RCW 79.10.520 Prioritizing Investments On Forest Health Treatments

• Library: Washington Statutes
• Edition: 2023
• Currency: Current through the 2023 1st Special Session
• Year: 2023
• Citation: RCW 79.10.520

(1)

(a) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the department shall, to the extent feasible given all applicable trust responsibilities, develop and implement a policy for prioritizing investments on forest health treatments to protect state lands and state forestlands, as those terms are defined in RCW 79.02.010, to:

(i) Reduce wildfire hazards and losses from wildfire;

(ii) reduce insect infestation and disease; and

(iii) achieve cumulative impact of improved forest health and resilience at a landscape scale.

(b) The prioritization policy in (a) of this subsection must consider whether state lands and state forestlands are within an area that is subject to a forest health hazard warning or order pursuant to RCW 76.06.180.

(2)

(a) The department's prioritization of state lands and state forestlands must be based on an evaluation of the economic and noneconomic value of:

(i) Timber or other commercial forest products removed during any mechanical treatments;

(ii) Timber or other commercial forest products likely to be spared from damage by wildfire;