01. December 2012 · Comments Off on Forest Service turns to private groups · Categories: Current Events, Tips, Tricks and Tid Bits

West Brownlee Creek

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.

new trail

Marble Creek

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