House Bill Would Expand Oversight of Lands

"Hunters, miners and off-highway vehicle users could be affected by legislation that would limit access to more than 26 million acres of federal land, including Oregon's Steens Mountain area, Headwater Forest Reserve in northern California and more than 4,000 miles of national trails..."

Hunters, miners and off-highway vehicle users could be affected by legislation that would limit access to more than 26 million acres of federal land, including Oregon's Steens Mountain area, Headwater Forest Reserve in northern California and more than 4,000 miles of national trails.

The bill would grant the land additional protection from the Bureau of Land Management through its National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS), which was established in 2000 by former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt to "conserve, protect and restore nationally significant landscapes," according to its Web site. The proposed protections in the bill are similar to those offered to national parks.

However, the NLCS is not yet permanent and has limited power. The bill, which is slated for a vote before the House Natural Resources Committee, would give it official congressional recognition, ensuring its permanency and freeing it up for federal and scientific use.

The American Lands Rights Association has put up staunch resistance to this bill, claiming it will force land owners out of their property and hurt the economics of rural communities in the NLCS's jurisdiction.

"Making the NLCS permanent threatens recreation, access, grazing, mining, oil and gas and many other uses," read a press release from the ALRA. "The economic damage will spread like a cancer."

A supporter of the bill, The National Center for Conservation Science and Policy, a non-profit organization in Ashland, Ore., recently sent a letter to Congress urging members to pass the bill. The letter was signed by 30 of their scientists.

"We see a lot of wildlife and fishery value in these lands," said Richard Nauman, a conservation scientist with the NCCSP. "It will allow researchers to invest more in long term projects and conservation ... It would really help if Congress would recognize the value of these lands."

The bill is H.R. 2016 and was introduced by Reps. Mary Bono, California Republican, Rick Renzi, Arizona Republican, Raul Grijalva, Arizona Democrat, and Jim Moran, Virginia Democrat.

The Senate version of the bill, S. 1139, is sponsored by Sen. Jeff Bingaman, New Mexico Democrat.