possible actions, including the planned timber sale program and the proportion of probable methods of timber harvest within the unit necessary to fulfill the plan;

(3) be prepared by an interdisciplinary team. Each team shall prepare its plan based on inventories of the applicable resources of the forest;

(4) be amended in any manner whatsoever after final adoption after public notice, and, if such amendment would result in a significant change in such plan, in accordance with the provisions of subsections (e) and (f) of this section and public involvement comparable to that required by subsection (d) of this section; and

(5) be revised (A) from time to time when the Secretary finds conditions in a unit have significantly changed, but at least every fifteen years, and (B) in accordance with the provisions of subsections (e) and (f) of this section and public involvement comparable to that required by subsection (d) of this section.

(g) As soon as practicable, but not later than two years after enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall in accordance with the procedures set forth in section 553 of title 5, United States Code, promulgate regulations, under the principles of the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 1960, that set out the process for the development and revision of the land management plans, and the guidelines and standards prescribed by this subsection. The regulations shall include, but not be limited to

(1) specifying procedures to insure that land management plans are prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, including, but not limited to, direction on when and for what plans an environmental impact statement required under section 102 (2) (C) of that Act shall be prepared; (2) specifying guidelines which—

(A) require the identification of the suitability of lands for resource management;

(B) provide for obtaining inventory data on the various renewable resources, and soil and water, including pertinent maps, graphic material, and explanatory aids; and

(C) provide for methods to identify special conditions or situations involving hazards to the various resources and their relationship to alternative activities;

(3) specifying guidelines for land management plans developed to achieve the goals of the Program which

(A) insure consideration of the economic and environmental aspects of various systems of renewable resource management, including the related systems of silviculture and protection of forest resources, to provide for outdoor recreation (including wilderness), range, timber, watershed, wildlife, and fish;

(B) provide for diversity of plant and animal communities based on the suitability and capability of the specific land area in order to meet overall multiple-use objectives, and within the multiple-use objectives of a land management plan adopted pursuant to this section, provide, where appropriate, to the degree practicable, for steps to be taken to preserve

the diversity of tree species similar to that existing in the region controlled by the plan;

(C) insure research on and (based on continuous monitoring and assessment in the field) evaluation of the effects of each management system to the end that it will not produce substantial and permanent impairment of the productivity of the land;

(D) permit increases in harvest levels based on intensified management practices, such as reforestation, thinning, and tree improvement if (i) such practices justify increasing the harvests in accordance with the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 1960, and (ii) such harvest levels are decreased at the end of each planning period if such practices cannot be successfully implemented or funds are not received to permit such practices to continue substantially as planned; (E) insure that timber will be harvested from National Forest System lands only where—

soil, slope, or other watershed conditions will not be irreversibly damaged;

(ii) there is assurance that such lands can be adequately restocked within five years after harvest;

(iii) protection is provided for streams, streambanks, shorelines, lakes, wetlands, and other bodies of water from detrimental changes in water temperatures, blockages of water courses, and deposits of sediment, where harvests are likely to seriously and adversely affect water conditions or fish habitat; and

(iv) the harvesting system to be used is not selected primarily because it will give the greatest dollar return or the greatest unit output of timber; and

(F) insure that clearcutting, seed tree cutting, shelterwood cutting, and other cuts designed to regenerate an evenaged stand of timber will be used as a cutting method on National Forest System lands only where

(i) for clearcutting, it is determined to be the optimum method, and for other such cuts it is determined to be appropriate, to meet the objectives and requirements of the relevant land management plan;

(ii) the interdisciplinary review as determined by the Secretary has been completed and the potential environmental, biological, esthetic, engineering, and economic impacts on each advertised sale area have been assessed, as well as the consistency of the sale with the multiple use of the general area;

(iii) cut blocks, patches, or strips are shaped and blended to the extent practicable with the natural terrain;

(iv) there are established according to geographic areas, forest types, or other suitable classifications the maximum size limits for areas to be cut in one harvest operation, including provision to exceed the established limits after appropriate public notice and review by the responsible Forest Service officer one level above the

Forest Service officer who normally would approve the harvest proposal: Provided, That such limits shall not apply to the size of areas harvested as a result of natural catastrophic conditions such as fire, insect and disease attack, or windstorm; and

(v) such cuts are carried out in a manner consistent with the protection of soil, watershed, fish, wildlife, recreation, and esthetic resources, and the regeneration of the timber resource.

