Idaho Wilderness Hearings

Statement:

Ms. Accamo. Senator McClure, I will use my time to speak very briefly in three areas: Economics, methods of decisionmaking, and prime areas needing wilderness protection. Ever since the late 1960's when wilderness in Idaho became a se rious issue, we have heard dire predictions about what will happen to Idaho's economy if we, quote, lock it all up. None of these gloomy forecasts have ever been borne out, and I don't believe they are accurate on this issue, either. In fact, we Idahoans should feel fortunate that tourism, a clean, uncomplicated industry requiring little regulations, has now become our second largest industry. So it certainly makes sense to save areas which would be attractive to out-of-State visitors. Second, various information made available by the media as well as mailings come directly from your office, Senator, talks about percentages of wilderness that might be added. These percentages range from 0 percent to 22 percent. If I found a diamond mine in my backyard, it would be my choice to keep 100 percent of it. I would certainly hope that final decisions on how much more wilderness we have will be made solely on the basis of the unique value of the area. But attempting to arrive at a happy medium by choosing some middle-ground percentage is not a fair way to decide a question as important as this one is. Critical areas needing serious consideration for wilderness in southern Idaho are all of the following: The Payette Crest, the Saw316 tooth completion, the Boulder- White Clouds, the Northern Lemhis, and the Palisades. Thank you.