The Obama administration says new rules to manage nearly 200 million
acres of national forests will protect watersheds and wildlife while
promoting uses ranging from recreation to logging.
The
new rules, to replace guidelines thrown out by a federal court in 2009,
are set to be released Thursday by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. A
summary was obtained by The Associated Press.
Vilsack
said in an interview that the rules reflect more than 300,000 comments
received since a draft plan was released last year. The new rules
strengthen a requirement that decisions be based on the best available
science and recognize that forests are used for a variety of purposes,
Vilsack said.
