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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Committee Asked To End Columbia Study

From Staff And Wire Reports

Rep. Bob Smith urged an appropriations panel Wednesday to end an environmental study in the Columbia River basin and spend the money instead on forest health projects.

“Four years of work and $35 million have produced few results and there is no evidence that this project is nearing completion,” the Oregon Republican told the House Appropriations subcommittee on the interior.

Smith, chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, was taking aim at the Clinton administration’s Columbia River basin ecosystem management plan known as the “eastside project.”

“The project announced in July 1993 was supposed to last only 18 months,” Smith said.

“While insect infestations, disease and fire problems in our forests grow greater, the money for this project, like many of our forests, continues to burn. It’s time to put an end to this costly study and start tending to the business of restoring the health of our forests,” he said.