Holy cow. I just got back from 2 days of listening sessions in Augusta, Choteau, Great Falls and Helena for the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act. We had over 400 people show up to hear what we had to say about desginating small portions of the Front as wilderness and others as a new designation called a Conservation Management Area.
Out of the 69 people who spoke, 58 were in favor. 11 opposed. I'd say that's a mandate from the people to move forward with protecting critical hunting grounds.
As for those damned greenies that support protecting the back country, here's a list of 270 outedoor companies and hunter/angler groups that do:
http://www.trcp.org/assets/pdf/American_Sportsmen_Banking_on_the_Backcountry_8_2011_Final.pdf
Against the 3 or 4 that support eliminating protection of Roadless areas, I have to wonder what the deeper issue. This isn't a liberal or conservative thing. This is an elk thing. HR 1581 eliminates the Roadless rule. It eliminates protections for WSAs. Buzz, Ben Long and the rest are right. When you look at how the BLM and FS have managed multiple use lands, and the continued assault on NEPA and the continual assault on BLM winter drilling stips, it's not too difficult to see where folks would think that this is a bill designed to reduce the number of public land hunters.
As far as designating new wilderness, etc, I'd say that it's Congress holding up the designations, and that's at the behest of several special interest groups who openly oppose any protective designations on critical wildlife habitat.
Out of the 69 people who spoke, 58 were in favor. 11 opposed. I'd say that's a mandate from the people to move forward with protecting critical hunting grounds.
As for those damned greenies that support protecting the back country, here's a list of 270 outedoor companies and hunter/angler groups that do:
http://www.trcp.org/assets/pdf/American_Sportsmen_Banking_on_the_Backcountry_8_2011_Final.pdf
Against the 3 or 4 that support eliminating protection of Roadless areas, I have to wonder what the deeper issue. This isn't a liberal or conservative thing. This is an elk thing. HR 1581 eliminates the Roadless rule. It eliminates protections for WSAs. Buzz, Ben Long and the rest are right. When you look at how the BLM and FS have managed multiple use lands, and the continued assault on NEPA and the continual assault on BLM winter drilling stips, it's not too difficult to see where folks would think that this is a bill designed to reduce the number of public land hunters.
As far as designating new wilderness, etc, I'd say that it's Congress holding up the designations, and that's at the behest of several special interest groups who openly oppose any protective designations on critical wildlife habitat.