Friday, May 9, 2014

Boulder-White Clouds: Do no harm

---

By CAMPBELL GARDETT

Dude! We’ve been discovered! Like those natives that were “found” by Columbus.
    It’s our turn! With a stroke of the president’s pen, our Boulder-White Clouds could be made a national monument. Is this our lucky day? Maybe not.
    There’s nothing else quite like the Boulder-White Clouds. Not Yosemite. Or Yellowstone. Or even great Denali.
    There’s no billboard here. No pre-digested story line. No high-toned calendar for sale.
    Just the hunters who know it. Mountain bikers who love the solitude. Nordic skiers. Fishermen. Hikers. Horse riders. Ranchers. Guides. They’ve been coexisting and working with the feds and state to use these lands in a partnership.
    The proponents call the Boulder-White Clouds “unprotected.” But think about it. This is not the 1950s. John Muir won—generations ago. Today, the BLM and the Forest Service are doing Muir’s work. Every day. Whether the land is billboarded or not.
    They say these lands need “coherent management.” But then why split up what was already won: the Sawtooth National Recreation Area—created four decades ago, and a huge success? Why re-fight the wars of 50 years ago, instead of looking at what’s here now, and using the non-dramatic options that exist for improvement?
    When pressed about how a monument would improve on present management, the proponents say BLM and Forest Service rules are sometimes violated. But how will a “Come-and-Get-It” marquee help with that? How about some real tools? Like resources for the agencies? Or fines with teeth for scofflaws who break the rules and cause damage?
    They want to “protect the land.” But what about changes that could lead ranchers to sell to developers?  Do we want well-cared-for ranches to morph into clusters of subdivisions, around a Disneyland of “wilderness?”
    The Antiquities Act process is a black box of decision-making. There are no guarantees that today’s good intentions will be honored.
    Let’s take a page from Hippocrates: “First, do no harm.”
    The Boulder-White Clouds are alive and well—and well-protected. There’s a dynamic, home-based land-management process at work here. A process where feds, state, local and private entities work out real issues. A dynamic process, not freeze-dried wisdom from the Beltway.
    What if we were to think outside the box? What if we took this unique and already-protected land and didn’t put up the marquee? Didn’t call in Madison Avenue for the packaging treatment? Let the land keep living, breathing and working, on its own terms? With home-grown solutions. And no Pew Trust films.
    What if we actually thought globally and let good-faith people act locally?
    In truth: With no imminent threat, there’s no legitimate trigger for Antiquities Act designation. And federal agencies are already managing the same lands they’d manage in a monument, with the same goals. We wouldn’t even be rearranging the deck chairs! Just re-naming the boat!
    This column comes out of a meeting in Mackay. Proponents were invited to make their case. Despite repeated questioning, they could not name any improvements they wanted over current management. Every important thing would stay the same, they said. Is it any wonder Custer County doesn’t believe them?

---

    Campbell Gardett is a former AP reporter and federal press secretary.  He and his wife now live in the Lost River Valley.

comprare viagra
viagra kaufen
comprar viagra