WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) delivered the following opening statement at a hearing to consider the nomination of Michael Boren to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment.
The following is Chairman Boozman’s statement as prepared for delivery:
“Good afternoon. Today we welcome Mr. Michael Boren of Idaho to the committee, as we consider his nomination to be Under Secretary for the Natural Resources and Environment, or NRE, mission area at the Department of Agriculture.
The forests and grasslands of the United States Forest Service serve a variety of functions – wildlife habitat; outdoor recreation; oil, gas, and minerals; timber.
I look forward to hearing from Mr. Boren on how he views this multiple-use mandate for the Forest Service. I am concerned that recent years have seen a reduction in the priority for timber, however I am pleased with some of the action President Trump and USDA have taken in recent months to try to address this problem.
Utilizing our forests to sequester carbon also requires responsibly harvesting timber and properly managing our forests, which provide an almost unlimited resource, resulting in a “win-win” for everyone. When timber is harvested and ultimately stored in lumber and other end products, that carbon is preserved almost permanently.
Perhaps an even better way our forests can serve as our nation’s environmental powerhouse is by preventing and mitigating future catastrophic wildfires. There’s a statistic I know we’ve all heard before but is still astounding to me.
California wildfires in 2020 released twice as many greenhouse gas emissions than the state reduced between 2003 and 2019. Properly managing our nation’s forests can do more to prevent carbon emissions than almost anything else we can do in Congress.
Thankfully, this committee is currently considering the Fix Our Forests Act, and we hope to move this forward in the very near future and get this legislation signed into law.
FOFA will provide the right tools and processes for our federal land management agencies, including the U.S. Forest Service, to mitigate the frequency and intensity of catastrophic wildfires.
If confirmed as Undersecretary of the USDA mission area that oversees the Forest Service, the Committee will look to Mr. Boren, to quickly implement FOFA and follow congressional intent.
Your leadership and background will be critical in ensuring the Forest Service is efficient and effective in carrying out the critical job of this mission area.
Doing this successfully will ensure that all American’s can enjoy the benefits of our nation’s forests and grasslands for years to come.
I expect that Congress, and this committee, will be able to work with Mr. Boren and rely on his professionalism and candor as we conduct necessary oversight over the multitude of programs and efforts under his purview. We expect you and your team will be prompt in our requests and work with the committee to provide needed information and technical assistance.
We will trust your experience and expertise to steward our national forests over the course of your time, should you be confirmed as Undersecretary.
Mr. Boren, I want to again congratulate you on your nomination to be the Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment at USDA and we look forward to hearing from you today.
I now turn to Ranking Member Klobuchar for her opening statement.”