Editorial: Seeking help from forest chief

It was encouraging that U.S. Forest Service Chief Mike Dombeck held a 90-minute teleconference on Thursday with employees of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. More importantly, Dombeck assured them that he would soon come to Nevada to see firsthand what difficulties they are facing. Gloria Flora, the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest's supervisor, resigned recently after referring to an "anti-federal fervor" and "irresponsible fed-bashing" at all levels of government in Nevada.

Some Forest Service employees believe that agency officials outside the state aren't hearing or listening to their concerns. Thirty-six employees signed a Nov. 10 letter to Dombeck, pleading for him to visit the region so he could see for himself what the employees dubbed a "toxic atmosphere" in the state. "The resignation of Gloria Flora is a cry for help in a part of the country where cries often get lost in the wind," they wrote in the letter obtained by the Associated Press. They also noted that Flora resigned "in order to draw attention to the untenable situation in which she and many of the employees find themselves."

The employees are right that they have been working in a hostile environment. During the mid-1990s there were bombings in Northern Nevada of Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management offices. In addition, an Elko County grand jury launched harassing investigations of federal and state conservation employees. There also has been frustration with the U.S. attorney's office in Las Vegas over what a Forest Service special agent believes is a failure to prosecute cases, a charge the U.S. attorney's office denies. More recently there have been efforts by Elko County residents and politicians to defy the Forest Service and rebuild a washed-out road on national forest land, a move the Forest Service worries could endanger a threatened fish, the bull trout.

Unlike many of his predecessors, Dombeck has demonstrated a commitment to preserving the forests. He has stood up to members of Congress representing Western states who would like to see heavy logging in our national forests to benefit the timber industry. While those fights in Washington have consumed his time, anti-environmentalists have been waging a war on another front out West, a battle that is wearing down those on the front lines whose job it is to protect our national forests for future generations. These dedicated Forest Service employees need to know that their regional supervisors and bosses in Washington understand their plight and personally support their efforts to preserve the environment. A visit by Dombeck can't come soon enough.

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