Forest Service funding keeps declining

By scott miller

EAGLE COUNTY — Trees don’t vote. If they did, the U.S. Forest Service wouldn’t be facing the kind of budget crunch it does.The numbers are daunting: Since 2008, the budget of the White River National Forest — which includes the Eagle and Holy Cross ranger districts in this part of Eagle County — has dropped by 50 percent, from about $30 million to about $15 million per year. The decline is due almost entirely to the amount of money the Forest Service puts into firefighting these days. Since 1998, firefighting has consumed an ever-greater portion of the agency’s budget, growing …

Source:: Vail Daily Feed