Wilderness News

Recently, Sens. Byrd and Rockefeller as well as Reps. Capito, Rahall and Mollohan jointly sponsored the Wild Monongahela Act. This bill will add nearly 28,000 acres of protected wilderness areas to the Monongahela National Forrest.

The support given by our congressional delegation is greatly appreciated by West Virginians of all different types who support protecting our state's wild places. In sponsoring this bill, our leaders have spoken up for hunters, anglers, small business owners, conservationists, people of all different backgrounds.

Inyo County residents today have their first opportunity to publicly address local officials on the Northern San Gabrial and Eastern Sierra Wild Heritage Act, a bill that has stirred controversy and both widespread support and opposition since its introduction in May by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California) and Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Santa Clarita).

Today's public hearing in Independence and the one to follow tomorrow in Bishop are being hosted by the Inyo County Board of Supervisors, which has invited representatives of McKeon, Boxer and Senator Diane Feinstein's office.

In 2005, U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici introduced legislation that would have established a wilderness designation in the most pristine areas of Doña Ana County, and released 65,000 acres for eventual sale. The proposal drew the ire of environmentalists, and Domenici, recognizing that there was no local consensus, decided to pull the bill.

Brian Ellsworth, 48, presents a bit of a paradox. The Boise native helped found the construction firm Ellsworth-Kincaid, which has had more than a T-square's worth of influence in spaces from the former MilkyWay restaurant to the Boise Towne Square Mall.

Jill Hanauer, a Democratic consultant from Denver, articulates better than most people what it means to be a Westerner.

"We may not make it to the mountains each weekend, but we aspire to. We like to know that wilderness will be available to us and our children. Despite wages and benefits that are lower than in other regions, it's that aspiration that keeps us choosing to live here," she says.

Hanauer's words came to mind Monday as hundreds of Coloradans packed into Denver's Paramount Theatre to weigh in on rules for oil and gas drilling.

I was pleased to learn that Congressman Buck McKeon has introduced legislation to protect forever as wilderness two wild places in the Angeles National Forest close to my home in Canyon Country.

Wilderness protection is the highest level of protection that any area can receive, and it's something that we can be especially proud of because it's not given lightly and can only happen by act of Congress.

Our local mountains and creeks are part of a delicate natural balance that provides our water, cleans our air, and sustains some of the most unique plants and animals in the world.

The Nevada Wilderness Project has been working diligently to protect Southern Nevada's Gold Butte area. This scenic recreational area just outside Mesquite is home to our endangered desert tortoise and ancient petroglyphs.

Members of the Wilderness Project have been working hard to designate Gold Butte as a National Conservation Area, which will help protect it from further damage. The area is currently prone to vandalism, illegal off-roading and theft.

The introduction of a bill last week by U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., has revived controversy about the fate of thousands of acres of public land in Doña Ana County.

Pearce, also a candidate for U.S. Senate, last Wednesday introduced legislation, H.R. 6300, that would remove a temporary wilderness designation from parcels of Doña Ana County land and instead create two new designations for certain swaths. It would also change a federal process for selling public land, opening up 65,000 acres for disposal.

Pearce is the Republican nominee for the state's open Senate seat; he faces fellow U.S. Rep. Tom Udall, a Santa Fe Democrat, in the November general election.

At issue is what to do with federal land around Las Cruces, the state's second-largest city. In introducing House Resolution 6300, Pearce is taking the side of People for Preserving Our Western Heritage, a coalition of ranchers and other business owners who want a less-restrictive designation for most or all of the land in question.

Nature photographer Hullihen Moore specializes in vistas of Virginia's Shenandoah National Park, but worries he'll soon be unable to see his beloved ridgelines through a yellowish haze of industrial emissions.

On some days, thick air already obscures mountains just a few miles distant, he says. So adding six new coal-fired power plants nearby, as is proposed, might make view-gazing impossible.