State and local politicians blame the spread of the Brian Head fire on environmentalists

Tracie Sullivan

State and local politicians are blaming the Brian Head fire in part on environmentalists who, they said, are responsible for the quick-growing fire that in just a week has destroyed nearly 50,000 acres of forest and several structures. “When we turned the Forest Service over to the bird and bunny lovers and the tree-huggers and the rock-lickers, we turn our history over,” Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, said during a news conference Monday in Brian Head. “And the fire is going to do more damage because we’re going to lose our watersheds. We’re going to lose our soils. We’re going to lose our wildlife. We’re going to lose our scenery – the very things you people (environmentalists) wanted to protect. It’s just plain stupidity.” The Utah representative pointed fingers at “The Friends of the Dixie National Forest,” for stopping the logging in 1993 via a lawsuit in U.S. District Court and in turn, Noel said, allowed the beetles to overtake the forest. “The Friends of the Dixie National Forest,” was an environmental group that stated its goal was to protect the natural and scenic values of the forest. However, many locals now blame the organization for the fire. “Where are the Friends of Dixie now?” Noel asked. “Where’s the Grand Canyon Trust? Where’s the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance? They’re not here when this disaster happens.” Echoing Noel’s sentiments, Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox said he agreed that the inability to manage the forests has “led to more destruction.” The cost of the Brian Head fire is quickly approaching $10 million but could rise as high as $20 million, possibly making it the most expensive fire in the state, Cox said. The U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management are sharing the costs since some of the fire is not only on state and local lands but also federal lands. However, Cox admitted that price tag does not include future costs that may result from the fire’s aftermath. “Then there’s the costs that come after that (the fire),” Cox said. “The erosion that happens, the landslides that happen. The roads … So yes, yes, it’s absolutely correct that we’ve mismanaged our forest and it’s leading to more of these catastrophic fires.”...more