Delegation should support Vermonters wanting to testify in DC on "Wilderness" designation. 
By Senator Mark Shepard, R-Bennington

On Thursday, Governor Jim Douglas wrote to Republican House leaders expressing concern that the New England Wilderness Act, which would designate 47,700 acres of the Green Mountain National Forest as wilderness, "goes well beyond the (U.S. Forest Service forest management) plan, and what many Vermonters believe is appropriate in terms of additional wilderness." 

I would like to second the Governor’s objection, and thank him for his courage in standing up on this critical issue. 

In 2004 I worked with several Vermonters to draft a resolution for the Vermont legislature, laying out the benefits of a managed forest that allowed for public access, as opposed to forever locking up these lands with the wilderness designation.  This resolution called for "no more wilderness," and it passed the Vermont House – the body closest to the people – 86 to 56 with bi-partisan support. 

My hope was that this would send a message to all Vermonters, helping to educate folks as to what the negative impact of more "wilderness" really means, and also to send a message to our Washington delegation expressing exactly how much opposition there is in Vermont to expanding wilderness. Clearly, and unfortunately, as far as our congressional delegation goes the resolution seems to have fallen on deaf ears. 

Fortunately for us, Governor Douglas, who spends considerably more time in the company of every day Vermonters, better understands the hardship additional wilderness will create for many of our friends and neighbors.  Just as he has been doing throughout this process, Governor Douglas is working to ensure the voices of the Vermonters who will be most negatively affected by this legislation will have an opportunity to be heard in Washington.  The governor is doing his job.

In fact, it is Leahy, Jeffords and Sanders whom you should chastise.  It was their job to make sure these Vermonters had an opportunity to testify in Washington. In this, they failed.  Instead the bill passed the Senate with no recorded vote and headed to the House with the hope it would pass before we up here in Vermont knew what was happening.  The governor consistently asked that Vermonters be heard on this matter, and thanks to him – and no thanks to Leahy, Jeffords, and Sanders – I have hope they will be.

There are many reasons to not expand "wilderness." A big one is that Vermont’s economy is dependent on tourism, yet "U.S.D.A. surveys indicate that of the 3.5 million annual recreational site visits to the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests, only about 1.4 percent occur within designated federal wilderness boundaries, and these visits to federal wilderness average only 13.7 hours in duration." 

In other words, lands designated as wilderness do not attract visitors and there are reasons why: The exclusion of motorized vehicles makes the lands off limits to anyone who is unable to hike long distances.  This would include disabled, handicapped, and physically impaired people as well as most of our senior population and families with young children. We have laws that make sure these folks have fair and equal access to public restrooms, public schools, public buildings, public transportation etc. Why when they reach public lands should they suddenly become second-class citizens? This is not a fair or equitable policy.

It’s not only people who are driven out by "wilderness" policies, but many animal species are forced out, too. Stagnant forests do not produce enough food for them to survive. Deer and bear are forced out of the wilderness areas and into our gardens and garbage cans. 

But, my final point is in regard to the public input.  Sure hearings were held -- but having a hearing and being heard are two different things.  The hearing I attended in Bennington had far more opposition to wilderness than support and it is my understanding that this was the situation at the other meetings held around the state. 

Of the 10,000 comments the Forest Service received in support of more wilderness, I understand most were just a copy of one of 17 form letters, and many were from out of state, and/or from people living in one of Americas large cities who think the land will not be protected from growth if it is not designated as wilderness.  Yet the fact is, being a national forest already protects the entire forest.  These simplistic pro-wilderness comments are in great contrast to the pain-staking efforts many Vermonters put in to studying the plans, attending meetings and then submitting well thought out comments, either directly or through membership in a Vermont-based organization.

Governor Douglas deserves Vermonters’ thanks and support for taking on our Washington politicians over this issue. And, I would urge our media to study the public comments before judging the actions of our governor, who was working to ensure that Vermonters are heard in the process.

-- Mark Shepard is a State Senator from Bennington County

Related: Contact info for the Governor: 800-649-6825 or 828-3333. 

Related: The Underhanded Wilderness Grab of 2006, By John McClaughry