Idaho Wilderness Hearings

Statement:

Mr. Goodwin. Senator McClure, Congressman Craig and ladies and gentlemen. The question before you is a very simple one and that question is, what amount of land in Idaho should be left unroaded and placed under wilderness protection? It is historically obvious that when something works perfectly it is better not to meddle with it. There has never been, in the history of our planet, a better example of something that works perfectly than wild lands in their original undisturbed state. Sadly, there are forces within and outside of Idaho which believe that commercial exploitation of these wild lands will make them work better. This ignores the fact that for untold centuries management poli cies have worked to enhance these lands. If private industry is now permitted to exploit them, you may be sure of two things: (a) That exploitation will irreparably degrade the wilderness to the point where future generations will have no wilderness and (b) somebody will make a hell of a lot of money. So the question really is, do we allow a few people to get rich at the cost of' losing our wild land? I don't feel that we should. Trees for the timber industry can be farmed. In the near future synthetic substitutes for products which today are mined may very well be discovered. Industry says that wilderness designation locks up economically productive lands and I must disagree. In 1981 tourism, according to the Idaho Division of Economic and Community Affairs, accounted for 320 million more dollars pumped into our economy than did mining and forest products put together. These people came to look at scenery, not mines and lumber mills. Now, I have no economic interest in this issue. I have spent all my life outdoors and I am still poor in money. But I am very, very wealthy from the beauty and grandeur of this wild Idaho. 461 There really is no question of how much roadless area should be It should all be under wilderness designation. If it is given to industry it will be to the later detriment of us all. We can never have enough wilderness. Thank you.