Crapo Part Of Idahoâ??s Homegrown LobbyEffort On Forest Health

Washington, DC - An Idaho community and an Idaho company are working with Senator Mike Crapo in a new effort to further jobs and reduce fire risks as the Senate debates long-awaited forest health legislation authored by Crapo and others. Crapo is working with the City of Cascade and Forest Concepts LLC to get information out to members of Congress about the benefits of the forest health legislation and a pilot project to create erosion control devices made from small-diameter timber thinned under provisions in the bill. Crapo says federal agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service are studying the use of â??Flow Checkâ?? devices made in Cascade from smaller diameter timber. Conservation groups have supported the concept, and Forest Concepts LLC, makers of the devices, are blanketing Senate offices with small-diameter wood coasters bearing the names of both the company and Cascade, Idaho. Workers at the Cascade plant have prepared the coasters for distribution to every Senate office on Capitol Hill. Crapo says the effort both publicizes provisions in the legislation promoting the use of wood biomass and the fact jobs are being created with its use.â??We want the entire Senate to know about this win-win enterprise,â?? Crapo said. â??We can create jobs in rural areas, we can lessen the risk of catastrophic wildfire by thinning small-diameter materials, and we can put those materials back into the ecosystem which helps heal the environment after fires and floods.â??Crapo has been working with Valley County and Cascade officials to create jobs related to the use of wood biomass. Parts of the plan envision â??Flow Checkâ?? to be manufactured from small-diameter timber thinned from forests to help prevent fires. The effort, backed by local conservation groups, business, and civic leaders, could eventually lead to a timber-related manufacturing complex in Cascade involving several companies with differing wood-related products. Crapo joined local leaders and agency officials this past summer in Cascade to announce an ongoing government contract that could spur use of the small-diameter erosion control devices.-More-CRAPO PART OF IDAHOâ??S HOMEGROWN LOBBY EFFORT ON FOREST HEALTHOctober 30, 2003Page 2A satellite feed of Crapoâ??s remarks on the forest health legislation and activity and interviews from Cascade, Idaho is available today:1:45-2:15 p.m. Mountain Time / 12:45-1:15 p.m. PacificGalaxy 3 (C-Band)Transponder 24 Vertical Downlink Frequency 4180Standard AudioThe feed features sound from Senator Crapo, Cascade Mayor Larry Walters, and Steve Thorson, Marketing Director for Forest Concepts in Idaho, plus b-roll of the wood coasters being manufactured at the Cascade facility. # # #