| March 5, 2008
TAKE ACTION! Governor Manchin proposes changes to wilderness bill
In the last week of January, the Wild Monongahela Act was introduced by all five members of West Virginia’s Congressional Delegation. This historic piece of legislation was something that the West Virginia Wilderness Coalition has been working towards since its formation in 2002. The bill seeks to designate over 47,000 acres on the Monongahela National Forest as Wilderness areas, protecting them from logging, energy development and road building while keeping them just as they are for hunting, hiking, fishing, camping and numerous other activities. The bill would expand the Dolly Sods, Cranberry and Otter Creek Wilderness areas and also designate the Cheat Mountain, Spice Run, Big Draft and Roaring Plains West areas as new wilderness areas. Governor Joe Manchin recently proposed changes to the legislation which would remove the Spice Run and Cheat Mountain areas from the Wild Mon Act while adding Roaring Plains North and East as well as part of the Seneca Creek area. Depending on where boundaries are drawn, these changes would likely result in slightly more acreage being designated overall. While we applaud the support for the protection of several special places that Governor Manchin has publicly demonstrated, the West Virginia Wilderness Coalition continues to work with decision makers and stakeholders to ensure that as many special places as possible are included in the legislation. Now more than ever, your input is needed to ensure permanent protection for special areas on the Mon. Call or email your House of Representatives member to thank them for introducing this historic legislation and to express your support for wilderness designation for these special wild places. You should also call or email both Senators with the same message. Wilderness safeguards the many natural characteristics in these special areas, so whether the pristine trout streams in Seneca Creek and East Fork of Greenbrier are valuable to you, or you simply cherish the wild, rugged character of places like Spice Run, Roaring Plains and Cheat Mountain, Congress needs to hear from you as the push for a Wild Mon continues. In your call or email:
Also, please put in a quick call or email to Governor Manchin’s office letting him know you support all the areas being considered for Wilderness, especially Seneca Creek, and that you hope he will also. Governor Joe Manchin: 1-888-438-2731
[email protected]
The Honorable Shelley Moore Capito
The Honorable John D. Rockefeller IV Areas being considered in Congressman Rahall’s District -3rd
Roaring Plains North, East and West Areas being considered in Congressman Mollohan’s District - 1st
To see these areas on a map
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Laura Foreman Award for Grassroots Activism presented to Wilderness Coalition's Matt Keller
Each year, the West Virginia Environmental Council makes its annual award announcements at E-day in Charleston. There are several awards given each year, and after five years organizing for Wilderness in West Virginia, Matt Keller has been distinguished with the Laura Foreman Grassroots Activist Award for 2008. This award honors the work of someone who has excelled in grassroots organizing and is named in honor and in memory of Laura Foreman, long-time OVEC organizer who's passion for the people and places of West Virginia led her to tirelessly work to effectively organize, motivate and encourage citizens to stand up for their communities and special places. Laura died suddenly and unexpectedly in December of 2001. This award is offered to someone who embodies the spirit of and passion for community organizing as Laura did. Matt Keller is such a person and someone we should all be proud to honor in such a way. Matt began working to protect Wilderness in West Virginia in 2003. After five years, his work has begun to pay off as the Wild Monongahela Act was introduced in Congress in January 2008. Matt has successfully pulled together a broad and diverse coalition of individuals, organizations and businesses to speak with a unified voice in asking our congressional delegation to protect more of our cherished Monongahela National Forest. As the legislation is currently written it will protect over 47,000 acres, but Governor Manchin and the WV Division of Natural Resources would like to see the acreage increased. A testament to the organizing work of Matt and the thousands of West Virginians who have worked for many years to get to this point, the Wild Monongahela Act is truly an historic occasion in West Virginia and with its imminent passage, we will have added acreage to the National Wilderness Preservation System in West Virginia for the first time in 25 years. Congratulations to Matt and best wishes for quick passage of the Wild Mon Act! Keeping the Wild in Wonderful West Virginia. ____________________ |
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Mon Wilderness Legislation Moves Forward Wild Mon Act hailed at D.C. Hearings, concern expressed for omitted areas Federal legislation to protect the Monongahela National Forest recently passed another significant milestone and took one step closer to becoming a reality. Leaders representing the state’s community of wilderness supporters converged on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. to demonstrate broad-based citizen support for additional wilderness protection for some of the state’s last wild places.
In the House of Representatives Natural Resources subcommittee on Parks Forest’s and Public Lands hearing on February 26, Committee members heard testimony from witnesses hailing the Wild Monongahela Act, historic legislation sponsored by all five members of West Virginia’s Congressional Delegation. Testimony was given by the U.S. Forest Service as well as from citizens representing labor, sporting, business and religious organizations. Raised in the hearing were issues ranging from sustainable growth for local economies to improving water quality and wildlife habitat for enhanced hunting and fishing opportunities. “An intact and undisturbed forest is one of the best management tools for protecting Brook Trout,” Bob Bittner, Jr., of the Mountaineer Chapter of Trout Unlimited said in his testimony. “The re-establishment of native species is a primary goal in wilderness.”
Testimony from the U.S. Forest Service lauded the Bill. “We strongly support the spirit of this legislation,” said Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief for the National Forest System, “and we confirm that all seven areas proposed for wilderness designation meet the criteria for wilderness.” Slated to protect just over 47,000 acres, Holtrop said the Bill represents a “special kind of wilderness” worthy of permanent protection. “The wilderness areas described in this bill are special places to my city, to West Virginia and to the rest of the Nation,” said Lewisburg Mayor John Manchester, one of five witnesses representing citizen support for wilderness protections on the Mon. “Lewisburg is not alone in local government support for additional wilderness areas,” he said, referring to the municipal and county resolutions in favor of wilderness from locales across the state. Although the hearing focused on the areas included in the Wild Monongahela Act, multiple witnesses expressed their concern for the future of critical areas left out of the introduced version of the legislation. Amendments to include Seneca Creek, Roaring Plains East and North and East Fork of Greenbrier with their important watersheds, among other unique qualities, were suggested by several witnesses.
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