This report introduces natural resource issues that the 104th Congress is likely to consider during the second session or is already considering through authorizations, appropriations, and/or oversight. Many were considered, but not resolved, by earlier Congresses
This report briefly discusses charging fees for grazing private livestock on federal lands, which is a long-standing but contentious practice. Generally, livestock producers who use federal lands want to keep fees low, while conservation groups and others believe fees should be raised to approximate "fair market value."
This report sets out in chart form a survey of grazing programs on state-owned lands in 16 western states. It presents information on acreage, numbers of permits or leases, and fees for state grazing programs. It also contains information on state policies relating to various features such as non-use, range improvements, and subleasing. The Report is based on telephone interviews with state grazing program officials.
A rationale for federal financial support to Amtrak has been that rail service conserves energy, compared to other forms of intercity passenger transportation. The numbers presented in this report suggest that the rationale might not be valid with regard to some alternative modes of transportation, and the report discusses some public policy implications that could follow from that conclusion.
Interest in salvaging timber has increased markedly since extensive forest fires in 1994. The focus is to use the dead and dying timber before it goes to waste and to increase the supply of Federal timber available to the wood products industry. Supporters also note that salvage sales are one tool that can be used to improve forest health. Critics counter that some dead and dying trees are necessary for healthy ecosystems, and that salvage sales are costly to the U.S. Treasury and to the environment. This report describes the concerns over forest health, and then examines the benefits, costs, and financial consequences of salvage timber sales.
Interest in fuel management, to reduce fire control costs and damages, has been renewed with the numerous, destructive wildfires spread across the West during the summers of 1988 and 1994.
Crown Butte Mines, Inc. wants to develop its New World gold mine deposit located near Yellowstone National Park. The proposed mine is located almost entirely on private property about 3 miles east of the northeast corner of Yellowstone National Park and next to the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness area. The New World Mine Project would mine an estimated 1,800 tons of gold/silver/copper ore per day (500,000 tons annually), valued at an estimated $800 million over a 10-15 year period. The project would include an underground mine, an ore processing mill, a tailings pond, a waste rock storage site, access roads, a work camp and transmission lines. A draft environmental impact statement (EIS), required under both NEPA and the Montana Environmental Policy Act, is in the final months of a three-year preparation.
Many U.S. lumber producers have complained that subsidies to Canadian lumber producers give them an unfair advantage in supplying the U.S. market. The dispute has evolved through various forums over the past 15 years. Recent negotiations led to an agreement on May 28 to reduce Canadian lumber exports with a tariff rate quota (i.e., a tariff on imports above the quota) probably by about 9% from record 1995 levels, leading to expectations of trade harmony (at least on this issue) for the next 5 years.
Amending Federal laws to protect wetlands, especially agricultural wetlands, is a contentious issue for the 104th Congress. Critics contend that current programs are excessive in their reach and unfairly restrict private landowners. Supporters counter that these programs are critical if the Nation is to achieve the stated goal of no-net-loss of wetlands. The two major statutes under which agricultural wetlands are protected are swampbuster, enacted in the Agriculture, Food, Trade, and Conservation Act of 1985, and section 404, enacted in the 1972 Clean Water Act. This report describes both programs, emphasizing how they relate to each other. It explains how each program works, especially on agricultural wetlands, and the likely effect of proposed revisions to swampbuster. Also, it briefly considers other legislative proposals that would amend the section 404 program, which, if enacted, would further affect how agricultural wetlands are protected.
Declining fish populations threaten an important food source. Natural catastrophes, pollution, habitat destruction, and overfishing contribute to the depletion of fish stocks. Overexploitation of fishery resources often occurs when management allows expanding and increasingly efficient fishing fleets to continue harvesting dwindling supplies. Although prevalent, overexploitation is not universal and its extent varies among areas, species, and fisheries. This report discusses the issue of overfishing and its possible consequences, as well as domestic and international efforts to combat overfishing.
The salvage timber rider is actually the Emergency Salvage Timber Sale Program, enacted as �2001 of P.L. 104-19, the 1995 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations and Rescissions Act on July 27, 1995.
The CRS report describes the battle with natural gas companies on helium gas, being wasted, and released into the environment. Incentives were put in place for natural gas companies sell this helium to the government and for it to be stored in a government facility. Consequently, this also brought up controversy for why funding is being used to store a surplus of helium. Congress would debate on whether government involvement was the best option and a consensus was reached to fund the National Academy of Science to find the best way to dispose of the helium. Their results of their studies and the H.R. 4168 bill that was passed are also described.
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