If there is one lesson we have learned in the course of our wilderness work, it is that passing legislation to permanently protect our state’s wildest public lands can take years, sometimes, even decades. This isn’t to say that there is a lack of public will to protect these lands. In fact, the majority of the American public wants more wilderness, wild and scenic rivers, national parks, and national monuments. Ken Burns’ recent film on national parks underscores the principle that Americans from all walks of life enjoy and have an affinity for preserving our country’s crown jewels.

However, with the escalation of bitterness and partisanship in our national politics, it has become increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to pass wilderness legislation on its own. There are a myriad of other issues, like energy, the economy, appropriations, amongst others, vying for time on the House Senate floors. It makes sense, then, that a relatively new form of legislation known as the omnibus bill has  emerged to shepherd public lands laws through the current mélange and acrimony of Congress.

In March of last year Congress passed, and President Obama signed into law, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. This bill, which took several years to pull together, designated hundreds of miles of wild and scenic rivers, expanded national parks, created new national monuments, and protected more than 2 million acres of wilderness throughout the country. Surprisingly, the bill received a modest amount of bipartisan support.

The inherent genius behind an omnibus bill is that it contains so many pieces of legislation from both sides of the aisle. Generally the bills enjoy some level of bipartisan support back in the home districts that makes it easy for elected officials to vote yes. Needless to say, the public reaction to passage of the 2009 Omnibus Bill was overwhelmingly positive.

While New Mexico was afforded several new protected areas, including the Sabinoso Wilderness  on the northeastern plains of the state, there were many other deserving wild lands left out of the omnibus bill. However, a lot can change over the course of a year. New Mexico is primed once more to permanently protect some majestic parts of our natural heritage and continue the proud legacy of the birthplace of wilderness.

The Organ Mountains –Desert Peaks Wilderness Act
The Organ Mountains contain some of the most scenic landscapes in Doña Ana County; landscapes that define southern New Mexico and the rich culture of its people. The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks Wilderness Act was introduced in the United States Senate on September 17, 2009 by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), and was originally co-sponsored by Senator Tom Udall (D-NM). The bill passed out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee with broad support on July 21, 2010. Senator Bingaman’s outstanding leadership, combined with Senator Udall’s strong support has built a bill supported by thousands of citizens, four local elected governments, two local Chambers of Commerce, half a dozen local sportsmen organizations, community groups and conservation organizations.

Update:
We are closer than ever to the long-worked for El Rio Grande Del Norte Conservation Area!
Congress is primed to pass an Omnibus Lands Bill in late 2010. This NCA will be a keystone of the legislation.
For the latest status review, download: El Rio Grande Del Norte Update Summer 2010 

Overview

The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance and the Bureau of Land Management have been working with Senator Bingaman’s office to craft a National Conservation Bill for north-central New Mexico. The proposal, encompassing more than 303,000 acres of Taos and Rio Arriba Counties, also includes two new Wilderness areas totaling about 24,000 acres: Ute Mountain and Rio San Antonio Gorge.

These are some of the most spectacular lands in all of New Mexico. The Rio Grande cuts into the Servilleta lava flows that make up the Taos Plateau just above the Colorado border. Eight miles later, at the New Mexico state line, the river is 200 feet down, the gorge 150 feet across. West of Questa, where Big Arsenic Spring bubbles from the rock and pinyon jays heap in the winter, the river is a glinting green ribbon eight hundred feet down. The opposite rim is over half a mile away where, on summer mornings, bald eagles soar southward in pairs. At John Dunn Bridge the river enters The Box, an 18-mile stretch of 900 foot cliffs, famous among boaters.

This is also the Rio Grande Migratory Flyway – one of the great migratory routes in the world. Eagles, falcons and hawks make the basalt walls of the Gorge their nesting homes. Ospreys, scaups, hummingbirds, herons, avocets, merlins and willits all traverse the Gorge. The sound of Sandhill Cranes migrating from the San Luis Valley to places like Bosque Del Apache can be deafening while on an October hike in the tablelands west of the river. It’s that western plateau that is perhaps the most wild. From the edge of the Gorge, vast grass and sagebrush mesas intersperse with the forested slopes of volcanic intrusions such as Cerro Chiflo, Cerro del Aire, Montosos and Cerro de la Olla. It is on these mesas where vast herds of pronghorn and elk find winter forage and calve and fawn along the rim late in the spring.

