Date: 06/16/2010 BRC IDAHO “NO BULL” ACTION ALERT
Dear BRC Action Alert subscriber in Idaho
Today, in some stately meeting room in Washington D.C., Senators Risch and Crapo are holding a hearing on Congressman Mike Simpson's Boulder/White Clouds Wilderness bill, known as the “Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act” (S. 3294).
We acknowledge our Senator's past actions to promote balanced public land management. But we must respectfully rise up en mass and oppose them on this legislation.
This bill is BAD for recreation. It's BAD for Idaho. And it's BAD for America's public lands.
“No Bull” –
CIEDRA WILL close just under 80 miles of epic high alpine mountain bike single track. CIEDRA WILL close tens of thousands of acres of supreme high altitude snowmobiling. CIEDRA WILL take approximately 150,000 acres of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) that is ALREADY PROTECTED (no logging – no mining- no roadbuilding) and turn it into Wilderness. The only difference between the SNRA and Wilderness is the SNRA allows a diverse range of recreation to occur. CIEDRA WILL put 332,775 acres into the most restrictive land management designation on the planet: Wilderness precludes any motorized use, including using chainsaws to maintain trails. Wilderness bans all mountain bike use. Wilderness puts limits on group size (usually “12 heartbeats&rdquo
and often requires permits and fees for overnight visits. Wilderness limits the State of Idaho's ability to protect and manage for wildlife and wildfire. The Idaho Recreation Coalition has sent Bill Dart to Washington D.C. to testify in front of our Senators and others on the Senate Subcommittee for Public Lands and Forests.
There will be No Bull in IRC's testimony:
When considering designating public lands as Wilderness, Congress and federal land managers are advised to consider the “relative scarcity” of Wilderness in the area. In this area, there is certainly no scarcity of Wilderness. In addition to the 217,000 acre Sawtooth Wilderness that is right across the valley, immediately to the north is the largest Wilderness in the lower 48 states, the 2.3 Million acre Frank Church/River of No Return Wilderness, and contiguous to that (separated only by a single dirt road) is the 1.3 Million acre Selway/Bitteroot Wilderness. Adjacent to both of these vast Wilderness areas is the 206,000 acre Gospel Hump Wilderness.
There is no threat to these lands. No large commercial clear cut logging operations are pending. No mining operations, with bulldozers at the ready, can or will threaten these lands. Recreational use is intensively managed with an emphasis on protecting natural resources. This legislation seems to be “Wilderness for the sake of Wilderness,” and nothing more.
Idaho Senator Jim Risch is YOUR representative on the Senate Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee. Please call his office today and ask him to withdraw his support for CIEDRA (S. 3294).
Please be polite.
With 5 million acres already set aside, Idaho has enough Wilderness. I oppose CIEDRA (S. 3294) and I am calling to ask the Senator to reconsider his decision to promote this bill. There is no threat to these lands. No massive clear cutting project is in the works. No giant mining operation proposed. Mountain bikes, off-highway vehicles and snowmobiles are not harming these lands. CIEDRA will kick out motorized and mountain bike recreationists who will take their dollars with them, having a negative impact on the local economy. The Sawtooth National Recreation Areas provides protection and balanced management while still allowing recreational uses. I am opposed use of the Omnibus package to pass CIEDRA or any public lands bill.Sen. Jim Risch
Boise Office: (208) 342-7985
Coeur d'Alene Office: (208) 667-6130
Idaho Falls Office: (208) 523-5541
Lewiston Office: (208) 743-0792
Pocatello Office: (208) 236-6817
Twin Falls Office: (208) 734-6780
PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY TODAY!
Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208-237-1008 ext 102
More info on the web:
BRC's last Action Alert on CIEDRA:
IDAHO, Call your Senators on CIEDRA before they return to Washington DC
http://www.sharetrails.org/alerts/?alert=1185
Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests Website:
http://energy.senate.gov/public/ind...ittee_id=f69427d2-cada-496b-8c3c-e53556c8e07b
Hearing Schedule for CIEDRA (S. 3294)
http://energy.senate.gov/public/ind...aring_ID=e0474a87-aecf-47ac-305a-40abe3fba1d6
Link
Dear BRC Action Alert subscriber in Idaho
Today, in some stately meeting room in Washington D.C., Senators Risch and Crapo are holding a hearing on Congressman Mike Simpson's Boulder/White Clouds Wilderness bill, known as the “Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act” (S. 3294).
