Idaho Wilderness Hearings

Statement:

IDAHO Dr. Terrell. I'm from Boundary County. I moved here 4 years ago from North Carolina. In that entire region, there are two small designated wilderness areas: Shining Rock and Linville Gorge. Those areas require a permit system for access. The reason is that they are being loved to death. People from all over the eastern United States come to see them. The demand for access to wilderness is so large and steadily increasing that the Forest Service was forced to limit access. Permits are only necessary because of lack of available wilderness in that part of the country. In those areas the trails are ditches, the camping areas are bare dirt, the rivers are filthy from upstream housing and agriculture. In short, the wilderness character is being trampled to death. The only solution, I believe, is to have more wilderness all across the country to spread out the impact. Long Canyon is uniquely different from the Selkirk Crest and is the only area of its kind in Boundary County. I use it. I hike, hunt, and fish there regularly. It is similar to Linville Gorge in that it also has a remnant of the old-growth forest that used to cover much of the United States. Multiple use is a flawed concept in that it looks good on paper, but in fact, multiple use is a very poor substitute for wilderness. What it really means is that the logging industry gets their first choice, and we, the public, get leftovers: tree stumps and brush. I, for one, have seen plenty of tree stumps in Boundary County. If you log Long Canyon, you'll get a 2-year lease on life for the logging industry, then you'll be right back where you started. If the industry isn't viable without Long Canyon then it won't be viable after Long Canyon is used up. Thank you.