed right now!
So call your two senators at 202-224-3121 and deliver the following message:
I urge my senator to oppose adding SA 6039 (the “Save Our Sequoias Act”) and SA 5890 (the “Fix Our Forests Act”) to S. 4784 (the National Defense Authorization Act).
Thank you for taking action to defend Wilderness and America’s public lands legacy! |
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Help us protect Wilderness around the country. A generous member has pledged to DOUBLE all first-time donations up to $30,000 this year. |
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