This substantial chunk of wild is bounded by the Gorge Rim on the east and Highway 285 on the west. The northern portion spills over 285, encompassing the broad, gently rolling grass and sage brush plains of the Rio San Antonio Gorge WSA, bisected by yet another gorge where raptors nest in 200-foot high lava walls and conifers clamber down to the Rio los Pinos. Perhaps the crown jewel of this whole area is Ute Mountain, a 10,093 foot high volcanic cone rising nearly 3,000 feet above the surrounding plain. Ute is something you can’t miss. Located about ten miles west of Costilla, it is the dominant feature for those driving north from Taos along highway 522. The steep slopes of Ute are covered in pinyon at the base, as well as pockets of ponderosa, aspen, white pine and Douglas Fir in the higher elevations. From grassy meadows of blue grama, western wheatgrass and Indian ricegrass where the trees thin, the Gorge is a jagged, inky slash dividing Ute from its sister cones to the west. Snow-capped Blanca rises to the north, just across the state line. The whole Sangre de Cristo range falls to the east, terminating, view-wise, at Wheeler Peak.

Descendants of the land grantees run cattle all along the Gorge and out into the table-lands between the rim and Highway 285. Vehicle routes tend towards sparse and are more likely than not unmaintained two-tracks. Hunting and fishing are common. Hikers climb to the bottom of the gorge for a swim and a picnic. The Box is a popular rafting area and bird watching draws – well, not as many as it ought to. It’s fabulous birding! On the slopes of Cerro de la Olla, locals collect firewood to heat their homes in the winter.

This is wild land, important to the culture and character of our county and vital, in its wildness, to our economy. We learned two main lessons during the battles over the Valle Vidal: one, no chunk of public land is secure from mineral development or other forms of exploitation – no matter how safe you may think that land is, no matter how ‘lacking’ in exploitative possibilities it may be, someone, sometime is going to come after that land. Our other lesson was this: our economy in north-central New Mexico is dependent on Wilderness. Wilderness feeds the rivers that feed the acequias. It nurtures our rural lifestyle. Wilderness is the ‘bank’ from which we hunt and fish. It is also a tremendous economic development opportunity. Perhaps most importantly, these wildlands create and nurture the character of the people of Taos County. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages the whole thing. This is public land. Our land.

[Show as slideshow]

• Debunking Doña Ana County Rancher Myths
• Citizens Wilderness Proposal vs. Rancher-Off Road Vehicle Proposal

When working to protect wild places in New Mexico, one need only look south to see large tracts of wild public lands that have the potential to be put into the National Wilderness Preservation System. From the Boot Heel to Otero Mesa and north to the Apache Kid and Magdalena Mountains, southern New Mexico is, in many ways, some of the wildest coun­try left in the Rocky Mountain West. Yet, like so many other places, these wild lands face a myriad of threats. From oil and gas drill­ing, to off-road vehicles to urban sprawl, the threats are real, and in some cases, growing. These threats make wilderness designation essential to the long-term protection of these wild places, and the continued quality of life New Mexicans have come to enjoy. Despite the tough political cli­mate related to wilderness, there is a bi-partisan coalition of ranchers, hunters, developers, conservationists and local politicians working with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and staffers from Senators Udall and Bingaman to protect over 400,000 acres of wild public lands in Doña Ana County.

The towering pinnacles and rugged canyons of the Organ Mountains, serving as the definitive backdrop for the city of Las Cruces, represent the true symbol of wilderness in Doña Ana County. From hiking, camping, hunting, to picnics, classroom outings, and retreats, the Organ Mountains are the center of enjoyment and culture for many in southern New Mexico.

Realizing that the expansion of Las Cruces is inevitable, five city and county commissions voted to support the protection of the Organ Mountains as a National Conservation Area and the preservation of 330,000 acres in Doña Ana County as wilderness. More than 220 local businesses also support our wilderness proposal, along with the Hispano Chamber of Commerce and the Las Cruces Homebuilders Association.

