Wilderness/Roadless
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The Forest Service and Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) are conspiring to weaken the 1964 Wilderness Act. They propose to use helicopters to capture and radio-collar exotic mountain goats which inhibit a few of the Wasatch Range wilderness areas like Lone Peak, Mount Timpanogos, Twin Peaks Wilderness Areas. In total, they will make at…
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The Forest Service is currently seeking public comments regarding the development of alternatives for the Forest Plan Revision on the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests in North Central Idaho. The deadline is February 28. The new forest plan will guide management direction over the next 10 – 30 years. A Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for…
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When I was in college at the University of Montana in Missoula, I had a housemate named Tom. Tom was a wilderness fanatic like myself. We both loved exploring the wildlands that surround Missoula. Tom had a map on the wall where he drew a circle that encompassed a hundred-mile radius around Missoula. Tom…
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The announcement by Senator John Tester that he would be introducing legislation to protect approximately 80,000 acres in the Blackfoot Clearwater area adjacent to the Bob Marshall Wilderness is to be commended. I have personally hiked all the areas included in this legislation and can attest to its important to the ecological integrity of the…
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Whatever you do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Goethe For the first time, the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA) was introduced into the Senate by Senator Whitehouse and has seven co-sponsors including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. The bill, S. 3022, would protect 23 million…
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I wish to respond to the self-serving opinion piece in the March 16 Missoulian by Gordy Sanders and Loren Rose of Pyramid Lumber Company in Seeley Lake titled “Work together to pass Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Project.” The Blackfoot-Clearwater Stewardship Project is a good example of “PPSC” socialism: privatize the profits, socialize the costs. Nearly every…
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Some mountain bikers are attempting to amend and weaken the Wilderness Act MISSOULA, MONTANA – This week 116 conservation organizations from across America have asked Congress to oppose attempts to amend and weaken the Wilderness Act and Wilderness protections by allowing bicycles in designated Wilderness. “For over a half century, the Wilderness Act has protected…
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The national wilderness preservation system would be strengthened- Taking a long trip into the backcountry during winter doesn’t appeal to some people. That’s understandable. But I enjoy it, and it’s something I try to do a few times a year. Winter backpacking is very different, and more challenging, compared to strapping on the pack during…