Wilderness plan fix opens park option

Sat., March 25, 2006

Associated Press The Spokesman-Review

BOISE – U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, has added a provision to his bill to create a 300,011-acre federal wilderness in central Idaho that could also boost the chances of creating a new state park in eastern Idaho.

The provision is designed to answer concerns about Simpson’s Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act, which some have criticized because it transfers 162 acres of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area to the city of Stanley in a complex plan to protect national forest and Bureau of Land Management lands as federal wilderness.

The provision would trade 630 acres of state land along the Salmon River northwest of Stanley for federal land in eastern Idaho. That would increase the size of the Sawtooth recreation area by a net 468 acres and provide state land in eastern Idaho for a park.

The recreation area includes 1,200 square miles of public and private land, with 50 peaks that top 10,000 feet and some 500 alpine lakes.

“I believe we have a win-win for the SNRA and the state and citizens of Idaho,” Simpson told the Idaho Statesman.

Simpson’s plan dovetails with Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s proposal to spend $34 million on seven state parks. Idaho lawmakers are debating the proposal that includes $4 million to buy and build a new park in eastern Idaho.

Kempthorne’s staff and the Idaho Conservation League suggested the change in Simpson’s bill.

Simpson’s staff said no specific land in eastern Idaho has been identified because the site for the park has not been chosen. Besides creating the wilderness and transferring 162 acres to Stanley, Simpson’s bill would transfer 3,000 to 3,500 acres of federal BLM rangeland to Custer County.

Environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, who oppose the bill have criticized the land transfers. But officials with the Idaho Conservation League say the new provision helps reduce those concerns.

“It’s a way to permanently protect land in the SNRA and a way to protect the quality of life in eastern Idaho,” said Rick Johnson, league executive director.

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