In Las Cruces, the response to wil­derness protection has been very positive. In polls conducted among likely voters in Doña Ana County 63% said that not enough of New Mexico’s public land is permanently protected as wilderness. Furthermore, 55% of likely voters supported a proposal by the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance that would protect more of Doña Ana County’s land. It is clear that the citizens of Doña Ana County have a strong conservation ethic, and any proposal that moves forward must ensure that their quality of life remains secure and even improved.

From the ocotillo gardens and grass-covered hills of Aden Lava Flow to the deep and rugged ravines of Broad Canyon decorated with ancient petroglyphs, and up to the panoramic peaks of the Organ Mountains, the wild public lands of Doña Ana County truly represent some of the last great wilderness quality land in the Rocky Mountain West. It is up to New Mexico’s congressional delegation to listen to the strong bi-partisan coalition working in Doña Ana County to protect these crown jewels with an act of Congress. Their leadership is crucial in preserving these essential pieces of New Mexico’s natural heritage.

Learn more at: www.donaanawild.org

By Nathan Newcomer
www.oteromesa.org

Vast desert grasslands, wilderness characteristics, abundant wildlife and a fresh water aquifer are colliding with the Bush-Cheney energy policy in New Mexico’s Otero Mesa. A debate that has been on going since 1997, when Harvey E. Yates Company (HEYCO) first found natural gas in Otero Mesa, has pitted ranchers, hunters, conservationists, and State authorities against the oil industry and Bush administration policies.

Nestled in south-central New Mexico, Otero Mesa stretches over 1.2 million acres, or roughly the same size as the State of Delaware. It is home to over 1,000 native wildlife species, including black-tailed prairie dogs, desert mule deer, mountain lions, golden and bald eagles, over 250 species of songbirds, and boasts the state’s healthiest and only genetically pure herd of pronghorn antelope. Furthermore, there is evidence that the Salt Basin aquifer, which originates in Otero Mesa and travels south into Texas, is the largest untapped fresh water resource remaining in New Mexico.

By contrast, the oil industry claims that the area holds a vast reservoir of natural gas, though the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) estimates the area’s energy potential at low to moderate (RMPA/EIS for Sierra and Otero Counties). Though there is a discrepancy in just how much oil and gas is under Otero Mesa, both industry and the BLM agree that oil and gas drilling can occur in an environmentally sound manner. In fact, the BLM contends that its proposal for the area is “the most restrictive fluid minerals plan ever developed,” as stated by Gale Norton, the former Secretary of the Department of Interior.

Prior to the Bush administration taking office, the BLM prepared and issued in November 2000, a draft land use management plan that called for opening up nearly 779,000 acres of Otero Mesa, while placing stringent restrictions on development in the fragile desert grasslands. Representatives of the oil and gas industry strongly objected to the draft plan, citing that the plan was too restrictive, because it forced industry to use directional drilling practices for exploration. Directional drilling, by many standards, causes few impacts when producing energy resources, in that only a few wells are needed in order to successfully drill. However, industry became disingenuous once they complained about the directional drilling stipulations, citing that the resource under Otero Mesa is not expected to be prolific enough to be able to use this practice. If the resource is not expected to be “prolific,” then the question of “why are we even having this debate” comes squarely into play. Nevertheless, industry’s persistence paid off with the new Bush administration, for in January 2004, the BLM altered its plan and in releasing its final proposal, authorized opening over a million acres of Otero Mesa to oil and gas development.

During the initial planning stages of the draft plan for Otero Mesa, the vast majority of public comments were in favor of the most restrictive protections for the area. Likewise, between the issuance of the draft and the final proposal, there has been overwhelming public support for protecting Otero Mesa, including from the State of New Mexico. In January 2004, Governor Bill Richardson signed an Executive Order directing all state agencies to “provide support for the utmost protection of the Otero Mesa grasslands as a matter of State policy.” The governor went on to further say in his Consistency Review that the BLM’s plan for Otero Mesa “fails to even attempt to acknowledge the Chihuahuan Desert…as an important part of a larger ecoregion; and proposes only a few ad-hoc protections at small, isolated sites.” Prior to the approval of a proposed resource management plan, 43 C.F.R. 1610.3-2 requires that the BLM State Director submit the proposed plan for review to the Governor to identify any parts of the management plan that are “inconsistent with state or local plans, policies, or programs and provide written recommendations for changes to the plan.” Governor Richardson submitted his Consistency Review for Otero Mesa, and found six major problems with the BLM’s proposal, ranging from habitat degradation to watershed vulnerability. Furthermore, the Governor offered a balanced alternative that would set aside more than 600,000 acres of Otero Mesa as a National Conservation Area, while still allowing room for some responsible development. The net result was a letter from the State BLM Director dismissing the Governor’s review, without allowing additional public comment to be submitted. After exhausting every avenue to achieve consensus, the State of New Mexico had no other option than to file a lawsuit against the BLM, and on April 22, 2005, did just that.

