(1)The general assembly hereby finds
that:
(a)The management of Colorado's state-owned forested land has far-reaching impacts on overall forest condition, risk of wildfire, water quantity and
quality, and wildlife habitat;
(b)The unnatural condition of many forests throughout the state leaves
them at great risk to catastrophic fires, invasion by exotic and native pest species,
and other types of damage on a landscape scale;
(c)As a result of the 2002 wildfire season, the worst in Colorado's recorded
history, in which two thousand twelve fires consumed over half a million acres of
forested land:
(I)Local, state, and federal agencies incurred one hundred fifty-two million
dollars in suppression costs and at least fifty million dollars to date in rehabilitation
costs on Unite
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(1) The general assembly hereby finds
that:
(a) The management of Colorado's state-owned forested land has far-reaching impacts on overall forest condition, risk of wildfire, water quantity and
quality, and wildlife habitat;
(b) The unnatural condition of many forests throughout the state leaves
them at great risk to catastrophic fires, invasion by exotic and native pest species,
and other types of damage on a landscape scale;
(c) As a result of the 2002 wildfire season, the worst in Colorado's recorded
history, in which two thousand twelve fires consumed over half a million acres of
forested land:
(I) Local, state, and federal agencies incurred one hundred fifty-two million
dollars in suppression costs and at least fifty million dollars to date in rehabilitation
costs on United States forest service land alone; and
(II) Eighty-one thousand four hundred thirty-five residents had to be
evacuated from their homes;
(d) Excessive runoff and soil erosion that occurs following wildfires poses a
substantial threat to water quantity and quality in areas dependent on forest
watersheds, including water supplies and wildlife;
(e) Since 1937, United States forest service scientists have been studying
the relationship between forests and water yields in the Fraser experimental forest
in western Colorado and have found that unnaturally overgrown stands reduce
water yields and that carefully applied natural forest management practices can
conserve a more natural water yield;
(f) Decades of scientific research have built a foundation of knowledge and
technologies to inform and implement sound forest management and conservation;
(g) Robust, resilient forest conditions that sustain diverse forest stages are
essential for productive habitat, healthy populations of wildlife, and improved water
quality and quantity for Colorado's fisheries;
(h) Sound forest management activities, such as thinning, prescribed
burning, and insect and disease treatments, improve the overall diversity and vigor
of forested landscapes as well as the condition of related water, wildlife,
recreation, and aesthetic resources;
(i) The Colorado state forest service has worked cooperatively and
successfully with the division of parks and wildlife and the state board of land
commissioners to improve the condition of forested land and wildlife habitat in
selected project areas;
(i.5) These goals will be further advanced through the coordination of efforts
to create community-based solutions to restore Colorado forest ecosystems,
promote forest industries, and stimulate rural economies through the generation of
clean energy from forest biomass;
(j) The executive director of the department of natural resources is
authorized to enter into an agreement with the board of governors of the Colorado
state university system to work cooperatively with the Colorado state forest service
and to provide staff for the division of forestry to carry out its mission of improving
the health and sustainability of Colorado's forested state land.
(2) (a) The general assembly hereby declares that it is the public policy of
this state to encourage the health of forest ecosystems through responsible
management of the forest land of the state and through coordination with the
United States secretary of the interior and the United States secretary of
agriculture to develop management plans for federal lands within the state of
Colorado pursuant to 16 U.S.C. sec. 530, 16 U.S.C. sec. 1604, and 43 U.S.C. sec. 1712,
including the use of other pre-suppression activities, such as the harvest and
profitable utilization of materials, in order to: Preserve forest and other natural
resources; enhance the growth and maintenance of forests; conserve forest cover
on watersheds; protect recreational, wildlife, and other values; promote stability of
forest-using industries; and prevent loss of life and damage to property from
wildfires and other conflagrations.
(b) In addition to any other powers and duties conferred upon the Colorado
state forest service by law, the Colorado state forest service may:
(I) Value forest materials on state lands using lowest market value as an
incentive to maximize the utilization of these products; and
(II) Collaborate with the United States forest service and the bureau of land
management to contract for a reliable source of feedstock consistent with
Colorado communities' plans for utilization of forest biomass described in section
23-31-312 (3.5).