Red Lodge Clearinghouse

Two massive public lands bills for Idaho and Utah that failed in the 109th Congress due to concerns of development and off-road vehicle use have returned to the Senate, this time with the support of several environmental groups.

Introduced earlier this month, the measures aim to protect hundreds of thousands of acres of land in both states while opening the door to multiple uses on additional acres not deemed significant by stakeholders.

S. 2833, from Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), would designate more than 517,000 acres of wilderness in the Owyhee-Bruneau Canyonlands of southwestern Idaho.

With a foundation in a consensus agreement among ranchers, local officials, conservationists and other stakeholders, the bill seeks to resolve decades-long disputes over the use of public lands in the state. It would designate nearly 315 mile of wild and scenic rivers, establish a science review to address management issues of rangelands in Owyhee County, and closes 200 miles of roads and routes near the proposed wilderness areas to motorized vehicle use except in emergencies.

In exchange, about 190,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management lands treated as potential wilderness will now be subject to "soft release," opening the door to multiple uses including ORV use and grazing following BLM land-use evaluations. It also provides for the sale or trade of private inholdings within these proposed wilderness areas. The funds for sales of public lands identified by BLM for disposal would be deposited into an account to pay for the acquisition of those inholdings.

Likewise, Sen. Bob Bennett's (R-Utah) S. 2834 is also the product of a multi-stakeholder agreement that creates hundreds of thousands of acres of additional protected lands while opening up some lands for development and other uses.

"Parties on all sides of this debate have repeatedly told me it would be impossible to broker a deal on this emotional issue which, for decades, has caused people to dig in their heels," Bennett said in a statement following his bill's introduction. "The persistence we've applied now appears to be paying off as our bill has gained extremely diverse support and a very good chance of passing."

S. 2834 would designate more than 260,000 acres of land as wilderness and 165.5 miles of the Virgin River and its tributaries as wild and scenic. The bill would also create two National Conservation Areas in Washington County -- creating protections for the desert tortoise and recreational opportunities on almost 140,000 acres.

It also permits the sale of ecologically insignificant lands identified in the St. George Field Office Resource Management Plan and calls for the designation of the High Desert Off-Highway Vehicle Trail.

Enviros on board?

Similar versions of both bills were up for consideration in the waning months of 2006 but faltered amid strong opposition from environmental groups and some lawmakers who said the measures were flawed and should be abandoned until after the 2006 elections. Several of those groups are now supporting the new initiatives.

Craig Gehrke, Idaho regional director for the Wilderness Society, who will testify in favor of Crapo's bill tomorrow, described the previous version of the legislation as too idealistic and complex to be passed in the previous Congress.

"The first bill was a wakeup call," Gehrke said. "Until you put it in front of Congress, you don't know what kind of support you'll need."

Gehrke said the "simpler, cleaner" language of this bill makes it a superior piece of legislation that will have a much better chance of passing.

Supporters say the Utah bill has also made similar strides.

"We feel like it's been improved in a very significant way," said Dave Livermore, Utah state director for the Nature Conservancy.

He said that the previous version did not strike the right balance between growth and conservation, but after working with lawmakers, local leaders and several stakeholders, the new version reduces the amount of lands for sale from approximately 24,300 acres to 9,000 acres while providing for the permanent protection of more than 123,000 additional acres.

The sale and development of those land disposals would also be subject to federal environmental review and an extensive public review process.

The Utah proposal is not without its problems, some supporters say. Livermore said his group would push for enhanced protections for endangered species, while the Wilderness Society has concerns with some of the bill's ORV provisions.

"At this point we're not endorsing the bill as it's introduced but we are supportive," said the Wilderness Society's Dave Slater. The group's president, Bill Meadows, will testify on the Utah bill.

Some environmental groups are still expected to oppose the bills, and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) could block both measures as part of his continued campaign to scuttle legislation that could increase government spending.

Meanwhile, the subcommittee will also consider S. 934 and H.R. 1374, which would authorize the conveyance of an additional tract of Forest service land in Florida.

Schedule: The hearing is April 22, at 2:30 p.m. in 366 Dirksen.

Witnesses: Julie Jacobson, deputy assistant secretary, Interior Department; Joel Holtrop, deputy chief, National Forest System; James Eardley, chairman, Washington County Commission, St. George, Utah; Bill Meadows, president, the Wilderness Society; Craig Gehrke, regional director, the Wilderness Society, Boise, Idaho; and Chad Gibson, Owyhee Range Service, Wilder, Idaho.

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