For several years there has existed the potential for oil and gas leases on state lands within the view shed of the Visitor’s Center of Park. In addition, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands to the north are also threatened with development. These lands are part of a connective corridor to the Bisti / De-Na-Zin Wilderness through the Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness Study Area (WSA) and other potential wilderness units identified by the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance

Recent publicity has caused the State Land office and the Cimarex Oil Company to delay any immediate plans for developing leases visible from the Park’s Visitor Center. The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, working on behalf of our members (and everyone who loves the Park) has met with the State Land Office (SLO) and other relevant agencies to forestall development.

In addition, associated seismic exploration by Cimarex and other companies in the vicinity of Chacra Mesa are threatening the cultural resources of the park. The Park’s relative isolation and absence of roads on its periphery has been a key to the protection of its world class resources and scenery. The connectivity to the Bisti / De-Na-Zin Wilderness is one large stretch of wild lands in a part of our state that has been overrun with oil and gas development. Increased seismic and/or drilling activities, roads and access will make it easier to get to parts of Chaco that are isolated now. It is also clear that oil field related dust, air pollutants, and noise will reduce visibility and degrade the experience of one of our Country’s great National Parks.

Our goal remains the removal of all oil and gas leases on the periphery of the Park; the permanent protection of archaeological resources on the periphery of the Park; the further protection of archaeological resources within the Park; working to link the Park to other protected landscapes (wilderness and WSA’s); and maintaining a wildlife and wildlands buffer against the never-ending tide of oil and gas development in this part of the Land of Enchantment.

To achieve that end, our goal for 2008 is the introduction of Congressional legislation that will do the following:

• Transfer State lands adjacent to Chaco NHP into the Park. This will require identifying and trading BLM lands elsewhere in New Mexico to the State Land Office and adjusting the boundary of the park.
• Revision of the boundary of the Pueblo Pintado Outlier to include the large ruin and other identified significant archeological sites. Administrative jurisdiction on those lands needs to be transferred to the NPS.
• Designation of approximately 20,000 acres of the Park as Wilderness (The National Park Service has identified these acres as suitable for Wilderness designation).

If you’d like to be part of the efforts to protect one of New Mexico’s most important and famous places, please contact Demis Foster, NMWA Community Partnership Director.

New Mexico Wilderness Alliance

341 East Alameda Street

Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501-2229

Phone: (505) 216-9719

Area DescriptionRising 1,110 feet from the surrounding plains, the Sabinoso unit sits upon the Canadian Escarpment, which is composed mostly of the Jurassic Morrison Formation and Triassic Chinle Shale. Cretaceous Dakota Sandstone caps these formations and creates colorful cliffs at the top of the long, deep canyons of the area. Fairly dense pinyon-juniper woodlands dominate the landscape, and ponderosa pines mix with riparian vegetation along many of the canyon bottoms and grow in isolated stands on the mesa tops. The dominant feature in the unit is the 1,000-foot-deep Cañon Largo, which connects to the Canadian River just outside the unit. Cañon Olguin, Cañon Silva, Cañon Muerto, Cañon Vivian, and Cañon Agapito feed rainfall and snowmelt from most of the unit into Cañon Largo, while Lagartija Creek drains the southern portion of the unit. Elevations in the unit range from 4,520 feet to 6,150 feet.

