As someone who lives on the Monroe County/Polk County line, I am pleased that Sens. Alexander and Corker have introduced the Tennessee Wilderness Act of 2010. The beautiful and scenic areas that this bill will protect play a vital role in bringing so many visitors to these two counties.
I am an Idahoan who frequents the White Clouds area and appreciates its beauty and uniqueness as a wilderness area. I use the area for hiking, skiing, biking, fishing and spending time with loved ones in an area that needs to be protected and remain pristine for generations to come. Which is why I think the Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act strikes the right balance for Idaho.
Is compromise dead on Capitol Hill? We'll find out, starting Wednesday afternoon. That's when the Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will take up Senate Bill 3294, better known as the Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act.
It would preserve 332,775 acres as wilderness in Custer and Blaine counties. Off-road enthusiasts would retain access to a key recreation area, the Germania Creek trail. Restrictions on thousands of additional acres would be relaxed.
For the past five years, I have visited and re-visited the Hidden Gems wilderness proposal areas as a volunteer, monitoring their condition and introducing potential advocates to them. These are gold-medal quality public lands that deserve preservation with the gold-standard of Wilderness designation.
I was happy to learn that our congressional officials have recently introduced new legislation to protect the White Cloud Mountains as a wilderness area. Two years ago my husband and I hiked into Willow Lake after our wedding at Redfish Lake.
The views of aptly named Castle Peak while hiking up Little Boulder Creek are jaw-dropping. One day I hope to take my family back there. It's one of the reasons why I still call Idaho home.
Growing up on a ranch, I learned to ride a motorcycle and snowmobile when I was 6 years old - and I've been riding ever since. I've spent a lot of time riding in the Boulder-White Clouds. I appreciate that Congressman Mike Simpson and Sen. Mike Crapo have looked out for riders like me in their legislation, called CIEDRA.
I want to commend Congressman Mike Simpson for including wheelchair access in his economic development and recreation bill (CIEDRA). People mistakenly think that wheelchairs are not allowed in wilderness areas, but this is not the case. Still, it is obviously difficult to traverse these places in one.
Rep. Simpson's bill will not only give Idahoans 320,000 acres of new wilderness, but will also create the very first legislated primitive-access wheelchair trail in wilderness - the first mile of the Murdock Creek trail, right behind SNRA headquarters north of Ketchum.
Congress should support an effort by six conservation organizations, representing nearly 65,000 Pennsylvanians, to gain wilderness designation for parts of the Allegheny National Forest, that state's only national forest and a natural area well within the reach of Western New Yorkers.
The coalition is backing the Citizens' Wilderness Proposal for Pennsylvania's Allegheny National Forest, a measure de-signed by Friends of Allegheny Wilderness in 2003. The proposal identifies 54,460 acres of wilderness-quality lands in the forest.
I just attended the public forum on Hidden Gems in Edwards. I want to thank Congressman Polis and his staff for hosting this meeting, and for continuing the public process on this important opportunity. Since there were so many passionate people, there wasn't time for everyone (like myself) to speak.
As an Idaho river outfitter for more than 30 years, and with previous professional fisheries and wildlife work, natural resource management has always been important to me personally and economically.
I remember attending the first public hearing in Lewiston for potential dam breaching to save anadromous fish. The final determination was that of the four H's (hydropower, hatcheries, harvest and habitat), habitat would be the preferred method of fish recovery.
Letter: Wilderness areas play a vital role
June 22nd, 2010As someone who lives on the Monroe County/Polk County line, I am pleased that Sens. Alexander and Corker have introduced the Tennessee Wilderness Act of 2010. The beautiful and scenic areas that this bill will protect play a vital role in bringing so many visitors to these two counties.
Letter: A wilderness bill that finally strikes the right balance
June 17th, 2010I am an Idahoan who frequents the White Clouds area and appreciates its beauty and uniqueness as a wilderness area. I use the area for hiking, skiing, biking, fishing and spending time with loved ones in an area that needs to be protected and remain pristine for generations to come. Which is why I think the Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act strikes the right balance for Idaho.
Editorial: If Congress can agree on anything, it ought to be CIEDRA
June 15th, 2010Is compromise dead on Capitol Hill? We'll find out, starting Wednesday afternoon. That's when the Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will take up Senate Bill 3294, better known as the Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act.
It would preserve 332,775 acres as wilderness in Custer and Blaine counties. Off-road enthusiasts would retain access to a key recreation area, the Germania Creek trail. Restrictions on thousands of additional acres would be relaxed.
Letter: Wilderness is about landscapes, not ‘users’
June 15th, 2010For the past five years, I have visited and re-visited the Hidden Gems wilderness proposal areas as a volunteer, monitoring their condition and introducing potential advocates to them. These are gold-medal quality public lands that deserve preservation with the gold-standard of Wilderness designation.
Letter: One of the seasons I still call Idaho home
June 15th, 2010I was happy to learn that our congressional officials have recently introduced new legislation to protect the White Cloud Mountains as a wilderness area. Two years ago my husband and I hiked into Willow Lake after our wedding at Redfish Lake.
The views of aptly named Castle Peak while hiking up Little Boulder Creek are jaw-dropping. One day I hope to take my family back there. It's one of the reasons why I still call Idaho home.
Letter: Bill keeps trails open for snowmobiles
June 15th, 2010Growing up on a ranch, I learned to ride a motorcycle and snowmobile when I was 6 years old - and I've been riding ever since. I've spent a lot of time riding in the Boulder-White Clouds. I appreciate that Congressman Mike Simpson and Sen. Mike Crapo have looked out for riders like me in their legislation, called CIEDRA.
Letter: Can’t wait to roll my wheelchair into wilderness
June 15th, 2010I want to commend Congressman Mike Simpson for including wheelchair access in his economic development and recreation bill (CIEDRA). People mistakenly think that wheelchairs are not allowed in wilderness areas, but this is not the case. Still, it is obviously difficult to traverse these places in one.
Rep. Simpson's bill will not only give Idahoans 320,000 acres of new wilderness, but will also create the very first legislated primitive-access wheelchair trail in wilderness - the first mile of the Murdock Creek trail, right behind SNRA headquarters north of Ketchum.
Opinion: Designate the wilderness
June 10th, 2010Congress should support an effort by six conservation organizations, representing nearly 65,000 Pennsylvanians, to gain wilderness designation for parts of the Allegheny National Forest, that state's only national forest and a natural area well within the reach of Western New Yorkers.
The coalition is backing the Citizens' Wilderness Proposal for Pennsylvania's Allegheny National Forest, a measure de-signed by Friends of Allegheny Wilderness in 2003. The proposal identifies 54,460 acres of wilderness-quality lands in the forest.
Letter: Hidden Gems reflects civilized values
June 10th, 2010I just attended the public forum on Hidden Gems in Edwards. I want to thank Congressman Polis and his staff for hosting this meeting, and for continuing the public process on this important opportunity. Since there were so many passionate people, there wasn't time for everyone (like myself) to speak.
Letter: Salmon mean business for communities like Riggins
June 9th, 2010As an Idaho river outfitter for more than 30 years, and with previous professional fisheries and wildlife work, natural resource management has always been important to me personally and economically.
I remember attending the first public hearing in Lewiston for potential dam breaching to save anadromous fish. The final determination was that of the four H's (hydropower, hatcheries, harvest and habitat), habitat would be the preferred method of fish recovery.