Idaho has 11,613,300 acres of BLM lands, 20,715,205 acres of National Forest. The last wilderness designated in Idaho was in 1980, the Frank Church River of No Return.
Media Campaigns
This media campaign ran in several Idaho papers to hilight how diverse supporters of wilderness are, illustrating that wilderness is our common ground. Click each photo to view the respective print ad (PDF), or visit the campaign page.
Bills
Boulder-White Cloud Mountains
- Bill title:
- Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act
- Bill number:
- H.R. 222
- Sponsors:
- Rep. Mike Simpson
- Summary:
- Legislation introduced to designate 320,000 acres of the Boulder-White Clouds Mountains as Idaho’s first new wilderness area in 25 years. With more than 150 mountains over 10,000 feet in elevation, the area supports diverse ecosystems that are critical habitat to numerous species of fish and wildlife—all threatened by ever-encroaching off-road vehicle use.
- More info:
- Idaho Conservation League
Courtesy Idaho Conservation League
Owyhee-Buneau Canyonlands
- Bill title:
- Owyhee Public Land Managment Act of 2008
- Bill number:
- S. 2833
- Sponsors:
- Sen. Mike Crapo
- Summary:
- Legislation introduced to designate 517,000 acres as wilderness and nearly 315 miles of wild and scenic rivers in a region that is twice the size of Yellowstone National Park. One of the last best examples of the arid sagebrush lands that once characterized the American West, the grassland plateaus and “sagebrush sea” continue to cover the land, through which run deep river canyons with sheer rock walls. The canyonlands are home to numerous rare animal species, including sage grouse, California bighorn sheep, Columbia spotted frogs, loggerhead shrikes, spotted bats, red band trout, ferruginous hawks, mountain quail, and many other important and globally rare species.
- More info:
- Idaho Conservation League
© John McCarthy
Campaigns
Scotchman Peaks
- Summary:
- Spanning the Idaho/Montana state line just east of Sandpoint, Idaho, the 80,000-acre proposed Scotchman Peaks Wilderness might well be nicknamed the “bastion of the goats” for the mountain goats that find wild refuge in its craggy peaks. The larger portion of this rugged area lies in Montana, but support for congressional wilderness protection comes from nearby communities in both states, including Noxon, Montana, and Hope and Clark Fork, Idaho. As one elected official writes, “I have spent many days hunting, fishing and camping in hundreds of places throughout this wilderness.” Thinking back to his first visit in 1964, he added: “Each time I enter the Scotchmans, I return to that first visit so many years ago. Time has stood still, I am young again and all is right with the world. The Scotchman Peaks area is truly a ‘fountain of youth’.”
- More info:
- Friends of Scotchman Peaks
© Jen Schmidt