Ecological Values

The primary vegetation type of the unit is pinyon-juniper forest. Ponderosa pines grow in the riparian zones and in isolated stands on the mesa tops. Cottonwood and willow trees form part of the riparian vegetation in the canyon bottoms, and under-story plants here include wavyleaf and shinnery oak, mountain mahogany, netleaf hackberry, skunkbush sumac, and Navajo tea. Grasses in the unit include black, sideoats, blue, and hairy grama; galleta; little bluestem; wolftail; Indian rice grass; and vine mesquite. The unit’s diversity of habitats, from forests to cliffs to riparian bottomlands, support a wide variety of birds including red-tailed hawk, American kestrel, western scrub-jay, pine siskin, juniper titmouse, mourning dove, lesser goldfinch, savannah sparrow, chipping sparrow, mountain chickadee, Bewick’s wren, broad-tailed hummingbird, white-breasted nuthatch, pinion jay, Virginia warbler, hairy woodpecker, white-throated swift, gray flycatcher, bushtit, and turkey vulture. Wildlife in the area includes coyote, mule deer, bobcat, gray fox, ground squirrel, racer snake, and a variety of frogs and butterflies in the riparian zones.

Scenic and Recreational Qualities

Exceptional scenery within the unit includes the sharp contrast of densely vegetated mesas with many rocky canyons. These canyons cut up to 1,000 feet into the sandstone rock and are stained buff, red and tan over the millennia by various oxides. Extended seasons of flowing water, even in fairly dry years, and incredibly broad vistas across the eastern plains add to the unit’s scenic appeal. Outstanding recreational opportunities in the area include hunting, hiking, geological study, horseback riding, and landscape photography.

Cultural Values

Cultural resources in the unit are unknown because systematical surveys have not been done in the area. Nevertheless, the archaeological record of northeastern New Mexico suggests that a high density of cultural resources will be found in the unit ranging from prehistoric Paleo-Indian campsites through historic homestead sites.

Access Information

There currently is no public access to the Sabinoso unit. The only way to access the area is to make arrangements with the Taos District BLM. The office is making efforts to purchase land and right-of-ways to gain public access to the area. You can contact the Taos BLM at (505) 758-8851. The USGS 7.5 minute maps that cover this complex include Maes, Sabinoso, Canon Olguin, and San Ramon.

• What is Wilderness?
• Wilderness FAQ’s

A Wilderness Legacy

When Spanish settlers first arrived in New Mexico four hundred years ago, they described rolling hills of auburn grass and cacti that came up to the stirrups of mounted horsemen. Later, Aldo Leopold, “the father of Wilderness”, wrote of this land of unparalleled biological diversity that the “…oak-dotted hills, …pine clad mesas, and lazy trout streams …come near to being the cream of creation.”

Sadly, today most of the rolling grasses are gone, the streams have long dried up, and many of the speckled mesas and hills have been sacrificed to economic development and motorized recreation. These lands, once treasured as some of the wildest in the west, are quickly dwindling.

Wilderness Protection is the Answer

There are well over 4.5 million acres of potential Wilderness in New Mexico; only an aggressive Wilderness advocacy campaign will create the public demand to permanently protect these areas as Wilderness.

NM Wilderness Map

New Mexico Wilderness Alliance is the Key

The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance is implementing an aggressive grassroots organizing and media outreach strategy to invigorate traditional supporters of wild lands protection, convince non-traditional constituencies of the values of Wilderness preservation, and motivate a new generation of Wilderness advocates. At the same time, we are working to provide interim protection for these wild places so that they can still be protected for future generations.

These include: Chaco Canyon National Historic Park, Bandelier National Park, El Malpais National Monument, White Sands National Monument, Big Bend National Park, Guadalupe Mountains National Park and Carlsbad Caverns National Park.

Putting these lands into the National Wilderness Preservation System protects them forever from the changes in Administrations that we clearly see can affect our wildest public lands. Threats come from power lines, cell towers and off-road vehicles. Guadalupe Mountains National ParkThe list is long and the protection of these lands is urgent. Wilderness groups have worked for years on National Park Wilderness, but as the opportunities arose to protect Forest Service and BLM lands in the 80’s and 90’s attention moved away from the Parks due to limited resources. However, today, the Parks face many threats and it is crucial that we take the lead in ensuring that these crown jewels enjoy the permanent protection that most Americans assume they already have.

