More Utah Wilderness??

[jackjoh]

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/52889334-90/areas-canyon-congress-county.html.csp

 

[anderson750]

I am not familiar with Mill Creek or Westwater, but Desolation Canyon is only accessible by boat or on horseback in a couple of locations. It is currently designated as a WSA. It is one area that does fit the definition of wilderness, minus the one track of private property at Rock Creek.

 

[ret32]

BLM News Release
http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/info/newsroom/2011/november/NR_11_10_2011.html

The Secretary's proposal for Utah consists of:
Desolation Canyon WSA
Westwater Canyon WSA
and
Mill Creek Canyon WSA

The Secretary's report indicates that there is local support from Grand County for these proposals. I don't know what the impact to the 4wd community would be, but on the surface, it appears these are existing WSA's where no motorized routes currently exist. However, if the Washington County bill is any indicator, I would think we would want to know much more details before having an opinion on these.

See attached excerpt regarding Utah from the report:

 

[ret32]

Congressional leaders responded:

United States Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources
http://energy.senate.gov/public/ind...lease_id=f3b75833-85bd-4626-9ac4-3183e560b46f

November 10th, 2011
MURKOWSKI: WILDERNESS PROPOSALS SHOULD COME FROM STATES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: ROBERT DILLON (202) 224-6977 or MEGAN HERMANN (202) 224-7875

Murkowski: Wilderness Proposals Should Come from States
Wilderness Designations Require Congressional Approval in Addition to Local Support
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today issued the following comment in response to the Interior Department’s recommendation that 18 backcountry areas in nine states be designated as either wilderness or national conservation areas:

“The appropriate process for creating new wilderness areas on federal land is to petition Congress after the federal land management agencies have completed their land management plans and recommendations,” Murkowski said. “If a proposal has the support of a state’s congressional delegation and the support of local officials, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will give it full and careful consideration. Some of the areas included in today’s recommendation by the administration fall short of that mark.”

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today approved a package of 28 lands bills, including several new wilderness designations, which demonstrates that the existing process for advancing wilderness is working just fine, Murkowski said. The bills passed by the committee on Thursday all had the support of a majority of the respective state’s lawmakers.

Murkowski, the top Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, warned that efforts to create new wilderness areas through executive order would be rejected by Congress.

In keeping with the promise Interior Secretary Ken Salazar made to Murkowski, none of the proposed new wilderness areas are in Alaska.

“The Alaska delegation remains united in its opposition to any additional lands in the state being permanently locked up as wilderness, and so I appreciate the Secretary’s recognition of that in his announcement,” Murkowski said.

The full list of Interior’s recommendations can be found here.

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For further information, please contact Robert Dillon at 202.224.6977 or Robert_Dillon@energy.senate.gov or Megan Hermann at 202.224.7875 or Megan_Hermann@energy.senate.gov.
Visit our website at http://energy.senate.gov/public/

AND

United States House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee
http://naturalresources.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=268618

Chairman Hastings’ Statement on Interior Department’s List of Proposed Conservation Lands and Wilderness Designations


WASHINGTON, D.C., November 10, 2011 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings released the following statement regarding the Department of the Interior’s list of proposed Conservation Lands and Wilderness designations: “To date, Congress has designated over one hundred million acres of our public lands as Wilderness – an area larger than the state of California – and last month the Natural Resources Committee held a legislative hearing on a number of additional Wilderness proposals.
“Congress has the sole authority to decide which of our lands should be included in the Wilderness system and which should, instead, be allowed to contribute to the full range of recreational, conservation, economic, and resource benefits that carefully managed multiple-use lands provide. In making these decisions, Congress will be listening not only to government agencies but also to the local citizens whose livelihoods and recreational opportunities will be directly affected.
“The federal government already owns more lands than it can afford to properly manage. We must make thoughtful and careful land-use decisions that reflect our country’s current economic situation, keep our lands healthy, and exemplify the importance of ensuring public access to public lands for multi-use purposes.”
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Printable PDF of this document

Contact: Jill Strait, Spencer Pederson or Crystal Feldman 202-226-9019