Take action to save public lands.  Phyllis Mains

One of America's crown wildland jewels
        the Sawtooth National Recreation Area –
        is in jeopardy
        
        Damaging precedents loom for Public Lands, Water, Wilderness in
the West.
___________________
 
A bill now in U.S. House, HR 3603, would
•        Give away thousands of acres of nationally owned Public Lands to
local governments and
developers -- a slippery slope to wholesale privatization in the West, 
•        Make motorized recreation the priority use on hundreds of
thousands of acres of public
lands, and
•        Fail to protect water needed by spawning salmon and wildlife.  
Please, take a moment to lift a hand and help our public lands by doing
the following:
(2) Ask Congress to oppose H.R. 3603 (the Central Idaho Economic
Development and
Recreation Act) as it is currently written.  Ask of your representative: 
(1) do not give away nationally owned Public Lands
(2) do not give motorized recreation priority use on Public lands
(3) do not fail to protect water rights needed by fish and wildlife
(4) DO protect 550,000 acres of wilderness and the waters of the Sawtooth
NRA -- Idaho's
Hope Diamond 
 
(3)  Forward this alert to your family, friends, and e-mail lists.  
 
Say NO to CIEDRA.  We can do better!  
 
Thank you! 
 
 
Giving away nationally owned Public Lands.
 
H.R 3603 would give away thousands of acres of nationally owned Public
Lands -- including
lands from the Congressionally protected Sawtooth National Recreation
Area (Sawtooth
NRA).  Once privatized, Public Lands would be open to development and
motorized
recreation parks.
 
Legislating motorized use — and damage.
 
H.R. 3603 would legislate and promote increased motorized activity,
threatening core
wilderness values.  By legislating guaranteed motorized use forever, the
bill would strip
away the discretion that professional land managers need to protect this
fragile, high
mountain ecosystem from damage -- upholding our nation's stewardship
responsibilities.
Denying fish & wildlife a water right.
 
Salmon travel 900 miles up the Salmon River to spawn in these waters. 
The streams and
rivers of the Sawtooth NRA must be protected for fish (especially
spawning salmon) and
wildlife.  Normally, federal lands such as the Sawtooth NRA include
federal protection of
instream flows.  However, in 2000 the Idaho Supreme Court stripped the
Sawtooth NRA of
its protections for water and the State of Idaho is free to continue
issuing new water
rights. 
 
CIEDRA should reassert instream flow protections.  Instead, the bill
expressly denies a
federal water right for the wilderness areas, and is silent as to the new
Boulder White
Clouds Management Area.  The Salmon River and its tributaries will be
degraded as a
result.
 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see:
 http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp