Describe the progression of management of our national forests during the last half century. What are two current issues, and how are they being resolved?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Management of our forests began in the 1950s as a multiple use strategy, "which meant a combination of extracting resources (grazing, logging, and mining), using the forest for recreation, and protecting watersheds and wildlife. Although the intent was to achieve a balance among these uses, multiple use actually emphasized the extractive uses; that is, it was output oriented and served to justify the ongoing exploitation of public lands by private, often favored, interest groups."
"A forestry-management strategy was introduced in the late 1980s called New Forestry. This practice of forestry is directed more toward protecting the ecological health and diversity of forests than toward producing a maximum harvest of logs. The Forest Service began adopting some of these management principles in the early 1990s, and they formed the core of what is now the official management paradigm of the Forest Service: ecosystem management. This paradigm has been adopted by all federal agencies managing public lands."