In May, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the deceptively named Sportsmen’s Heritage Act.
Ironically the bill would allow industrial development, road building, and numerous other activities in designated Wilderness areas. Anybody that hunts, fishes, observes wildlife, backpacks, horsepacks, and day hikes in a wilderness area can attest to the fact that it is the best of the last. Wilderness areas support premier big game reproduction and often serve as headwaters for our clean water supplies. They contain pristine trout waters and are among the last places a backcountry sportsperson can challenge him or herself away from the intrusion of motorized vehicles. Thousands of people from around the world come to Colorado and spend tens of millions of dollars to hunt, fish, ride, camp and hike in these areas. Since its passage in 1964, the Wilderness Act and the concept of Wilderness has always enjoyed a high level of congressional and public support. It symbolizes a country that is strong enough, prosperous and noble enough to simply leave some places alone for their life support, educational, scientific, cultural, spiritual and intrinsic values.
In spite of this it appears the House of Representatives is oblivious to our true natural heritage and doesn’t believe Wilderness deserves continued protection. The bill is a rebuke not only to the sportsmen and women it claims to honor, but to all Americans and international visitors who care about maintaining some wild places and a shared natural heritage minimally impacted by human activity. Unfortunately, it’s just the latest in a series of thoughtless bills passed by the House that eviscerate environmental and natural resource protection as well as public lands conservation. Every Republican representative from the State of Colorado voted for this bill. All Democrats voted against it. Inexplicably, the cause of habitat conservation seems to have become a political litmus test when most significant conservation in the past has been bi-partisan. Why this should happen in Colorado is a mystery. Voters in Colorado repeatedly have supported more extensive conservation and quality of life efforts, not less.
Proponents of the Heritage Act argue that there isn’t enough access to public land. That is simply not true. There are approximately 400 million acres of federal land in the lower 48 and most of it is managed for multiple uses including recreation. Wilderness designations encompass just 2.4% of federal land in the lower 48 and all these areas are accessible to the public for non-motorized use.
We decided to write because like many of you, we have experienced some of our most memorable and even profound of life’s moments in wilderness. Whether packing out an elk on a solo hunt or backpacking or horsepacking with our families in some of the most beautiful country imaginable, we believe that such opportunities are worth protecting as well as the spectrum of values that designated Wilderness holds for all of us. Dismayed as we are by the votes of some, we must continue to let our representatives know how we stand on this issue. Please help us speak out.
George Wallace farms north of Fort Collins. He is professor emeritus in the Warner College of Natural Resources at Colorado State University. John Stokes lives in Fort Collins and has been involved in conservation for over 20 years. They are members of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, a grassroots hunting and fishing advocacy group.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This online-only guest commentary has not been edited. Send your commentary submissions to columns@denverpost.com.
