1. United States
2. Colo.
3. Letter

The Fix Our Forests Act being considered in Congress poses a grave threat to our national forests and public lands. This misguided legislation would eliminate critical environmental reviews and public oversight, paving the way for destructive commercial logging and intensive grazing activities under the guise of wildfire mitigation. However, scientific evidence shows that such industrial-scale logging operations often exacerbate fire risks rather than reducing them. Removing mature trees diminishes the cooling shade canopy, creating hotter and drier conditions conducive to fire spread. Logging also leaves behind fine fuels like branches and debris that act as kindling. Furthermore, the soil disturbance facilitates invasions of flammable invasive species like cheatgrass. Alarmingly, research indicates that logging for supposed fire prevention releases three times more carbon emissions per acre than wildfires themselves. This undermines our efforts to combat climate change, which is a driving force behind the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires. Instead of sacrificing our cherished national forests to benefit extractive industries, we must prioritize proven methods like home hardening, defensible space around communities, and carefully managed prescribed burning near populated areas. Logging the backcountry does little to protect communities from wind-driven fires and wreaks havoc on fragile ecosystems. Our public lands belong to all Americans and must be managed responsibly with full transparency and scientific input. We cannot allow short-sighted profiteering to destroy our precious forests under the flawed pretense of fire mitigation. It is imperative that Congress rejects the Fix Our Forests Act and upholds robust environmental protections for our national treasures.