Beaverhead-Deerlodge News

Sen. Jon Tester looked out the window of a downtown office building Friday and noted the red, dead trees coloring the slopes of Mount Helena.

The phenomenon isn't specific to Montana, he said. Beetle-killed trees pepper the Rocky Mountains, demonstrating just how the environment has transformed the West's forests.

"We've got a choice with trees," Tester, D-Mont., told members of the IR editorial board Friday. "We can either cut them and store that carbon in two-by-fours and plywood and such, or let them burn and allow that carbon to go up in the atmosphere.

Some have been taking shots at Sen. Jon Tester for wanting too much wilderness in his forest management bill. Some make it sound like there will be no places left to drive their four-wheelers. That just does not make sense.

When one looks at the facts, it's clear that this is only a modest addition to Montana's network of wilderness areas. It's equally clear that this bill is a sincere, multi-faceted attempt to resolve some of Montana's vexing public land issues.

Some internal polling done on Sen. Jon Tester's Forest Bill has supporters of the bill excited that the bill is off to a good start in the state.

A poll commissioned by lumber companies and conservation groups that helped craft the bill suggests that seven of every 10 Montanans support the bill.

The bill would designate hundreds of thousands of acres of new wilderness, mandate thousands of acres be logged in western Montana and create special recreation areas for motorized users.

To some, Sen. Jon Tester's wilderness bill is a way to circumvent environmental laws and give away trees to timber companies at taxpayer's expense.

To others, it's a massive land grab by environmentalists that is meant to keep people out of public land in vehicles and ATVs, while limiting development of natural resources that provide good jobs.

But Aaron Murphy, Tester spokesman, said the bill is neither.

Although we have been fortunate so far this year, the summer fire months can sometimes feel like a dangerous game of Russian roulette. We never know when or where the next big forest fire may spring up and endanger our homes and communities.

Today it often seems that good political leadership is hard to find. That is why it is so encouraging to see a politician show his ability to tackle tough problems and find good solutions.

My friends from Norway were astounded a few years ago as we drove through the forests of Western Montana. Their shock was at the waste they saw. In Europe, timberland is intensively managed for the sustained use of forest resources. What is not milled into building material becomes biofuel for heating and electrical generation. There are almost no forest fires in Europe because there is no jungle of combustible material helter-skelter across the landscape, and no massive insect infestations.

The Montana map on Jon Tester's forestry bill Web page ends just east of Bozeman and Great Falls. It shows that this isn't a bill to end all wilderness bills. It wouldn't decide forever the decades-old argument of whether Montana has too much or too little public land protected from roads, motorized use and development.

As a Montana horseman who enjoys riding and packing in our incredible backcountry and wilderness areas, I want to extend my sincerest thanks to U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, who has shown such great leadership in protecting our outdoor way of life, but also in maintaining the strength of our communities by making sure that good jobs are available so that families can stay in Montana.

I want to thank Sen. Jon Tester for listening to Montanans.

Southwest Montana is a land bursting with this state's recreation heritage. One of the most important parts of my family's recreation has been fishing. The Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest is home to world-famous st^reams and rivers like Rock Creek, the Big Hole, the Madison and the Beaverhead. These watersheds are home to the healthiest habitats and the finest fish. As Montanans, we are proud - protective even - of our fishing heritage.