Legislation Reintroduced to Close Millions of Acres

Please click the Take Action button below to let your Member of Congress know that you oppose H.R. 980, the "Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act."  H.R. 980 would designate 23 million acres of land in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming, as Wilderness. This means each of these 23 million acres would be made permanently off-limits to motorized and mechanized recreation, including off-highway motorcycles, ATVs, 4x4s, snowmobiles and mountain bikes.

Please click to Take Action and send a letter to your Member opposing H.R. 980.

Send a letter to the following decision maker(s):
Your Representative

Below is the sample letter:

Subject: Please Oppose H.R. 980

Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

As a constituent and a member of Americans for Responsible Recreational Access I write in opposition to H.R. 980, the "Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act."

H.R. 980 would designate 23 million acres of land in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming as Wilderness. This means each of these 23 million acres would be made permanently off-limits to motorized and mechanized recreation, including off-highway motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, 4x4s, snowmobiles and mountain bikes.

The legislation would forever ban these opportunities without regard for local processes and decisions on how the land is most appropriately managed. In fact, of the 71 current cosponsors on the legislation, only 2 come from a state that would be impacted by the bill and there are no cosponsors from Idaho, Montana, Wyoming or Oregon and not one of the six Members representing the affected areas has signed onto the bill.

In addition, much of the land that would be designated as wilderness does not meet the criteria set forth in the 1964 Wilderness Act. Many of the federal lands addressed by H.R. 980 include roads, bridges, camp grounds, trails, etc. This contradicts the intent of the original Wilderness Act, which essentially defines wilderness areas as lands that show little or no signs of human involvement.

Thank you for your consideration. Please oppose H.R. 980.

Sincerely,

Scott Wallenberg