Suit Seeks Limits On Hells Canyon Use

The Hells Canyon Preservation Council has opened a new front in the battle for control of the Snake River’s most famous gorge by filing a lawsuit in federal court.

The council and a group of rafting outfitters filed suit to force the U.S. Forest Service to implement its Snake River management plan in the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. The plan is now on hold because of appeals.

The plan has its problems, said Ric Bailey, the council’s executive director at Joseph, Ore., but it’s better than none.

The main goal of the court action filed Wednesday, Bailey said, is to get the agency to impose limits on jetboat use on the Snake River in Hells Canyon.

“There’s no sense of going without managed use for another season. We do not agree that the plan is legally or ethically responsible, but nonetheless its better than no plan,” Bailey said.

Sandra Mitchell, executive director of the Boise-based Hells Canyon Alliance, condemned the lawsuit as another attempt by the council to promote conflict in the canyon.