Posts Tagged ‘Environment’

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Lawmakers seek broad probe into Forest Service response to Station fire

Los Angeles Times | 08-06-2010

California’s two U.S. senators and several local House members ask the Government Accountability Office for the inquiry into the Forest Service’s tactics and decisions.

The late discovery of the recordings “casts a dark cloud over the findings of the review panel and immediately warrants an independent review of the Station fire response,” the lawmakers said in a letter to the GAO. “Our purpose for this review is to ensure that all actions in the response to the fire were taken swiftly, properly and competently.”

In addition to Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, the signers include Reps. David Dreier (R-San Dimas), Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R- Santa Clarita), Adam Schiff (D- Burbank), Judy Chu (D-El Monte) and Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks).

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$700,000 sought for improving roads destroyed by Station fire

Los Angeles Times | 08-05-2010

Officials are seeking roughly $700,000 from the federal government for improving the forest roads and trails that were destroyed last year during the Station fire.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D- Burbank) secured the earmark in the Interior Department appropriations bill for restoring 160,577 acres of scorched landscape.
“This funding will help repair the roads and trails that were damaged in the fire to restore safety and access for families to enjoy one of California’s greatest natural resources,” Schiff said in a statement.
Engineers for the Angeles National Forest have estimated that about 300 miles of roads and 225 miles of trails were damaged during the Station fire, according to Schiff’s office.

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Schiff supports inquiry of Station fire-related call

Glendale News Press | 08-04-2010

The recent discovery of the taped calls came days before Schiff is scheduled to convene an Aug. 10 panel to discuss the Station fire and the initial firefighting attack, which critics say was too tepid, allowing the fire to grow out of control.

Schiff’s office on Tuesday released a statement backing Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s request for a probe into why the recordings were made, and why they were only recently made public.

“I am concerned with the late discovery of these recorded conversations by the Forest Service, and the fact that these calls appear to have been recorded without the knowledge or consent of some or all of the parties to these calls,” Schiff said in a statement.

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Rim of the Valley studied for protection

Santa Clarita Valley Signal | 06-09-2010

“California’s wilderness lands, including the Southern California foothills, are treasures that we must continually work to preserve for our children and our children’s children to enjoy,” Schiff said, adding that the study has been nine years in the making.

“The study is a locally driven process to develop a plan that balances preservation, recreation, and the needs and interests of those living in and around the area,” he said.

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Public warned of wildfires

Pasadena Star News | 06-09-2010

The U.S. Forest Service has been criticized by county Supervisor Michael Antonovich and retired Forest Service employees for its handling of the Station Fire. Many of the critics took issue with the department’s unwillingness to use air support in the early days of the historic fire.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, will convene a panel within the next few months to investigate the U.S. Forest Service’s response to the Station Fire.

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National Park Service begins study into conserving wilderness corridors around Los Angeles

Associated Press | 06-06-2010

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, and officials of the Park Service and Forest Service announced the start of the study at a press conference in a canyon below the San Gabriel Mountains northeast of Los Angeles.

Schiff, who introduced the study legislation included in the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008, characterized it as an extension of 1970s congressional foresight that anticipated huge population growth and created the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area sprawling along the Malibu coast.

“The question then became decades later, would we feel the same foresight? Would we be able to anticipate the same kind of growth in population, the same need to proactively try to preserve this incredible wilderness area?” said Schiff, whose district includes foothill communities along the wilderness areas.

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Officials announce major study of local mountains for possible protection

Glendale News Press| 06-05-2010

PASADENA — Rep. Adam Schiff on Friday announced the start of the long awaited study of the region’s hillsides that could ultimately result in the federal protection of local area.

The announcement was a major milestone for Schiff (D-Burbank), who began lobbying for the so-called “Rim of the Valley” study in 2001. The study was authorized as part of federal legislation signed by President George W. Bush in 2008….

“It’s a long process…I’m glad we have finally reached the stage of this study getting underway,” Schiff said Friday to a group of stakeholders and community activists gathered at the Eaton Canyon Nature Center.

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Feds begin study of Los Angeles wilderness area

San Jose Mercury News | 06-05-2010

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, and officials of the Park Service and Forest Service announced the start of the study at a press conference in a canyon below the San Gabriel Mountains northeast of Los Angeles.

Schiff, who introduced the study legislation included in the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008, characterized it as an extension of 1970s congressional foresight that anticipated huge population growth and created the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area sprawling along the Malibu coast.

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US begins study of Los Angeles wilderness areas

LA Daily News | 06-05-2010

Each night, mountain lions pad across rugged mountains encircling millions of residents in metropolitan Los Angeles.

Now, federal park officials have launched a $500,000 study of how to link those wildlife habitats into a future national park, creating a Rim of the Valley Corridor.

“We have these incredible wilderness areas that allow these ecosystems to survive,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, who for nine years has fought for the corridor study, at a news conference in Pasadena. “If they become disconnected, we will lose much of that. The mountain lion is a great symbol of what we’re talking about … Part of what has allowed them to survive is this (wild land) interconnectivity. It would be sad to see them disappear.”

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U.S. agency may resume night flights; Forest Service chief also defends agency’s handling of Station fire to Senate panel

Los Angeles Times | 05-27-2010

Under sometimes pointed questioning by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell also defended the agency’s handling of the fire the next morning, when a heavy aerial assault did not begin until several hours after daylight. He said aircraft alone would not have stopped the flames from racing through the Angeles National Forest.

Schiff later expressed doubt that an earlier air attack on Day 2 would have been ineffective because of steep terrain, as the Forest Service determined after an internal review. “The conclusion that it would not have helped anyway is a little too facile,” he said.

Schiff said he was confident that the Forest Service would resume flying at night, a tactic it abandoned in the 1970s after a fatal crash. “We are moving toward a change in policy,” he said.

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