(July 2009) - The Obama Administration took swift action on June 17 replacing the current Chief of the Forest Service, Gail Kimbell. The Secretary of Agriculture announced the appointment of a new Chief and in the concluding sentence of the press announcement, thanked Chief Kimbell for her service.

Kimbell, in an email to her colleagues at the Forest Service, said that the news of her dismissal was “sudden.” She said simply, “the Administration wanted to make a change.” It did so by appointing Tom Tidwell to assume her post.

Tidwell will become the 17th Chief of the Forest Service and will officially relieve Kimbell of her duties on July 3rd (the position of Chief of the Forest Service does not require Senate confirmation). He brings to the job a total of 32 years of experience working in a variety of positions within the Forest Service, beginning as a fire fighter. His most recent position was Regional Forester for Region One (Montana, North Dakota, and part of Idaho).

Read more of the ARRA Out with the Old… In with the New on 4×4Wire

Technorati Tags: forest, Forest Service, forester, gail kimbell, senate confirmation, tom tidwell

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Secretary Salazar, Senator Reid Announce ‘Fast-Track’ Initiatives for Solar Energy Development on Western Lands

LAS VEGAS, NV (Jun 29, 2009) – Under initiatives announced today by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and U.S. Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), federal agencies will work with western leaders to designate tracts of U.S. public lands in the West as prime zones for utility-scale solar energy development, fund environmental studies, open new solar energy permitting offices and speed reviews of industry proposals.

Read more about Fast-Track for Solar Energy Development on Western Lands on 4×4Wire.com

Technorati Tags: bureau of land management, energy development, energy economy, energy strategy, land users, renewable energy initiatives, solar electricity, solar energy

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Study finds that climate’s influence on production, drying of fuels—not higher temperatures or longer fire seasons alone—critical determinant of Western wildfire burned area

PORTLAND, Ore. June 26, 2009. The recent increase in area burned by wildfires in the Western United States is a product not of higher temperatures or longer fire seasons alone, but a complex relationship between climate and fuels that varies among different ecosystems, according to a study conducted by U.S. Forest Service and university scientists. The study is the most detailed examination of wildfire in the United States to date and appears in the current issue of the journal Ecological Applications.

Read more about In the warming West, climate most significant factor in fanning wildfires’ flames on 4×4Wire

Technorati Tags: ecosystems, fire seasons, forest, Forest Service, fuel availability, grasslands

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(June 16th, 2009) - Since last September, Senate Energy Committee has been systematically assembling a comprehensive, balanced, bipartisan energy bill. Committee Members started marking up this bill 12 weeks ago.  Now, it’s almost done.

The Committee expects to report the American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009 (ACELA) tomorrow.  When it does, that legislation will represent a significant bipartisan achievement, and it will be the foundation for advancing key energy legislation through the full Senate.

ACELA is based on six major bills — all with bipartisan sponsorship — and five other bills with either Republican or Democratic sponsorship that were introduced in this Congress.  Key provisions were developed through 39 bipartisan staff briefings, 20 formal hearings and 11 open business meetings. During the process of writing this bill, dozens of amendments so far have been considered and adopted, most on a bipartisan basis and many unanimously.

Many of you have followed progress on this bill via the Committee’s website.  Others have kept up through the trade press and Hill publications.  Some reporters who have not kept up at all will have to cram to learn as much as possible, as fast as possible.  To save study time, here are the CliffsNotes of what this bill will include:

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: clean energy technologies, electricity transmission, energy efficiency, energy independence, energy legislation, energy security, national, natural gas resources, renewable electricity, senate energy committee

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Two Meetings for the Giant Sequoia National Monument Plan – Alternative Development

Porterville, CA. The Sequoia National Forest is continuing the collaborative effort to establish the Giant Sequoia National Monument Management Plan. The purpose of the Monument Plan is to provide a 10-15 year vision, with direction and overall guidance on the management of lands and uses within the Monument. The Monument was created on April 15, 2000, by Presidential Proclamation and is located in south-central California.

Read more about Meetings Set for Giant Sequoia Monument Plan on 4×4Wire.

Technorati Tags: collaborative effort, forest, giant sequoia monument, giant sequoia national monument, national, sequoia national forest, sequoia national monument

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