Daines, Gianforte introduce Wilderness Study Area bills

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines spoke on the floor of the U.S. Senate on March 6 in support of Montana Rep. Greg Gianforte’s introduction of the Protect Public Use of Public Lands Act in the House.

The bill protects public access and use of Montana’s public lands by implementing the U.S. Forest Service’s recommendation to release 449,500 acres of Wilderness Study Areas in Montana. Daines had introduced the same bill to the Senate in early December, 2017.

Gianforte is also requesting the release of an additional 240,000 acres on 24 other Wilderness Study Areas. He introduced the two bills on March 1. In addition to “Protect Public Use of Public Lands Act,” he introduced the “Unlocking Public Lands Act.” Both bills implement recommendations by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service of acres not suitable for wilderness designation.

On his website, Gianforte states that nearly 700,000 acres of Montana’s public lands have been in limbo for as long as 40 years, stuck in a perpetual study status although the study was actually completed years ago.

At a March 17 visit to Mineral County, Daines talked about this bill and other legislation he has been involved with.

“A big issue I’ve been hearing in Montana is federal overreach and the fact that we can’t manage our forests anymore. It would be nice if we had healthier forests, and outdoor recreation opportunities,” Daines said.

However, not everyone is happy with the introduction of the two WSA bills. Wilderness advocates believe they open a line of attack on public protections that reach beyond Montana. The U.S. Forest Service manages 32 wilderness study areas in 10 states, totaling over a million acres. They have been managed as wilderness areas despite never receiving permanent protection.

In an interview with High Country News last month, the Montana state director of The Wilderness Society, Scott Brennan, said, “the more attacks like this are successful, the more people who would sell public land or push for maximum development will feel empowered.”

The five Montana wilderness study areas targeted are the Middle Fork Judith in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest; Big Snowies south of Lewistown; a portion of the Blue Joint area south of Hamilton; Sapphire near the Anaconda Pintler range; and West Pioneer on the Beaverhead Deerlodge National Forest.

Passage of the Protect Public Use of Public Lands Act does not automatically authorize uses across these study areas. Rather it opens up the planning process for public comment and protections including the Roadless Rule, the Endangered Special Act and existing forest and travel management plans remain intact according to the legislation.

“Those areas are not suitable wilderness area. There’s no doubt we need some wilderness areas but we have to have a balance and allow the public full use and full access to lands not deemed suitable for wilderness,” Daines said during a Feb. 21 visit to Mineral County.

Meanwhile, Senator Jon Tester introduced the Blackfoot-Clearwater Stewardship Act in the Senate which would add 80,000 acres of wilderness, establish recreational areas for off-road and snowmobilers, and put funds toward forest restoration projects to help the timber industry. However, Daines has refused to support it as a standalone bill. According to reports, Daines said his support for Testers bill is contingent on the Blackfoot-Clearwater folks supporting his bill. Both WSA bills are currently in committee and have not been passed.