(h) (1) In carrying out the purposes of subsection (g) of this section, the Secretary of Agriculture shall appoint a committee of scientists who are not officers or employees of the Forest Service. The committee shall provide scientific and technical advice and counsel on proposed guidelines and procedures to assure that an effective interdisciplinary approach is proposed and adopted. The committee shall terminate upon promulgation of the regulations, but the Secretary may, from time to time, appoint similar committees when considering revisions of the regulations. The views of the committees shall be included in the public information supplied when the regulations are proposed for adoption.

(2) Clerical and technical assistance, as may be necessary to discharge the duties of the committee, shall be provided from the personnel of the Department of Agriculture.

(3) While attending meetings of the committee, the members shall be entitled to receive compensation at a rate of $100 per diem, including traveltime, and while away from their homes or regular places of business they may be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5, United States Code, for persons in the Government service employed intermittently.

(i) Resource plans and permits, contracts, and other instruments for the use and occupancy of National Forest System lands shall be consistent with the land management plans. Those resource plans and permits, contracts, and other such instruments currently in existence shall be revised as soon as practicable to be made consistent with such plans. When land management plans are revised, resource plans and permits, contracts, and other instruments, when necessary, shall be revised as soon as practicable. Any revision in present or future permits, contracts, and other instruments made pursuant to this section shall be subject to valid existing rights.

(j) Land management plans and revisions shall become effective thirty days after completion of public participation and publication of notification by the Secretary as required under section 6(d) of this Act.

(k) In developing land management plans pursuant to this Act, the Secretary shall identify lands within the management area which are not suited for timber production, considering physical, economic, and other pertinent factors to the extent feasible, as determined by the Secretary, and shall assure that, except for salvage sales or sales necessitated to protect other multiple-use values, no timber harvesting shall occur on such lands for a period of 10 years. Lands once identified as unsuitable for timber production shall continue to be treated for reforestation purposes, particularly with regard to the protection

of other multiple-use values. The Secretary shall review his decision to classify these lands as not suited for timber production at least every 10 years and shall return these lands to timber production whenever he determines that conditions have changed so that they have become suitable for timber production.

(1) The Secretary shall

(1) formulate and implement, as soon as practicable, a process for estimating long-terms [sic] costs and benefits to support the program evaluation requirements of this Act. This process shall include requirements to provide information on a representative sample basis of estimated expenditures associated with the reforestation, timber stand improvement, and sale of timber from the National Forest System, and shall provide a comparison of these expenditures to the return to the Government resulting from the sale of timber; and

(2) include a summary of data and findings resulting from these estimates as a part of the annual report required pursuant to section 8(c) of this Act, including an identification on a representative sample basis of those advertised timber sales made below the estimated expenditures for such timber as determined by the above cost process; and

(m) The Secretary shall establish

(1) standards to insure that, prior to harvest, stands of trees throughout the National Forest System shall generally have reached the culmination of mean annual increment of growth (calculated on the basis of cubic measurement or other methods of calculation at the discretion of the Secretary): Provided, That these standards shall not preclude the use of sound silvicultural practices, such as thinning or other stand improvement measures: Provided further, That these standards shall not preclude the Secretary from salvage or sanitation harvesting of timber stands which are substantially damaged by fire, windthrow or other catastrophe, or which are in imminent danger from insect or disease attack; and

(2) exceptions to these standards for the harvest of particular species of trees in management units after consideration has been given to the multiple uses of the forest including, but not limited to, recreation, wildlife habitat, and range and after completion of public participation processes utilizing the procedures of subsection (d) of this section.

SEC. 7. COOPERATION IN RESOURCE PLANNING.-The Secretary of Agriculture may utilize the Assessment, resource surveys, and Program prepared pursuant to this Act to assist States and other organizations in proposing the planning for the protection, use, and management of renewable resources on non-Federal land.

