FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oregon community conservation groups warn of rural families threatened by an “economic tsunami”
Sustainable Northwest-coordinated Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition is in Washington promoting conservation-based solutions that create jobs and address the economic crisis hitting rural communities.
Portland, Oregon Apr 27, 2009– Unemployment in some rural counties tops 20%; economic crisis harder on rural communities with more manufacturing than farming
– Groups visit DC this week with specific recommendations for Congress and Obama administration to create green jobs for resource-dependent communities
Portland, OR – Representatives of conservation groups from Oregon and other western states arrive in Washington, DC today with economic stimulus policy recommendations that include ways to create green jobs for rural communities, which currently suffer the highest unemployment rates in the state – and the nation. Working together as the Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition, the groups are meeting throughout the week with members of Congress and Obama administration officials to urge them to stem this economic disaster that’s hitting rural communities hardest.
“An economic tsunami has hit rural communities with unemployment numbers exceeding 20% in Harney and Crook counties, – it’s a disaster that can be averted by simple, yet effective green job strategies that put people back to work while benefiting our public lands and the rural communities that depend on them,” said Maia Enzer, policy program director for Portland, Oregon-based Sustainable Northwest.
Enzer added, “Key investments to create green jobs include restoration and maintenance of private and public lands, and utilizing and marketing woody biomass – a readily available low-carbon energy option.” She also emphasized that many rural communities already have some of the highest rates of people living in poverty and said we all have a humanitarian imperative to help those who need it most.
Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition (RVCC) policy recommendations include a $5 billion investment to improve the health and productivity of public forests, which provides multiple benefits such as employment for forest workers who have been displaced by the decline of logging and can also reduce the cost of fighting forest fires in the future and save taxpayer dollars. http://sustainablenorthwest.org/quick-links/resources/RuralGreenEconomyInitiative.pdf
RVCC also recommends funding for land management activities including fire hazard reduction, restoration of watersheds and wetlands, wildlife habit improvements, control of noxious weeds and invasive species, range restoration, and recreation site maintenance, wildlife surveys, and the planting and maintaining of river and riparian areas.
“It’s just sound public policy to invest in our public lands and rural communities that play a vital role in providing our nation with a wide array of benefits that range from clean air and clean water to renewable wood products and low-carbon energy,” said Cassandra Moseley from the Ecosystem Workforce Program at the University of Oregon.
Moseley identified "shovel ready" capital improvement opportunities that include road decommissioning and maintenance that will reduce the risk of catastrophic road failures during storms and reduce stream sedimentation and replacing decaying bridges with modern timber bridges. Facilities improvements could include weatherizing buildings and replacing aging heating and cooling systems with more efficient wood heat boilers, solar panel insulation, and energy-efficient equipment and lighting.
Today, RVCC released policy papers that, in addition to green jobs, include priorities that address climate change mitigation and renewable energy, among others. For more information and access to all the policy papers, please visit: http://sustainablenorthwest.org/quick-links/resources/rvcc-issue-papers. This week in DC the coalition is holding two public briefings for members of Congress, one focuses on opportunities offered by utilizing woody biomass for thermal (heat) production, another outlines climate change mitigation strategies for rural communities.
The Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition is a union of 70 organizations that have joined together to promote balanced conservation-based approaches to the ecological and economic problems facing the West.
Media contact: Susan Laarman 503-341-3799 or slaar@imagina.com
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