Delegation blast Wyoming’s omission from wildfire plan

CHEYENNE (WNE)— On Wednesday, U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis and Rep. Harriet Hageman, all R-Wyo., sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore criticizing their agencies for failing to protect Wyoming from the increased threat of catastrophic wildfire.
 
In the letter, the delegation notes how Wyoming is the only western state to be omitted from the USDA and Forest Service’s 10-year strategy to combat wildfires across the West. The delegation also admonishes the agencies for excluding Wyoming membership from the recently formed, congressionally mandated wildfire commission.
 
“According to recent Forest Service estimates, more than 4 million acres in Wyoming are at either ‘high’ or ‘very high’ risk to catastrophic wildfire,” the delegation wrote. “... The longer the Forest Service and USDA delays the urgent work needed to restore high-risk acres to good health, the longer our people and resources remain dangerously susceptible to catastrophic fire.”
 
This story was published on Mar. 16, 2023.