Updates on Land Protection Legislation Packages in Key States
For Immediate Release
08-01-08
Contact: Drew Vankat, Policy Analyst
drew@imba.com
303-545-9011
CALIFORNIA
State Assembly Bill 2923
This California legislation directing the state to assess the suitability of lands for Wilderness designation recently passed through the Assembly Committee on Natural Resources. It affects lands managed by the state - not federal lands - and the end result would be California state Wilderness areas, which are managed like federal Wilderness. IMBA California is asking the bill's author, Assemblymember Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa), and the California Wilderness Coalition to remove three popular state parks from the list of potential properties: Austin Creek, Henry Coe and Robert Lewis Stevenson.
California Desert and Mountain Heritage Act (H.R.6270)
This bill, calling for the designation of 125,000 acres of Wilderness in Riverside County, is scheduled for mark up in the House Natural Resources Committee on May 14. IMBA California was able to support the legislation after a vital connector was cherry-stemmed out of the Wilderness boundaries. This connector provides important access to an excellent network of singletrack.
COLORADO
Dominguez Canyon Protection Bill
This soon-to-be-released bill is endorsed by IMBA. Senator Ken Salazar (D-CO) is suggesting a 145,000-acre National Conservation Area and a 65,000-acre addition to the National Wilderness Conservation System. Senator Salazar held extensive public comment periods and reached out to mountain bikers to make sure area trails were protected and not closed through Wilderness land designations. IMBA expects the bill to have strong local support.
West Hermosa Creek
Located just north of Durango, West Hermosa Creek (which includes a popular section of the Colorado Trail) was identified this year by the Forest Service and BLM as a candidate for Wilderness designation. In response, local club Trails 2000 worked with the San Juan Citizen's Alliance to draft a proposal that actually increases the protected acreage - a boon for this important ecosystem - while keeping singletrack open. Specifically, the proposal would maintain bicycle access on a section of the Colorado Trail and the famous Hermosa Creek Trail, and close smaller, less-traveled trails between the two. The Forest Service and BLM are reviewing the proposal along with other public comments as they craft a final public lands management plan.
Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness Act (H.R.4935, S.1510)
This bill is just steps away from becoming law. Mountain bicyclists supported the 250,000-acre Wilderness bill in Rocky Mountain National Park. The bill includes a provision to build a 16-mile non-motorized shared use trail along the park's western boundary that will link the Granby and Grand Lake communities.
Hidden Gems
Since being presented with a 600,000-acre draft Wilderness proposal called Hidden Gems for their review last year, IMBA and local mountain bikers have been working hard to identify which areas contain cherished trails that need to be protected in a way that allows for continued access, such as a National Scenic Area, and which areas could be supported for federal Wilderness designation.
Colorado Wilderness Act (H.R.3756)
U.S. Representative Diana Degette's (D-Denver) massive statewide bill would designate 1.65 million acres of BLM land as Wilderness. First introduced in 1999, the bill may finally be gaining momentum, prompting Colorado mountain bikers to take stock of important trails within the more than 60 separate areas proposed for Wilderness designation. Established bicycling usage might mean some areas are better protected with a different permanent designation.
GEORGIA
Chattahoochee National Forest Act (H.R.707)
The Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association (SORBA) supports this legislation, which puts the important Mountaintown Creek Trail within a protective, bicycle-friendly Scenic Area designation. The bill has not progressed from the House.
MONTANA
High Divide Trails Agreement
Local cyclists joined forces with Wilderness advocates, equestrians and others to craft a collaborative proposal for backcountry lands around Helena and Butte, Montana. The 18-month process resulted in an agreement on lands to be supported for Wilderness designation and those to be protected for quiet recreation, including mountain biking. The High Divide Trails Agreement also produced broad support for construction of new trails, open to bicycling. The Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crews will be leading a trailbuilding school to begin construction on some of these new routes September 11-14.
Gallatin National Forest Lawsuit
In 2007, two groups filed a lawsuit to ban bicycle and motorized use from the beloved Hyalite Porcupine Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area near Bozeman. The suit, which repeatedly names bicycling as an affront to the environment and other trail users, seeks to eliminate our use from some of the best backcountry singletrack in close proximity to Bozeman. In response, IMBA's legal counsel filed an amicus brief containing detailed responses to all allegations. Local mountain bikers have also met with the plaintiffs to explore the possibility of dropping bicycling from their suit. The presiding judge is currently evaluating arguments and IMBA hopes to receive a response in the near future.
OREGON
Lewis and Clark Mount Hood Wilderness Act (S.647)
This innovative legislation by Senator Wyden (D-OR) and Senator Smith (R-OR) has not yet passed out of the Senate. Bicyclists helped craft the bill, which includes 34,550 acres of National Recreation Area designations to protect against road building, resource extraction and development while allowing bicycling to continue. The bill also creates a Mt. Hood Recreation Advisory Committee, with a seat reserved for mountain bikers, and retains fees locally that would be reinvested in Mt. Hood, including those for building new trails. S. 647 includes 129,000 acres of Wilderness and would close roughly 50 miles of trails to mountain biking.
A new proposal being floated by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Rep. Peter Defazio (D-OR) would close 123 miles of trails to mountain biking, including the important Boulder Lake and Twin Lakes area trails. Mountain bikers are strong supporters of protecting these areas and are asking Mr. Blumenauer to consider restructuring the bill with a bicycle-friendly designation.
VIRGINIA
The Virginia Ridge and Valley Act (H.R.1011, S.520)
This bill has passed through the House and is nearly out of the Senate and onto the President's desk. Local mountain bikers were actively involved in developing this legislation, which includes an 11,000-acre National Scenic Area, nearly 50,000 acres of new Wilderness to protect bicycle access and a specific provision to rebuild a popular bicycle and horse trail.
Virginia Mountain Treasures
IMBA and local riders endorse the Wilderness Society's recently published Virginia Mountain Treasures document. The report details the most important natural areas in Virginia's Jefferson National Forest and mountain bikers provided input at several stages of drafting the language. Virginia Mountain Treasures should be a blueprint on which bicyclists and Wilderness advocates can work together on future projects in the Old Dominion State.
WEST VIRGINIA
Wild Monongahela Act (H.R.5151)
This bill appears poised to arrive on the President's desk in the near future. Designating more than 47,000 acres of Wilderness in seven areas of the Monongahela National Forest, the bill's timing caught savvy local mountain bikers off-guard. One change cyclists hoped for was a different protective designation for Dolly Sods, a popular area that has hosted many West Virginia Mountain Bike Association-sanctioned competitive events and trailwork sessions over the years. It contains more than 22 miles of singletrack used for at least two decades. In total, the bill will close approximately 70 miles of trail.
WASHINGTON
Wild Sky Wilderness Act (H.R.822, S.391)
This 106,000-acre Wilderness proposal affecting lands 60 miles east of Seattle became the first such bill signed into law in the 110th Congress. The IMBA-affiliated Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club (BBTC) remains officially neutral after proponents agreed to adjust boundaries to accommodate a popular bicycling trail. There are several other areas around Seattle that local mountain bikers hope to work with the conservation community to protect in a way that allows continued bicycle access.
