Idaho Wilderness Hearings

Statement:

INDUSTRIES Mr. Dunn. My name is Bruce Dunn; I represent the Idaho Stud Mill, a division of Idaho Forest Industries. Our company's oper ation in eastern Idaho is located in St. Anthony. We have approxi mately 100 employees working at the mill and approximately 200 more people working in the woods for contractors to the mill. Our concern, quite naturally, would be providing a long-term raw material base the continued operation of the mill, the jobs, and northeastern Idaho's economic stability and well being. We have been involved in the RARE II discussions since the be ginning of the process with emphasis on the Targhee National Forest. We have seen some changes in the areas that were original ly considered, such as Warm River North-South-East, which have been dropped from further consideration a candidate wilderness areas. They are now being harvested primarily because of the dead and dying lodgepole pine located on them. We feel, and most people in this part of the State also feel, that this is a very viable ap proach on these areas. These areas are now being successfully, nat urally, and artificially regenerated with trees; they are also produc ing increased summer into the wildlife, an example being that the 589 elk herd on the winter range has increased to 3,000 head. We do not have to go into a long discussion or dissertation as to the dead and dying lodgepole pine situation on the Targhee National Forest, but we should discuss, and probably will discuss, the Douglas fir situation in the forest. A recent report by the USDA Forest Service has shown a dra matic increase in the supreme budworm activity on the Targhee National Forest. The spruce budworm attacks Douglas fir, subalpine fir, and spruce, all which occur as commercial species on the Targhee. As a destructive agent, the spruce budworm is usually not too serious; however, the defoliation has been occurring in increas ing magnitude over the last 3 years. These repeated defoliations weaken the tree and provide an avenue for other insects and dis eases to attack and destroy the tree. Since the Douglas fir on the forest is also in an overmature state, and since the lodgepole pine is already in a dead and dying state, the Targhee could face serious problems in the new future on management, not only of their lodgepole pine stands but also of their Douglas fir stands. Two areas on the northeastern part of the Targhee that do have commercial Douglas fir stands that are infested are the Mount Jef ferson area and the Lionhead area. We endorse the Lionhead area for wilderness classification be cause of its unique characteristics; however, the lower portions, es pecially of the Mount Jefferson area, could be released for timber management. Another area of impact in eastern Idaho is the west slope of the Tetons. The west slop of the Tetons proposed wilderness, or the Jedidiah Smith Wilderness area, as it is being named, is in Wyoming; but the primary access to the area is out of Idaho. The area ex tends from approximately the southern boundary of Yellowstone National Park to State Highway 33, which goes from Victor, Idaho, to Jackson Hole, Wy. We are not here to talk about Wyoming's wil derness proposals or bills, but we should recognize that the use in this area does come mainly from Idaho residents and that John Sessions, State representative from Driggs, has polled his congres sional district and has determined that the large majority of people living in this area would prefer to see the west slope of the Tetons left open to multiple use. Mount Jefferson, Lionhead, Jedidiah Smith Wilderness area, along with Yellowstone National Park, and the further study areas north and south of Palisades Reservoir would encircle eastern Idaho. This would remove a large portion of eastern Idaho's land base from multiple-use management. We therefore support the Idaho Forest Industry Council Wilder ness Act. Thank you very much.