Environmentalists assail bill to sell timber, fuel leases

[Algorem]

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1129628223325451.xml&coll=2

Tuesday, October 18, 2005

-- Environmental groups accused a state senator Monday of sponsoring a "chain-saw massacre" on state forest land by pushing legislation that would allow an independent board to sell oil, gas and timber leases on state property.

Senate Bill 193, introduced this month by Sen. Jeff Armbruster, a North Ridgeville Republican, would create an Oil, Gas and Timber Leasing Board that would have exclusive authority to lease oil- and gas-drilling -- as well as logging -- rights to private companies.

Armbruster said the law would "protect the environment as best as we can, but also use our natural resources to help offset and add to the reserves of the United States and the great state of Ohio."

Jack Shaner, a spokesman for the Ohio Environmental Council, said Armbruster's claim that the bill will help make Ohio more energy self-sufficient was "a disingenuous way to sell this to the public to take the radical step of opening up our parks, nature preserves and other state lands to commercial logging."...

[rg302200]

1. Maybe the repukes will use the money

To pay for their legal bills!!!

Seriously though, we all know why they are taking this course of action! They couldn't manage state funds before so now they are pulling out all of the stops to try to create some kind of surplus. Instead of doing this kind of crap maybe the should be looking for ways to correct the economy.But then again the first repuke I see in Ohio that knows how to handle the state government will be a fist for me!

Their leadership is the reason why our schools are failing, jobs are leaving and people are moving out of the state. To bad the repukes won't move with them.