Roads, Boundaries and Impacts

The Roads, Boundaries and Impacts Survey is conducted by trained field staff, paid contractors, and dedicated volunteers. As the title implies, the purpose of this type of survey is to document the roads and various human impacts that affect and define the boundaries of potential wilderness areas. This includes, but is not limited to, roads, stock developments, pipelines, power lines, mining scars, etc. Before on-the-ground inventory documentation occurs, every potential inventory unit is analyzed with the most current aerial photos and/or other available remote imagery. Apparent impacts not shown on existing maps of the potential unit are transferred to US Geological Survey 7.5 minute maps for on-the-ground documentation. On-the-ground inventory involves photo-documenting every road and human impact within an inventory unit that shows up on existing maps and remote imagery. During this portion of the inventory any routes and other impacts found that did not appear on any of the maps or remote imagery are also documented with great care. For every route a photo is taken that shows the beginning of the route, the end of the route, average conditions, and purpose (if any) for the route. Supplemented by field notes, this process records the condition, level of maintenance and use, and functionality of the human impacts within the area. All fieldwork is reviewed for accuracy and completeness.

Wilderness Characteristics and Values

The Wilderness Characteristics and Values Survey is led by professional staff and conducted by trained volunteers. This type of survey documents the characteristics and values found in the interior of potential wilderness areas. Those who conduct this type of survey are encouraged to take pictures of characteristics such as the area’s naturalness, flora and fauna, geological formations, and scenic views of and from the area. Values assessed include the opportunity for solitude and various types of unconfined and primitive recreation such as hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, sightseeing, etc. Other features of cultural, archeological, ecological, scientific or educational value are also documented. To complement photo documentation, volunteers are encouraged to take notes about the subject matter of their photos, and to write about their experiences, impressions of the area and its suitability for wilderness designation.

While the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance primarily focuses on local issues, we have been engaged with the Arctic Refuge campaign for several years. Many people believe that the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is the last great wilderness in America and that if we lose this area we will ultimately lose a piece of ourselves. That is why our organization has written articles, given presentations and continues to talk to our members about this wild landscape.

In 2005, long-time Arctic activist, Ken Madsen presented “Malkom the Birder Boy” at NMWA’s Public Lands Rally. Since then he has become a friend of NMWA, presenting at the 2006 Wilderness Conference, and has worked with activists in NM to help create more awareness for the Refuge throughout New Mexico.

In June of 2007 he and his family will begin a 10,000 mile fossil-fuel-free bicycling journey from Whitehorse, Yukon to Florida. Their purpose is to promote the idea of reducing one’s use of fossil fuels in the pursuit of wild birds. Traveling from the Arctic Refuge to six continents and all fifty states, migratory birds give us a personal connection and a reason to be invested in habitat conservation efforts in North and Central America.

Funding their trip out of their own pockets, they are hoping to raise money for preservation and restoration projects. NMWA is helping them to do this by fielding donations from their sponsorship web page and sending them on to the projects they have chosen. You can make a secure online donation here: https://secure.ga1.org/05/BirdYear

To learn more about Ken Madsen, Wendy and Malkolm Boothroyd and their Bird Year project, go to: www.BirdYear.com

Timeline:

As of this date, the fate of the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is uncertain. The Bush administration’s current budget proposal includes provisions to allow drilling and has little chance of getting through Congress.

On January 4 , 2007 Congressman Ed Markey (D-Mass) and Congressman Jim Ramstad (R-Minn) introduced HR 39, the Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act. Passage of this bill would designate the 1.5 million acre Coastal Plain as wilderness. So far 128 members have signed on to sponsor the bill, including Rep. Tom Udall. They should all be commended. Recent contacts with Rep. Heather Wilson’s office indicate she has no interest in supporting the bill, citing “state sovereignty.”

On February 7 the bill was referred to the House Natural Resources subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands. It is in the first stage of the legislative process where the bill may undergo significant changes in markup sessions.

We are hopeful a similar bill will be introduced in the Senate. Senator Jeff Bingaman, as chairman of the Energy & Natural Resources committee, is in a unique position to help move such legislation forward. Recent contacts with his office indicate he might be supportive of such a bill, but it would depend on how it is written.

Legislation in support of wilderness designation would most likely be vetoed by President Bush. We are hoping to gain momentum in the House and Senate with an optimistic look at a more receptive administration in the future.