Naming Angeles National Forest

It’s a sad day for all who respect the integrity of the national forest system when the Board of Supervisors of Los Angeles County votes to have Congress rename the Angeles National Forest to the Reagan National Forest.

Ronald Reagan, while campaigning for the presidency in 1980, embraced the goal of the “Sagebrush Rebellion” to sell off Western public lands to ranchers, miners, utilities, et al. His appointment of James Watt as Interior secretary, who was the legal brains back of this movement, was further indication of his disdain for national forests and parks.

Until squelched by Congress and public opinion, the Reagan Administration proposed selling off huge chunks of the national forest system to help reduce the national debt. During his campaign, he told reporters that trees were the chief source of carbon dioxide, which caused acid rain!

Apparently Reagan’s “special love for the outdoors”--the board’s rationale for its proposal--doesn’t apply to the redwood country. Remember the infamous statement: “When you’ve seen one redwood, you’ve seen them all.”

Congress will ignore this inappropriate and silly resolution by the Board of Supervisors. Yet the mere fact that such a vote was even considered by the board of a large and prestigious county is an affront to the founders of our national forest system, Teddy Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot. Even the much maligned Richard Nixon had more respect for the integrity of our public lands than the present occupant in the White House.

JOSEPH T. RADEL

Bishop

Radel is a retired forest supervisor of the Inyo National Forest.