[HummBebe]

Hinchey Introduces Bill To Protect America's Red Rock Wilderness

Bill Enjoys Broad, Bipartisan Support;
Would Safeguard 9.4 Million Acres Of Public Land In Utah

Washington, DC - In an effort to preserve 9.4 million acres of Utah's spectacular red rock country as wilderness, Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) today introduced legislation in the House that would ensure the public land remains in its natural, undeveloped state. Hinchey's bipartisan America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, which was introduced with 123 cosponsors, would protect the land from commercial development, motorized vehicles, road building, as well as oil and gas drilling. Currently, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) owns the 9.4 million acres, but the agency is not prohibited from selling part of the land for development or developing parts itself.

"This bill would protect a natural treasure by designating a portion of Utah?s spectacular red rock country as permanent wilderness," said Hinchey, who sits on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and the House Natural Resources Committee. "These 9.4 million acres largely look the way they did millions of years ago -- no roads, no buildings, and no oil rigs -- and I intend to keep them that way. With so much development and sprawl all across our country, it is important that we preserve part of our country in its natural state so that this and future generations can enjoy some of the most splendid natural beauty that our country has to offer."

The publicly owned wild places of Utah are world-renowned for their spectacular beauty, with deep, narrow red rock canyons, fantastic sandstone arches, tremendous open vistas, and wild rivers. Currently, less than one-half of one percent (0.005) of Utah?s BLM public lands are protected as wilderness. Nowhere else in the lower 48 states can such intact wilderness-quality lands be found. These areas are a haven for outdoor recreationists, backpackers, hikers, wildlife enthusiasts, and many more. The red rock area is also rich with archeological remnants of prehistoric cultures.

Hinchey's bill and the original version introduced by former Utah Congressman Wayne Owens in 1989 are based on an extensive survey conducted by volunteers from the Utah Wilderness Coalition (UWC). This public inventory, called the ?UWC Citizen?s Proposal,? found that the BLM had overlooked or ignored vast areas of wild country in the agency?s original inventory. As additional inventory work has been conducted for the Citizen?s Proposal, the America?s Red Rock Wilderness Act has been updated to reflect the latest findings. The new version of the bill proposes protections for roughly 9.4 million acres of BLM public land in Utah; this acreage adjusts for the unusual designation of a wilderness area last year, but also for the loss of some wild lands to oil and gas drilling.

The America's Red Rock Wilderness Act would ensure the 9.4 million acres in Utah remain wild in their natural state, and strictly prohibit mining, road and dam construction, off-road vehicle use, and other activities that would destroy the area's special character. Non-consumptive uses such as hunting, fishing, camping, backpacking, hiking, and horseback riding would be permitted and grazing rights existing at the time of any wilderness designation would also be unaffected.

"Given the choice of opening these precious acres of red rock for more oil and gas drilling or preserving them in their natural state for all Americans to enjoy with recreational activities, I am extremely confident that the public would overwhelmingly choose to protect the land," Hinchey said. "Production hasn't even begun on millions of beautiful acres in Utah that the federal government has leased to energy companies for oil and gas development, which is why it makes no sense to give away millions more. Energy companies are gobbling up leases in red rock country right now while they have an oil friendly administration in the White House. We're going to do everything we can to stop this free-for-all lease sale before it's too late and ensure that this beautiful land is safeguarded."
Hinchey has introduced the America's Red Rock Wilderness Act for the past 12 years. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) plans to introduce an identical version of the bill in the Senate tomorrow.

The measure is endorsed by the Sierra Club, the Wilderness Society, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance in Utah, and more than 240 local and national conservation groups with the Utah Wilderness Coalition.