Move aims to \u201cbring government closer to the people,\u201d but veterans question the cost to public lands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Forest Service will close its nine regional offices over the next year, redirecting command to five urban \u201chubs\u201d under a sweeping Department\u202fof\u202fAgriculture reorganization announced Thursday by Secretary\u202fBrooke\u202fRollins. About 193\u202fmillion acres of public land\u2014an area twice the size of California\u2014will now be overseen from Raleigh, Kansas\u202fCity, Indianapolis, Fort\u202fCollins, and Salt\u202fLake\u202fCity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Former Forest\u202fService Chief Dale\u202fBosworth called the change \u201cunheard\u2011of,\u201d asking, \u201cDo you really want 120\u202fnational forests reporting straight to Washington?\u201d His worries echo those of firefighters and scientists who fear diluted local knowledge just as wildfire seasons intensify.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rollins argues the move trims bureaucracy without a \u201clarge\u2011scale workforce reduction.\u201d USDA, which employs roughly 100,000 people, plans to keep only 2,000 of its 4,600 headquarters staff in D.C., shifting the rest closer to field work. Officials say that will speed permitting, save money, and\u2014perhaps most politically potent\u2014fulfill a promise to shrink the federal footprint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Skeptics note 3,400 probationary employees were recently dismissed by the Department\u202fof\u202fGovernment\u202fEfficiency, and 15,364 more have opted for \u201cdeferred resignation.\u201d Bosworth points out current staffing is lighter than it was in the 1960s even as recreation and fire risks soar. \u201cThe whole fire thing is different now,\u201d he said. Will five hubs grasp on\u2011the\u2011ground realities in time to act?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Forest\u202fService Fire Sciences Lab and Forest Products Lab in Missoula will stay put, but seven stand\u2011alone research stations are set to merge into Fort\u202fCollins. Retired University of Montana dean Jim\u202fBurchfield warns the consolidation severs vital university partnerships: \u201cIt didn\u2019t pass the slap\u2011on\u2011the\u2011head validity test.\u201d Here are the five city hubs slated to absorb every regional function:<\/p>\n\n\n\nNew regional hubs<\/th> Focus area (examples)<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> Raleigh, NC<\/td> Southern timber and hurricane recovery<\/td><\/tr> Kansas City, MO<\/td> Midwest rangeland and prairie fires<\/td><\/tr> Indianapolis, IN<\/td> Eastern hardwoods and urban outreach<\/td><\/tr> Fort Collins, CO<\/td> Rocky Mountain research and fire science<\/td><\/tr> Salt Lake City, UT<\/td> Great Basin drought and range health<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n