Forest Service turns to private groups to fill in gaps left by dwindling dollars for work on trails
By ERIC BARKER of the Tribune
Backlog stats more than 20 years old
Both locally and nationally, nobody knows just how bad the trail maintenance backlog is. A 1989 audit by the Government Accountability Office, now more than 20 years old, estimated the agency faced a $200 million maintenance backlog that resulted in the loss of 5,000 miles of trail. Since that time, Forest Service budgets and the agency’s workforce have shrunk, recreation demand has grown and wildfires that exacerbate the problem have grown in size and intensity. Read more.