Mr. ANDERSEN. Might I ask that you put a full and complete answer at this point to my question in the record? Mr. LOVERIDGE. Yes. (The information requested is as follows:) The change in language is proposed to permit the Forest Service to undertake the purchase of individual parcels of land, over a period of years, in accordance with section 14 (a) of the act of April 24, 1950 (16 Ú. S. C. 580i), which authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may be necessary for the acquisition of parcels of land and interests in land in Sanders County, Mont., needed by the Forest Service to provide winter range for its saddle, pack, and draft animals. Effective protection of the national forests in Montana, northern Idaho, and northeastern Washington requires annual use of approximately 1,150 head of pack, saddle, and draft horses and mules. The work season for these animals is from approximately May 15 to October 15 of each year. During the remainder of the year, stock must be fed and the most economical method is to place the animals on rangeland that supports an adequate supply of feed in the way of native grass. Prior to 1931 winter pasture was rented at various points throughout the region, but the tenure was uncertain, the rates per month were high, and the costs of distributing, collecting, supervising, and caring for the animals were large. In 1931 a single winter range was established by leasing approximately 41,000 acres of grazing land in Sanders County, Mont., where slope, exposure, and forage cover permitted winter grazing with only limited supplementary feed. Since 1945 more than 13,000 acres of the original area of 41,000-plus acres have been lost to stock and sheep operations. While this loss has not seriously bandicapped the winter range operation, because of reduction of some 600 head of stock on the winter range due to the elimination of breeding program and some reductions in the number of animals needed in the forests, the 13,000 acres lost were the better grazing lands of high carrying capacity. Further loss of the leased rangelands will constitute a costly and severe handicap to the administration and protection of the national forests in the region. Action based on the enabling legislation in the act of April 24, 1950, has not been taken at an earlier date due to local opposition to Government purchase. Recently there have been indications that the county commissioners would approve purchase on an individual tract basis. Under these conditions it is urgent to include in the 1954 appropriation language the necessary authorization to permit the purchase of at least a portion of the most urgently needed winter range. Mr. ANDERSEN. Let us turn to acquisition of land. We will insert pages 410 through 415 of the justification at this point. (The pages referred to are as follows:) This appropriation is provided to acquire lands for the protection of the watersheds of navigable streams and for the production of timber under the provisions of the Weeks law of March 1, 1911 (36 Stat. 961), as amended by the acts of June 7, 1924 (43 Stat. 654), and March 3, 1952 (43 Stat. 1215). There are now 71 national orest and purchase units, situated in 32 States and Puerto Rico, within which acquisition of lands under the above acts has been approved by the National Forest Reservation Commission and in which lands still remain to be acquired. All but a few of these units are east of the Great Plains. Basic purpose of this program is to conserve and build up the soil and timber resources and improve the watersheds. It is an essential part of the Nation's overall program to minimize floods, prevent soil erosion, and provide adequate timber and water for the future. Forestry is essentially a long-time enterprise and action to assure ample timber supplies must be taken well ahead of actual needs. The unacquired lands in these purchase units are, in large measure, principally valuable for timber growing or for watershed protection. Many of them have been heavily logged, unwisely cultivated, or otherwise impaired. Most of them should be in public ownership to assure that they will be so managed as to contribute optimum benefits to streamflow regulation and timber production. Within the aforesaid purchase units 22,865,498 acres have been acquired and 23,139,851 acres of land chiefly valuable for forestry and watershed purposes still remain to be acquired. There are a very large number of privately owned forest-land tracts intermingled with national-forest tracts within established national-forest boundaries. Each year a material number of these intermingled private tracts-due to excessive fire hazard, accelerating soil erosion, etc.-damage or threaten important resource values of adjoining or adjacent national-forest land. Only prompt purchase of many such tracts will save national-forest resource values equal to or in many cases much greater than the entire purchase price. Each year also, key private-forest-land tracts within established national-forest boundaries due often to mortgage foreclosures, emergency needs of the owners, etc. are offered for sale at bargain prices. Delay in purchase often results in increased cost or purchase with greatly depleted resource values later, and sometimes both. A similar situation occurs annually in the need to purchase land to provide rights-of-way for future timber-access roads. Later acquisition would be by condemnation or at greatly increased price, with the alternative of still greater expense in building around the tract in question. The purchase of a reasonable number of private-forest-land tracts of each of the classes mentioned above is sound economy and a real saving. Such an expenditure is essential to protect important federally owned resource values from great damage, or to prevent excessive cost to minimize such damage. In addition, the resulting increased consolidation of national-forest ownership will facilitate greater efficiency and economy in administration, and increased annual net public benefits and cash receipts. The following tabulation shows the status of the existing purchase units as of June 30, 1952, and the progress expected in fiscal year 1953: It is estimated that the fiscal year 1953 appropriation will permit purchase of about 10,000 acres. Purchases will be in previously approved units and will be properties of special desirability that will consolidate existing Government ownership in the interest of economical management of the national forests. In addition, there will be some land acquisitions by exchange within these areas. Acquisition of lands from national-forest receipts Appropriation act, 1953, and base for 1954. Decrease.. $141, 680 - 141, 680 Project Project statement 1. Uinta and Wasatch National Forests (Utah only). 2. Cache National Forest (Utah only). 3. San Bernardino-Cleveland National Forests (Riverside County, Calif., only). 4. Nevada-Toiyabe National Forests (Nevada). 5. Angeles National Forest (Calif.). 6. Cleveland National Forest (San Diego County, Calif., only).. 7. Sequoia National Forest (Calif.). Total available or estimate.. Unobligated balance.. Total appropriation or estimate.. STATUS OF PROGRAM This appropriation provides for the purchase of lands under the provisions of seven special acts of Congress enumerated in the appropriation item. These acts were passed with the support and concurrence of local people so that certain private lands intermingled with existing national-forest lands, could be acquired and placed under national-forest administration. These lands are not in the drainages of navigable streams and, therefore, cannot be acquired under the Weeks law of March 1, 1911. They frequently are subject to forms of misuse such as clear cutting of timber, overgrazing, removal of brush cover, etc., which lead to soil and resource depletion, and which minimize or neutralize the protection and management practices carried out on surrounding national-forest lands. In the southern California areas, occupancy and use of these interspersed private lands may also create fire hazards which threaten not only these tracts but also large areas of surrounding publicly owned and protected watershed. Protection and management of such lands as part of the national forest is recognized as highly desirable by local communities, especially from the standpoint of erosion prevention and flood control. The authorizing acts provide that certain proportions of the receipts of the specified national forests may be appropriated |