Senate bill could see swaths of public land sold off

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The weather’s provided us with less than favorable fishing conditions the last couple of weeks. So far this year, I fished in rain gear more than the last 10 years combined. Probably more fun to talk about fishing than politics, but . . . something came up that probably should get addressed.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the proposed sale of public lands in Utah and Nevada around a half million acres. Outdoor enthusiast across this country responded by sending emails, messages, and phone calls to their representatives and the congressmen pulled it out of the budget bill.

Our voices were heard, right? Except the bill moved to the Senate and the whole plan for public lands came out. Senator Mike Lee (R) from Utah inserted a proposal into the Senate’s version of the “Great Big Beautiful Bill” that forces the sale of 3 million acres of Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service land in 12 western states including Alaska and Colorado. He did this under the guise of land for “affordable housing” and deficit reduction. And he said that with a deadpan look that puts Rodney Dangerfield to shame.

This land is your land and my land, from California to the New York Island. California is listed for the proposed forced sell off of public lands too. Might have to scratch the line about the redwood forest out of Woody Guthrie’s folk song. Instead insert “this land was made for large campaign contributors.”

The Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Wisconsin encompasses about 1.5 million acres for a size comparison. The county forest acres of Clark, Taylor, and Marathon counties add up to 242,500 acres. Three million acres should open just about anyone’s eyes a bit.

Lee’s proposal circumvents the bipartisan Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act, which allocates monies from the sale of federal lands to conservation and public access projects. Lee’s proposal directs the money into the US Treasury.

A sale of public land of this magnitude is not just unprecedented in any of our lifetimes. It’s simply, unprecedented, period. Sometimes it makes sense to sell or trade a parcel of public land. Conservationists doubt 3 million acres makes sense.

Conservation groups responded. Backwoods Hunters and Anglers seems to be leading the charge, with their conservation partners ramping up. Outdoor media outlets responded quickly too. Outdoor Life released an online article about the proposal the same day it was released.

The draft of the bill was released on June 11 and the first call for action arrived about 7:30 that evening. They are calling on hunters, anglers, hikers, kayakers, mountain bikers, equestrians, etc. to contact their representatives and speak up.

Not everyone agrees with public land. Most deer and turkeys in Wisconsin get hunted on private land. Those pursuits lend themselves well to private land, especially small parcels. But pursuits like fishing involve public waters and public access. In Western states, much of the fishing is fly-fishing rivers. Access to those waters doesn’t work the same as it does in Wisconsin. Bear hunting, elk hunting, antelope hunting, wild grouse hunting, mountain lion hunting, etc. just doesn’t parlay into private lands pursuits. Same for mountain biking, whitewater kayaking, horseback trail riding, and offroad motor sports.

Ranchers rent BLM lands to sustain their cattle operations. There’s been a lot of stories the last couple of weeks about the price of beef rising from a low supply of beef cattle. What happens to the price of steak when less BLM land exists to raise cattle on? What happens to the ranchers?

We spoke loud and clear when this showed up in the House of Representatives. I feel that should have been enough. The issue should have been settled, we the people spoke. A certain high level of arrogance exists to respond with a colossal size plan in direct opposition to the people’s wishes.

The part that gets me the most is that we have to spend our time on this again instead of fishing. Fish don’t catch themselves. And given the weather conditions the last couple of weeks when I could fish, I’m not happy. And I have a long memory on how my particular esteemed elected officials voted. And that’s a lot of “ands.”

If you agree this sets a bad precedence, contact your senators. If you are a member of a national conservation organization, they will make it easy. If not, try: https://www.senate.gov/senators/senatorscontact. htm The rain gear just finished dripping dry and like I said earlier – fish don’t catch themselves.

CHUCK BY

K OLAR THROUGH A

LOCAL OUTDOORSMAN