Is the issue the Forest Services problem to solve, or someone elses?
Some seemingly major issues may become essentially irrelevant to the Forest Service’s own policymaking process. For example, in the case of recreation use conflicts where it is user preferences at stake, and not resource protection, the Forest Service may want to leave it to someone else to arbitrate the issue, like a community consensus process, Congress, or the courts. Congress has prohibited the use of motorized vehicles in designated Wilderness; should they do it elsewhere? Unless resource protection or environmental quality are at risk, it may not be the Forest Service’s problem. The Forest Service might facilitate the working out of a local consensus where possible, and perhaps even leave it to the parties in the agreement to enforce its terms with their own constituents. In other instances, the Forest Service may simply punt to other public institutions explicitly established to make political choices, or arbitrate disputes. On any given issue, the Forest Service should look ver
