Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 63 Part 1.djvu/801

 81ST CONG., IST SESS.--CH. 674-OCT. 11, 1949 Whereas these national-forest lands comprise the principal source of water supply for domestic, irrigation, and industrial purposes for thousands of communities, farms, and industries, and good forest and other vegetative cover is essential for watershed protection; and Whereas these lands annually supply approximately four billion board-feet of forest products through twenty-seven thousand sales transactions and the demand for national forest timber is steadily increasing; and Whereas these lands are the sole or main source of summer range for ten million cattle and sheep grazed by thirty thousand livestock permittees whose livelihood is wholly or partially dependent upon livestock grazed on national-forest ranges; and Whereas these lands contain over four million acres of denuded and unsatisfactorily stocked timberlands and an additional four million acres of seriously depleted range lands; and Whereas all of these lands are potentially capable of producing an important part of the timber and forage needs of local communities, and contributing to the protection of water sheds, thereby alleviating flood damage and insuring a continuing water supply, increasing opportunity for local employment, bringing greater stability to local communities, and increasing returns to counties in the national forests from their share of national forests receipts, together with other benefits; and Whereas these lands will not restock or revegetate satisfactorily or within a reasonable time except through reforestation and revegeta- tion or other measures to induce restocking or revegetation; and Whereas it is practical to reforest these denuded and unsatisfactorily stocked timber lands and revegetate these seriously depleted range lands in a period of fifteen years; and Whereas it is necessary to provide reasonable continuity of reforesta- tion and revegetation programs in order to insure effective, efficient, and economical operations: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That it is the declared policy of the Congress to accelerate and provide a continuing basis for the needed reforestation and revegetation of national-forest lands and other lands under administration or control of the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture in order to obtain the benefits here- inbefore enumerated. SEC. 2. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this joint resolution on national-forest lands and other lands under the admin- istration or control of the Forest Service of the Department of Agri- culture, including the acquisition of land or interests therein for nurseries, there is hereby authorized to be appropriated to remain available until December 31 of the ensuing fiscal year, $3,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1951; $5,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1952; $7,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1953 - $8,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1954; $10,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1955; a like amount for each subse- quent year through the fiscal year ending June 30, 1965, and thereafter such amounts as may be needed for reforestation; and $1,500,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1951; $1,750,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1952; $2,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1953; $2,500,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1954; $3,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1955; a like amount for each subsequent year through the fiscal year ending June 30, 1965, and thereafter such amounts as may be needed for range revegetation. Approved October 11, 1949. 763 National -forests lands. Reforestation and revegetatlon. Appropriations au- thorized. 63 STAT.]

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