WildEarth Guardians

Monday, April 10, 2017
Conservationists Seek to Defend Recommended Wilderness and Wilderness Study Areas in ATVer and Snowmobiler Lawsuit

Coalition seeks to defend the U.S. Forest Service's decision to protect some of the wildest landscapes in the continental United States
Contact: Greg Dyson, 503-730-9242, gdyson@wildearthguardians.org

Additional Contacts:

Kit Fischer, Hellgate Hunters and Anglers (406) 541-6731, info@hellgatehuntersandanglers.org
Dan Harper, Missoula Back Country Horsemen, (406) 544-7296, dharper300@gmail.com
Kathy Hundley, Selway-Pintler Wilderness Back Country Horsemen, (406) 363.8230,      montanakath@yahoo.com
Zack Porter, Montana Wilderness Association, (406) 823-0695, zporter@wildmontana.org
Larry Campbell, Friends of the Bitterroot, (406) 821-3809 / (406) 821-3110,         lcampbell@bitterroot.net
Hilary Eisen, Winter Wildlands Alliance, (208) 629-1986, heisen@winterwildlands.org

Missoula, MT – A broad coalition of hunters, anglers, horse packers, hikers, wildlife watchers, and conservationists represented by Earthjustice today requested to intervene in a lawsuit filed by off-road vehicle users, snowmobilers, and mountain bikers.  The coalition seeks to defend the U.S. Forest Service’s decision to protect some of the wildest landscapes in the continental United States, located in the Bitterroot National Forest.

At issue is the Forest Service’s 2016 Bitterroot National Forest Travel Plan, which protected the wild character of the Blue Joint Wilderness Study Area, Sapphire Wilderness Study Area, and Selway-Bitterroot Recommended Wilderness Area from a rising tide of motorized and mechanized backcountry use.  Snowmobile, off-road vehicle, and mountain bike groups filed a lawsuit last December that asks a federal judge to overturn the Travel Plan and open the protected areas to motor vehicles and mountain bikes.

“Sportsmen understand the value of intact, secure wildlife habitat, and know that without these areas, our game populations would suffer,” said Kit Fischer of Hellgate Hunters and Anglers.  “We believe the Forest Service’s Travel Plan is the right step to ensure our big game and other wildlife populations remain healthy for future generations.”

“The protection of habitat and wildlife is crucial to the wilderness experience,” said Kathy Hundley, State Director of Selway-Pintler Wilderness Back Country Horsemen.  “Our mountain trails were carved by humans, horses, mules, and wildlife over the last several hundred years.  Riding these trails and experiencing the hush of the backcountry and wilderness brings a traditional sense and a spiritual rebuilding that is important to me and to other riders in this fast-paced, loud, and high-tech world we live in today.  The Travel Plan will preserve this experience for future generations.”

“The Travel Plan implements the legal requirements for recreational use in the Bitterroot’s wild lands,” said Dan Harper, a Back Country Horsemen of Missoula board member.  “Importantly, the Travel Plan provides for safe, three-miles-per-hour trail use by hikers and horsemen.”

The recommended wilderness areas and wilderness study areas in the Bitterroot National Forest include landscapes prized for outstanding backcountry hiking, skiing, hunting, fishing, and camping. These areas are home to elk, mountain goats, Canada lynx, wolverines, and a wide variety of other wildlife. The Sapphire Wilderness Study Area in particular protects the Sapphire Range biological corridor, which provides an important north-south wildlife migration pathway. The other lands at issue are contiguous with the larger Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness areas, which together form one of the last great intact temperate ecosystems in the world.

“The Bitterroot’s wilderness study areas were first protected by the Montana Wilderness Study Act of 1977, which was introduced forty years ago by Montana Senator and Stevensville native Lee Metcalf,” said Zack Porter of Montana Wilderness Association. “The Travel Plan lives up to Senator Metcalf’s legacy by safeguarding clean water, wildlife habitat, and solitude in these magnificent parts of our state.”

“Friends of the Bitterroot has worked hard for over 20 years through field monitoring and litigation to ensure enforcement of the Montana Wilderness Study Act,” said Larry Campbell of Friends of the Bitterroot.  “We are pleased that the Bitterroot Travel Plan finally resolved to stop the ever-increasing recreational vehicle damage to our shared public wildland and wildlife legacy.  We join this case to defend the Travel Plan decision.”

Earthjustice is representing Friends of the Bitterroot, Hellgate Hunters and Anglers, Missoula Back Country Horsemen, Montana Wilderness Association, Selway-Pintler Wilderness Back Country Horsemen, WildEarth Guardians, and Winter Wildlands Alliance.  The groups seek to defend the Forest Service’s decision to protect these pristine areas from motorized and mechanized access.

“We are standing up to keep these wilderness-quality lands wild,” said Earthjustice attorney Tim Preso, who is representing the conservation groups.  “The breadth of the conservation coalition that seeks to defend these lands demonstrates how important protection of these landscapes is to Montanans from all walks of life.”

“The Forest Service often has a tough row to hoe when it comes to multiple use management, but the Bitterroot’s balanced approach allows both motorized and non-motorized recreationists to enjoy their National Forest,” said Hilary Eisen of Winter Wildlands Alliance.  “The Bitterroot Travel Plan allows for over-snow vehicle use on approximately one third of the forest while also protecting winter wildlands and opportunities for quiet winter recreation.”

“Our public lands are facing an avalanche of threats right now, said Greg Dyson of WildEarth Guardians.  “Overturning the Travel Plan would cause particularly severe harm because the Plan protects some of the Bitterroot Valley’s most pristine areas from uses that are simply incompatible with the needs of wildlife.”