U.S. Forest Service policy in northern New Mexico : a case study of the Hassell Report--1967-2000
Name
47912278-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
11.67 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
9339a18297e98fb170557e156ace70a9
Author(s)
Baker, Lou, 1961-
Advisor(s)
Frank Levy.
Alternative Title
US Forest Service policy in northern New Mexico
United States Forest Service policy in northern New Mexico
Date Issued
2000
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
As a result of a court house raid in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico, on June 5, 1967, these actions of local landgrant activists made national headlines and elicited highlevel interest in the land management practices of the United States Forest Service (USFS) in northern New Mexico.' These actions were instrumental in convening the Mexican-American Conference in El Paso, Texas in October 21, 1967. After attending the Mexican-American Conference, Southwest Regional Forester William D. Hurst initiated the study that resulted in the Hassell Report and lead to the subsequent creation of the Region 3 Policy. The Hassell Report was an assessment of the needs of the rural forest-dependent communities and as such, was not based on data and statistics but rather on qualitative community input. The subsequent policy implemented by Hurst on March 6, 1972, "...summarized and embodied some of the recommendations of the Hassell Report." Since its creation a century ago, the Forest Service has recognized the effects of forest management on local communities and has rhetorically embraced populist ideals to serve people and communities. But the strategies adopted by the Forest Service for meeting local community needs - Region 3 Policy - has failed to achieve this goal. This approach conflicts with ideals of and trends towards participation, posing a question of whether it remains viable in contemporary society. This managerial posture suggests why the USFS has experienced escalating conflict and eroding public confidence in its management of the national forests in northern New Mexico. One of the lessons of this case study is that attempting to address economic and cultural issues and actually implementing study recommendations into actions is two entirely different things. "A brilliant policy can easily flounder on the rocks of bureaucratic inertia, but such a policy, as in the case of northern New Mexico, may also acquire a life and constituency of its own and continue to influence the affairs of a region."
Description
Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2000.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 79-87).
Subjects
Urban Studies and Planning.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning
Terms of Use
M.I.T. theses are protected by
copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but
reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written
permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but
reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written
permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
Persistent DSpace Link
