by John S. Adams, Great Falls Tribune Capital Bureau Chief
HELENA — A sweeping bill that would designate 23 million acres of roadless public lands in five Northern Rockies states as wilderness was reintroduced in Congress this week.
The acreage falls in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington and Oregon.
The Helena-based Alliance for the Wild Rockies has backed the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act since the measure was first introduced in 1992. The bill has been reintroduced every session since then.
“Unlike most wilderness bills, this is an ecosystem bill because it crosses state boundaries,” said Alliance director Mike Garrity. “NREPA protects entire ecosystems, critical wildlife migration corridors and provides connectivity to segmented lands inhabited by threatened and endangered species. This is science, not politics.”
Garrity said larger swaths of Northern Rockies lands need to be protected in order to sustain viable populations for species such as grizzly bears, wolves and bull trout.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., is carrying the measure and 27 other Democrats have signed on as co-sponsors.
“These lands remain in much the same condition as when Lewis and Clark explored them more than 200 years ago,” Maloney said in a statement. “And they still contain a wealth of native species and wildlife. We must do everything possible to preserve natural habitats in the Northern Rockies so these wilderness areas can be enjoyed by future generations of Americans.”
The measure has enjoyed support from many congressional Democrats over the years, but so far it has failed to muster enough votes to pass the House.
Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg has been a staunch opponent of NREPA.
“Here we go again. This bill is being pushed by the very same big city interest groups pushing for the president to designate new multi-million acre monuments in Montana,” Rehberg said in an e-mail. “They’re well funded and well organized and their goal is to lock us out of our land because they’ve so badly mismanaged their own. The last time they introduced this bill, more than 10,000 Montanans wrote into my office opposing it.”
Garrity acknowledge the measure will face a tough road in the GOP-controlled House.
“We’ve been fighting for this bill since 1992 and will continue to do so. The development pressures are not going away — and neither are we. Someday, people may well look back and say NREPA saved what is best in the Northern Rockies,” Garrity said.
