Introduction As of September 30, 1989, about 53 million acres of land in the United The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 (25 U.S.C. 466) directed the Secretary of the Interior to issue rules and regulations for managing Indian forest land on the principle of sustained-yield management.' In accordance with this directive, the Bureau's Forestry Division has established a broad set of objectives for managing Indian forest land, including (1) developing, maintaining, and enhancing commercial forest land in a perpetually productive state; (2) establishing and developing a timber sales program supported by written tribal objectives and a long-range forest management plan; and (3) preserving a forest in its natural state whenever the authorized tribal representatives decide that for recreational, cultural, aesthetic, or traditional reasons, preservation represents the highest and best use of the land to the Indian owners. The Bureau's forestry program is administered by agency offices generally located on the reservations, nine area offices located throughout the United States, and a Division of Forestry in Washington, D.C. Agency office forestry staff, under the direction of agency superintendents, are responsible for managing all forestry and related activities cooperatively with the Indians. Area office forestry staff, under area office directors, provide technical supervision and assistance to agencies and tribes in conducting their forestry programs. The Division of Forestry assists the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs and his Deputy for Trust and Economic Development in all matters relating to forestry. The 'The principle of sustained-yield management is directed at accomplishing forest management and forest development activities that will enable the yield of forest products that a forest can produce continuously at a given intensity of management. Introduction 1975 Evaluation of the Bureau's Management of Indian Forest Land Division is also responsible for formulating policy, preparing recommendations for forestry legislation and regulations, and coordinating matters relating to forestry with other Bureau programs and programs of other federal departments and agencies. In addition, the Division's Branch of Forest Resources Planning, located in Portland, Oregon, provides technical assistance and guidance to area and agency offices and collects and compiles statistics on the status of the forestry program. In 1975 we reported on the Bureau's management of Indian Natural Resources, including an evaluation of its forestry program.2 At that time Our report identified opportunities for increasing timber harvests and made a number of recommendations directed at increasing forest productivity through improved forest development. (Forest development includes timber stand improvement and reforestation practices used to establish and raise a stand of trees to commercial size and value. Timber stand improvement activities include thinning and weeding to enhance growth and yield of existing stands. Reforestation activities include tree planting and replanting to establish or reestablish tree stands.) We also made recommendations concerning program staffing levels and the use of certain forestry program funds. By 1977 the Bureau identified forest acreage in need of development 2Indian Natural Resources-Opportunities for Improved Management and Increased Productivity Part I: Forest Land, Rangeland, and Cropland (RED-76-8, Aug. 18, 1975). Introduction Since our report the forestry program has undergone some very substantive changes associated with the shift in federal policy to promote Indian self-determination. This policy shift was recommended by the President in 1970 and enacted by the Congress in 1975 with the passage of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (P.L. 93638). In this act the Congress declared its commitment to the maintenance of the Federal Government's unique and continuing relationship with, and responsibility to, individual Indian tribes and to the Indian people as a whole through the establishment of a meaningful self-determination policy which will permit an orderly transition from Federal domination of programs for, and services to, Indians to effective and meaningful participation by the Indian people in the planning, conduct, and administration of those programs and services. In 1978 the Bureau's forestry program began implementing the principles of the Indian Self-Determination Act, which allows tribes to contract with the Bureau to manage all or part of the forestry programs for their reservations. Additionally, when management of a reservation's forestry programs is not contracted to the tribe, it is Bureau policy to generally require consultation with and involvement of Indian representatives in all aspects of forest management planning, encourage tribal participation in timber sale planning, and obtain tribal concurrence for all timber sales. The Bureau requires a forest management plan for all commercial Indian forest land. The plan establishes the goals and objectives for the reservation's forestry program and use of the forest and provides the basis for managing the forest over a period of time, usually 10 years. In line with federal Indian self-determination policy, all aspects of the forest management planning process are to be conducted with involvement from tribal representatives, and the plans are to reflect the preferences of the Indian owners for the use of the forest. The Bureau's policy is that the use of Indian forest land should comply with the requirements of various federal laws. Therefore, during the forest management planning process, consideration must be given to the impact that planned uses of the forest, such as timber harvesting, might have on the environment, fish and wildlife, and historically significant sites. Accordingly, the use of the land needs to be planned and carried out so as to avoid or at least minimize any adverse impacts. Introduction Objectives, Scope, and In an April 26, 1989, letter, the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Indian Affairs asked us to review the Bureau's forestry program, particularly in light of our 1975 report. During subsequent discussions with the Vice-Chairman's office, we also were asked to examine certain additional aspects of the forestry program that were not addressed in our prior report. As agreed with the requesters, this report discusses the extent to which Our work was conducted at the Bureau's Division of Forestry in Washington, D.C.; the Branch of Forest Resources Planning in Portland, Oregon; three area offices—Portland, Oregon; Phoenix, Arizona; and Minneapolis, Minnesota; and five agency offices and the reservations they serve-Yakima and Colville in Washington, San Carlos and Fort Apache in Arizona, and Menominee in Wisconsin. Three of these agency offices-Yakima, Colville, and Fort Apache-were selected because they were covered by our prior review. The two other agency offices— San Carlos and Menominee-were added to provide expanded coverage. We obtained information and documentation on the Bureau's forestry program management goals and objectives from the Division of Forestry and background data and current statistics on each forested reservation from the Branch of Forest Resources Planning. At the three area offices we visited, we held discussions with the area office director and forestry staff and obtained relevant documents and records. At each agency office and reservation we visited, we held discussions with Bureau and tribal forestry officials and obtained relevant documents regarding each reservation's forest management practices and the chronology of its forestry program subsequent to our 1975 report. In addition, we reviewed legislation relating to the Bureau's forestry program and the Bureau's implementing regulations. 33GAO Observations on Timber Harvesting and Forest Development Needs on Indian Reservations (GAO/T-RCED-90-71, Apr. 24, 1990). |