SEC. 8.8 NATIONAL PARTICIPATION.-(a) On the date Congress first convenes in 1976 and thereafter following each updating of the Assessment and the Program, the President shall transmit to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate, when Congress convenes, the Assessment as set forth in section 3 of this Act and the Program as set forth in section 4 of this Act,

716 U.S.C. 1605.

16 U.S.C. 1606. Amended by the National Forest Management Act of 1976.

9

together with a detailed Statement of Policy intended to be used in framing budget requests by that Administration for Forest Service activities for the five- or ten-year program period beginning during the term of such Congress for such further action deemed appropriate by the Congress. Following the transmission of such Assessment, Program, and Statement of Policy, the President shall, subject to other actions of the Congress, carry out programs already established by law in accordance with such Statement of Policy or any subsequent

The Statement of policy transmitted by the President on June 19, 1980, pursuant to this section was modified by section 312 of Public Law 96-514, 94 Stat. 2957, as follows: SEC. 312. The Statement of Policy transmitted by the President to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate on June 19, 1980, as required under section 8 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974. is revised and modified to read as follows:

STATEMENT OF POLICY

BASIC PRINCIPLES

It is the policy of the United States

(1) forests and rangeland, in all ownerships, should be managed to maximize their net social and economic contributions to the Nation's well being, in an environmentally sound manner.

(2) the Nation's forested land, except such public land that is determined by law or policy to be maintained in its existing or natural state, should be managed at levels that realize its capabilities to satisfy the Nation's need for food, fiber, energy, water, soil stability, wildlife and fish, recreation, and esthetic values.

(3) the productivity of suitable forested land, in all ownerships, should be maintained and enhanced to minimize the inflationary impacts of wood product prices on the domestic economy and permit a net export of forest products by the year 2030.

(4) in order to achieve this goal, it is recognized that in the major timber growing regions most of the commercial timber lands will have to be brought to and maintained, where possible, at 90 percent of their potential level of growth, consistent with the provisions of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 on Federal lands, so that all resources are utilized in the combination that will best meet the needs of the American people.

(5) forest and rangeland protection programs should be improved to more adequately protect forest and rangeland resources from fire, erosion, insects, disease, and the introduction or spread of noxious weeds, insects, and animals.

(6) the Federal agencies carrying out the policies contained in this Statement will cooperate and coordinate their efforts to accomplish the goals contained in this Statement and will consult, coordinate and cooperate with the planning efforts of the States.

(7) in carrying out the Assessment and the Program under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 and the Appraisal and the Program under the Soil and Water Resources Conservation Act of 1977, the Secretary of Agriculture shall assure that resource and economic information and evaluation data will be continually improved so that the best possible information is always available for use by Federal agencies and the public.

RANGE LAND DATA BASE AND ITS IMPROVEMENT

The data on and understanding of the cover and condition of range lands is less refined than the data on and understanding of commercial forest land. Range lands have significant value in the production of water and protection of watersheds; the production of fish and wildlife food and habitat; recreation; and the production of livestock forage. An adequate data base on the cover and condition of range lands should be developed by the year 1990. Currently, cattle production from these lands is annually estimated at 213 million animal unit months of livestock forage. These lands should be maintained and enhanced, including their water and other resource values, so that they can annually provide 310 million animal units months of forage by the year 2030, along with other benefits.

GENERAL ACCEPTANCE OF HIGH BOUND PROGRAM

Congress generally accepts the "high-bound" program described on pages 7 through 18 of the 1980 Report to Congress on the Nation's Renewable Resources prepared by the Secretary of Agriculture. However, Congress finds that the "high-bound" program may not be sufficient to accomplish the goals contained in this statement, particularly in the areas of range and watershed resources, state and private forest cooperation and timber management.

STATE AND PRIVATE LANDS

States and owners of private forest and range lands will be encouraged, consistent with their individual objectives, to manage their land in support of this Statement of Policy. The state and private forestry and range programs of the Forest Service will be essential to the furtherance of this Statement of Policy.

FUNDING THE GOALS

In order to accomplish the policy goals contained in this statement by the year 2030. the Federal Government should adequately fund programs of research (including cooperative research, extension, cooperative forestry assistance and protection, and improved management of the forest and rangelands. The Secretary of Agriculture shall continue his efforts to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the renewable resource programs.