Voice of Business, The Chamber News, published jointly by our west-slope chambers of commerce, carried a feature in its August edition titled "Joint Chambers opposes Wilderness Bill".  This article neglects some important points and makes several claims whose relevance and factual basis are at best highly debatable.  Some of these claims are simply incorrect.  My personal opinion is that SB 2535 deserves support, not opposition.

SB 2535 is a bill "To designate certain public lands as wilderness and certain rivers as wild and scenic rivers in the State of California, to designate Salmon Restoration Areas, to establish the Sacramento River National Conservation Area and Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, and for other purposes."  It extends protection to a large number of parcels of land and rivers throughout California.  Each of these parcels is relatively small except for the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains, on the east side of Owens Valley.  A large portion of the land proposed as new wilderness consists of additions at the margins of existing wilderness areas.

For additional information, including a map of the areas in question and text of SB 2535 see the new section on my web site:  http://www.sierrafoot.org/local_miscellany/wilderness.html

The Joint Chambers neglect to note that in general the lands in question already are wilderness in fact, but they're not yet protected as such under law. It's not surprising that the Joint Chambers' arguments against SB 2535 are biased, they're presenting only their reasons for opposition.  However, some of the Joint Chambers' arguments are factually false, such as the assertion that firefighting and search and rescue are restricted in wilderness areas.

Other reasons the Joint Chambers give for opposition are highly questionable.  For example, they say that wilderness designation restricts outdoor recreation, but even the laws and policies govering wilderness management cite protection of outdoor recreation as a purpose for recognizing and managing  land as wilderness.  In the face of increasing population pressure our ability to engage in activities such as hiking, fishing, hunting, and river rafting in truly natural areas depends on protection of the land and the ecosystems that it supports..