Idaho, US ink logging and forest restoration agreement

Idaho has signed an agreement with federal authorities to increase logging and restoration work on millions of acres of U.S. Forest Service lands that experts say are increasingly plagued with insect infestations and destructive wildfires.

Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter, Gov.-elect Brad Little and U.S. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary Jim Hubbard signed the Shared Stewardship Agreement on Tuesday that could be a template for other Western states.

The agreement calls for ramping up a federal-state partnership of the federally approved Good Neighbor Authority that allows state workers to assist on timber sales and restoration work on Forest Service land.

Officials say landscape-scale projects are needed to treat 6.1 million acres of national forests in Idaho that have a high risk for disease and wildfire.