Washington, D.C. – Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today applauded congressional leaders for including the bipartisan Silviculture Regulatory Consistency Act, which he introduced earlier this year, as part of the Farm Bill introduced last night.

“This measure will provide the certainty the timber industry needs to keep the forestry jobs that are so crucial to rural Oregon. By maintaining the forestry infrastructure across the west, this bill will allow for restoration that is desperately needed to create healthier forests,” Wyden said.

“This bill ends litigation over questions that have already been answered and allows federal agencies, conservation groups and timber companies to get back to work on improving the management of our federal forests.”

Background: The Wyden provision included in the Farm Bill will reaffirm the determination by both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Supreme Court that forest roads and other silviculture activities are not open to more litigation over water discharge permits under the Clean Water Act. The bill has 21 bipartisan Senate co-sponsors.