Forest Service aims $40 million at bark beetle control

Environment News Service: The U.S. Forest Service will receive $40 million more to address public safety concerns and forest health needs arising from the millions of acres of dead and dying trees killed by bark beetles in the West, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Colorado Governor Bill Ritter announced Tuesday.

"Forest lands play a critical role in providing clean water and a healthier climate for all Americans, and the USDA is committed to protecting and preserving this important resource from pests like the bark beetle," said Vilsack. "These funds will help address the growing threat posed by the bark beetle to millions of acres of forests across the Western United States."

The 10 year old bark beetle epidemic has increased the danger of dead and dying trees falling on roads, trails and recreation areas and also increased the wildfire risk to communities of the Rocky Mountain Region.

Forests in Colorado, Wyoming, and South Dakota are experiencing bark beetle epidemics at an unprecedented scale, with two million acres of mountain forests in Colorado affected and an estimated three million more in jeopardy.

"The combined effects of massive bark beetle epidemics, the perennial risk of catastrophic wildfire, and a struggling forest industry have left forests throughout Colorado and other Western states at great risk," Governor Ritter told reporters on a teleconference with Secretary Vilsack. "Our economy, communities, water supplies, property and citizens are threatened. Even in a tough economy like this, we cannot afford to ignore these challenges or these risks."…

Snowy forested mountains viewed from the Forest Lakes near Rollins Pass, shot by refractor, Wikimedia Commons via Flickr, under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License