Oregon Voters Approve Cutting On Federal Land

Grant County, Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed a measure allowing cutting of dangerous or fire-prone trees on federal land without permission, setting up a potential showdown with forest officials.

The measure passed 1,512 to 745 yesterday despite cautions that county law does not override federal regulations, which prohibit people from freely cutting trees on their own.

The measure said county citizens may “participate in stewardship of natural resources on public lands within the County when those resources or the use of those resources become detrimental to the health, welfare or safety of the people.”

More than 60 percent of the Connecticut-sized county of 7,500, economically depressed by drastic reductions in logging, is publicly owned.