Jay Inslee

Mr. Speaker, I submit the following article, which is authored by my friend Jason Hartke, and discusses the important role of our nation's Roadless Areas. Roadless Areas protect 58.5 million acres of pristine wild forests and provide clean drinking water to over 60 million Americans.

Our Heritage Forests: An American Legacy

(By Jason Hartke)

``If there is one thing that should unite us as a country

across generations, parties, an time, it is love of the

land.'' President Clinton made this remark at the National

Arboretum on January 5, 2001, where he announced the Roadless

Area Conservation Rule which protected the last, best wild

lands in the nation. This initiative encompassed 58.5 million

acres of forests in 39 states. Combining this accomplishment

with the 22 National Monuments that he designated and

protected, President Clinton left office having saved more

land in the contiguous United States than any administration

since Theodore Roosevelt.

Yet, like liberty, the price of environmental protection is

eternal vigilance. The individuals and organizations who are

fighting to protect these magnificent forests have embraced

the dream of President Clinton and millions of people across

this country. They will not stand aside while the fight for

America the Beautiful is in the balance. From the time of

Teddy Roosevelt, leaders have stepped forward to ensure that

future generations will inherit an epic legacy of timeless

beauty.

In this initiative, as in others, President Clinton

operated on the principle that economic progress and

environmental protection can and must go hand in hand. He

made this point clearly in a speech at Reddish Knob in the

George Washington National Forest where he called on the

Forest Service to formulate a policy to preserve the roadless

areas: ``It is no longer necessary to grow a modern economy

by destroying natural resources and putting more greenhouse

gases into the atmosphere. In fact, we can create more jobs

by following a path of sustainable development.''

President Clinton realized that the country was changing.

People were attracted to pristine environments where they saw

opportunities for outdoor recreation. Whether it be hiking,

camping, fishing, hunting, wildlife photography, or other

forms of outdoor activities, people are increasingly seeking

out places where they can find solitude, enjoy the wonder and

contentment found in nature, and in their own individual way,

experience a renewal of the human spirit. To accommodate

these popular activities, companies are finding an ever

growing and powerful market, giving a helpful hand to local

economic interests.

While standing up for the public good is always the right

thing to do, it is rarely the easy thing to do. Despite the

fact that President Clinton's executive action was steeped in

precedent, pioneered by Theodore Roosevelt and other

presidents throughout the 20th century, his action was

immediately challenged in lawsuits that have spanned the last

decade. Some of the opposition may have arisen from the

mistaken belief that the Roadless Rule was a last minute

action in the final days of the Clinton Administration. In

truth, the final adoption of the Rule was the culmination of

an exhaustive rule- making procedure, including a thorough

and well reasoned environmental impact statement.

As early as December of 1997, one hundred and sixty nine

scientists wrote to President Clinton urging him to develop a

science based policy for roadless area protection. The public

response was enormous. The forest protection idea sparked the

largest grassroots environmental campaign in US history,

eliciting an unprecedented one million six hundred thousand

comments from the public. More than 1.2 million Americans

provided comments over a 60 day period alone. Of those

comments, an amazing 96% of the citizens voiced support for

protecting these irreplaceable natural treasures.

Other opposition wrongly assumed that these forests were

crucial to the viability of the logging industry. Yet here

again, the truth was that these roadless regions accounted

for a very small percentage of the logging industry, while

the cost of extraction meant that any effort to log in these

areas would have to subsidized.

These old forests are important to people who do not

directly use the forests. Scientists have accelerated their

documentation of the massive value of free ecological

services that are derived from forests. These services help

to clean our drinking water, prevent soil erosion, clear the

air of pollution, and sequester carbon that otherwise would

contribute to climate change.

The old dichotomy between preservationists and utilitarians

is increasingly becoming blurred due to the ubiquitous use of

these free ecological services. It turns out that everybody

has a stake in these ancient forests, because the magnificent

landscapes are essential to the integrity of the great life

support systems of the planet.

Although forests are under the control of sovereign

nations, they also represent a trust responsibility to the

world. Deforestation, for example, is one of the biggest

contributors to adverse climate change. Forests soak up

prodigious amounts of carbon dioxide. Therefore, every person

on the earth and all future generations are affected by every

forest on earth, regardless of which country they call home.

The eminent historian, Dr. Douglas Brinkley, observed in

his book, The Wilderness Warrior, that Theodore Roosevelt's

conservation record became ``the template future presidents

followed.'' His historical perspective rings true.

President Clinton, shortly before he left office, reflected

on the environmental policies of his Administration: ``We had

done our best to be faithful to Roosevelt's conservation

ethic and to his admonition that we should always be taking

what he called ``the long view . . . Working together, we can

ensure that not only our generation, but each generation to

come, will have the resources to leave an even better land

for those who follow.''

President Clinton's leadership by example, practicing at

home what he advocates abroad, adds to our credibility in the

international community and gives hope to people everywhere

that living up to our global responsibilities does not

impede, but rather sustains economic opportunity and

vitality.

Saving the beauty, diversity, and life of the planet is not

bad economics; rather, it is fundamental to human survival

and the advance of civilization.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the United States Navy, who, under the leadership of Secretary Ray Mabus, is doing a fantastic job developing clean, green sources of energy for the United States Navy and, eventually, the world. The Navy is already flying the Blue Angels on biofuels, it is charging our communication equipment in Afghanistan with solar energy, and it is on a path to half of its energy coming from clean sources by 2020 and the Great Green Fleet by 2016.

In my State, we're building whole industries around this: Imperium Renewables, Targeted Growth, General Biofuels, Boeing, and Alaska Airlines.

We can power the future with clean energy. The Navy is leading the way. Washington State University is doing great work, and I know there's one great former Washington State student who's helping on this effort, and her name is Trudi.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor General Peter W. Chiarelli, who is retiring today as Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S Army, a position he has held with distinction since 2008. General Chiarelli's retirement is hard-earned and well-deserved, coming after 40 years of brave service to his country. He enlisted in 1972 as a 2nd lieutenant of armor, served two combat tours in Iraq, and eventually became the second-highest-ranking general at the Pentagon. We are indebted to the service of General Chiarelli, and I am proud to say that he is a native Washingtonian.

General Chiarelli was born in Seattle, Washington and graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science from Seattle University, where he was a Distinguished Military Graduate of Seattle University's Army ROTC program. He received his masters from the University of Washington, and also led several different units at Fort Lewis, in Washington state. In addition to his service at Fort Lewis, General Chiarelli served as commander of the First Calvary Division at Fort Hood, Texas, as Director of Operations, Readiness and Mobilization at U.S. Army Headquarters, and led the Multi-National Corps in Iraq.

Beyond simply acknowledging his service and expressing the gratitude of myself and my constituents, I would also like to acknowledge the General's longstanding advocacy on behalf of behavioral health issues in the Army. At a time when many of our young men and women are returning from service abroad suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and other issues related to their service, General Chiarelli has called attention to the obligation we have to provide these heroes with the care they need and deserve.

General Chiarelli, even in your retirement, myself, my colleagues, and my constituents remain inspired by your unwavering commitment to this nation, which will long serve as a shining example of the spirit of service and sacrifice that future generations will aspire to equal.