Defeat anti-wilderness amendments proposed to weaken the Protect America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act, HR 803

 

Your help is needed immediately to help defeat many anti-wilderness amendments that have been proposed to weaken the Protect America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act, HR 803.

The bill, a package consisting of new wilderness designations in California, Colorado, and Washington, passed the House in the previous Congress, but did not pass the Senate. Some of the bills that make up the package have wilderness-damaging provisions and we intend to try to address those in the Senate. The House Rules Committee has bundled together the large package again this year, and on Feb. 23 will deal with dozens of amendments, many of which would weaken wilderness protections in a variety of ways.

Please contact the Rules Committee before 2:00 pm EST on Tuesday, Feb. 23, to ask that the Rules Committee defeat all the bad anti-wilderness amendments that are proposed to HR 803.

Here are some of the bad, anti-wilderness amendments:

Moore #5: Declares that no wilderness or potential wilderness designation under this Act shall be effective in any county where the county has not formally approved such designation.

Moore #6: States that no land included in this Act may be designated as wilderness if (1) it is currently classified as being at high or extreme risk of wildfire; (2) its forests have an active beetle infestation; (3) it is forested by non-native or invasive species; (4) it has a forest stand density that results in excessive competition mortality of native tree species; or (5) it has a forest stand quality that does not comply with a preexisting forest plan.

Moore #7: States that nothing in this Act shall restrict, preclude, or prohibit any outdoor recreational activity that previously occurred on lands and waters being designated as wilderness or potential wilderness under this Act.

Stauber #10: Requires approval of local counties before mineral withdrawal can take place.

Stauber #11: States that this Act shall not apply to any lands or waters in Colorado's Third and Fifth Congressional Districts or any lands, waters, or minerals in Arizona's Fourth Congressional District.

Stauber #12: States that this Act shall not apply to any lands or waters in Colorado's Third Congressional District.

Boebert #17: Releases all Wilderness Study Areas in Colorado that are not included in this Act.

Boebert #20: Prohibits any wilderness designations under Title 1 on federal lands burned by a wildfire of 10,000 acres or more in the last 10 years.

Rosendale #36: States that no land included in this Act may be designated as wilderness or potential wilderness in a wildland-urban interface that is currently classified as high or extreme risk of wildfire.

Lamborn #43: States that the wilderness and potential wilderness designations in this Act shall not go into effect unless the study under subsection (a) finds that wilderness designations in the Western United States would not negatively impact the readiness of the Armed Forces of the United States with respect to aviation training.

Westerman #45: Allows the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior to exempt any wilderness or potential wilderness designated under this Act that does not meet the definition of wilderness under the Wilderness Act.

Westerman #46: Allows the Secretary of Agriculture of the Secretary of the Interior to exempt lands from being designated as wilderness under this Act that are at high risk of wildfire.

Boebert #56: Releases Wilderness Study Areas not designated in this bill in Arizona, California, Colorado, and Washington that were first designated for study in 1976.

Westerman #58: (Late) States that nothing in this Act shall prohibit hunters from using non-motorized carts to transport harvests and gear into any wilderness area or wilderness study areas under the Act.

Westerman #59: (Late) States that nothing in this Act shall prohibit anglers from using non-motorized carts to transport canoes, kayaks, or fishing gear into any wilderness or wilderness study area designated under the Act.