We acknowledge our Senator's past actions to promote balanced public land management. But we must respectfully rise up en mass and oppose them on this legislation.
This bill is BAD for recreation. It's BAD for Idaho. And it's BAD for America's public lands.
“No Bull” –
CIEDRA WILL close just under 80 miles of epic high alpine mountain bike single track. CIEDRA WILL close tens of thousands of acres of supreme high altitude snowmobiling. CIEDRA WILL take approximately 150,000 acres of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA) that is ALREADY PROTECTED (no logging – no mining- no roadbuilding) and turn it into Wilderness. The only difference between the SNRA and Wilderness is the SNRA allows a diverse range of recreation to occur. CIEDRA WILL put 332,775 acres into the most restrictive land management designation on the planet: Wilderness precludes any motorized use, including using chainsaws to maintain trails. Wilderness bans all mountain bike use. Wilderness puts limits on group size (usually “12 heartbeats&rdquo
and often requires permits and fees for overnight visits. Wilderness limits the State of Idaho's ability to protect and manage for wildlife and wildfire. The Idaho Recreation Coalition has sent Bill Dart to Washington D.C. to testify in front of our Senators and others on the Senate Subcommittee for Public Lands and Forests. There will be No Bull in IRC's testimony:
When considering designating public lands as Wilderness, Congress and federal land managers are advised to consider the “relative scarcity” of Wilderness in the area. In this area, there is certainly no scarcity of Wilderness. In addition to the 217,000 acre Sawtooth Wilderness that is right across the valley, immediately to the north is the largest Wilderness in the lower 48 states, the 2.3 Million acre Frank Church/River of No Return Wilderness, and contiguous to that (separated only by a single dirt road) is the 1.3 Million acre Selway/Bitteroot Wilderness. Adjacent to both of these vast Wilderness areas is the 206,000 acre Gospel Hump Wilderness.
There is no threat to these lands. No large commercial clear cut logging operations are pending. No mining operations, with bulldozers at the ready, can or will threaten these lands. Recreational use is intensively managed with an emphasis on protecting natural resources. This legislation seems to be “Wilderness for the sake of Wilderness,” and nothing more.
Idaho Senator Jim Risch is YOUR representative on the Senate Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee. Please call his office today and ask him to withdraw his support for CIEDRA (S. 3294).
Please be polite.
With 5 million acres already set aside, Idaho has enough Wilderness. I oppose CIEDRA (S. 3294) and I am calling to ask the Senator to reconsider his decision to promote this bill. There is no threat to these lands. No massive clear cutting project is in the works. No giant mining operation proposed. Mountain bikes, off-highway vehicles and snowmobiles are not harming these lands. CIEDRA will kick out motorized and mountain bike recreationists who will take their dollars with them, having a negative impact on the local economy. The Sawtooth National Recreation Areas provides protection and balanced management while still allowing recreational uses. I am opposed use of the Omnibus package to pass CIEDRA or any public lands bill.Sen. Jim Risch
Boise Office: (208) 342-7985
Coeur d'Alene Office: (208) 667-6130
Idaho Falls Office: (208) 523-5541
Lewiston Office: (208) 743-0792
Pocatello Office: (208) 236-6817
Twin Falls Office: (208) 734-6780
PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY TODAY!
Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208-237-1008 ext 102
More info on the web:
BRC's last Action Alert on CIEDRA:
IDAHO, Call your Senators on CIEDRA before they return to Washington DC
http://www.sharetrails.org/alerts/?alert=1185
Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests Website:
http://energy.senate.gov/public/ind...ittee_id=f69427d2-cada-496b-8c3c-e53556c8e07b
Hearing Schedule for CIEDRA (S. 3294)
http://energy.senate.gov/public/ind...aring_ID=e0474a87-aecf-47ac-305a-40abe3fba1d6
Link