RIFLE, Colo. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Mark Udall is touring a Delta timber mill after he persuaded the U.S. Forest Service to renegotiate timber sale contracts in an effort to save sawmills in the Rocky Mountain region.

Udall says the sawmills needed help after they were hit hard by bark beetle infestations, the recession and financially unviable agreements. He says he wants to see the problems firsthand on Tuesday.

Udall says Colorado's three sawmills -- in Montrose, Saguache and Delta -- are struggling because of the downturn in the housing market and lower demand for wood products.

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