Just a heads up for anyone interested. Randy Frederickson MOU conservation committee
> >This statute could have terrible effects on the entire western United >States, including public lands, private lands, and native lands. > >Take a minute to send a message to your member of Congress (email address >for action alert shown below). > >Thanks! > >Scott Hed >Plains, Prairie & Northland Organizer >Alaska Coalition >300 N. Dakota Ave., # 218A >Sioux Falls, SD 57104 >(605) 336-6738 office >(605) 351-1646 cell >sc...@alaskacoalition.org >www.alaskacoalition.org > >> STOP THE PUBLIC LANDS GIVEAWAY! >> Obscure 19th Century rule could wreak havoc on public lands from Alaska t= o >> Utah >> >> Alaska=EDs cherished wild lands are under assault as never before. In >addition >> to legislation in the U.S. Congress to increase logging in the Tongass an= d >> Chugach national forests and to allow oil drilling in the Arctic National >> Wildlife Refuge, powerful political appointees are also issuing orders to >> overturn decades of federal public lands policy. >> >> Earlier this year, the Bush administration resurrected a civil-war era >> statute referred to as Revised Statute 2477 (R.S.2477) to allow special >> interests and local jurisdictions to convert thousands of miles of >primitive >> rights-of-ways that cross federal land =F3 including old mining and >livestock >> trails, footpaths, streambeds, and even the section lines from maps =F1 i= nto >> damaging paved roads and highways, recklessly endangering the very places >> Americans care most about. >> >> This amounts to a massive giveaway of OUR public lands. This little know= n >> loophole leaves no place off-limits; private interests could plow roads >> through any number of National Parks and Monuments, Wildlife Refuges, >> National Forests, even Wilderness Areas, without environmental review or >> meaningful public input. In some cases, even PRIVATE land could have >RS2477 >> claims filed against them by other private interests. >> >> Alaskan public lands are far from alone on this issue; indeed public land= s >> in many other states could suffer as much or more from the potential >effects >> of RS2477. Natural treasures at risk from these =ECroads to ruin=EE incl= ude >> Utah's Canyonlands and Zion National Parks and the Grand-Staircase >Escalante >> National Monument, migratory waterfowl habitat in Colorado=EDs Browns Par= k >> National Wildlife Refuge, some of the southwest=EDs most spectacular scen= ery >> in Dinosaur National Monument, and California=EDs Mojave National Preserv= e. >> >> In Alaska, routes within Denali National Park, Wrangell-St. Elias Nationa= l >> Park, and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, some of the nation=EDs >most >> pristine wildlands, have been claimed by the State of Alaska as erstwhile >> roads. In Denali National Park alone, the state has identified 24 routes >as >> purported RS 2477 claims. Most of these are in the northern quarter of th= e >> park and cover over 300 miles of territory. In addition, there are 23 >> RS2477 proposed claims in the Tongass National Forest, already heavily hi= t >> by logging roads. The Chugach National Forest, 98% of which has no roads >and >> is currently the wildest of all our national forests, has 24 RS2477 claim= s >> in it. Even in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which has no roads a= t >> all anywhere in it, the State is pursuing seven different RS2477 right of >> way claims. >> >> We need your help today to stop greedy special interests from robbing >future >> generations of their birthright of public lands, parks, and wilderness. >As >> soon as the week of July 13, the U.S. House of Representatives could be >> debating a bill that funds the Department of Interior. Representative >Mark >> Udall (D-CO) will offer an amendment to prevent the Department of Interio= r >> from allowing irresponsible road construction from RS2477 claims across >our >> national parks and monuments, wildlife refuges, wilderness areas, nationa= l >> forests and other public lands. This amendment will most likely be going >> before the House of Representatives sometime during the week of July 13, >so >> Congress needs to hear from us pronto! >> >> >> >> WHAT YOU CAN DO: >> >> Please e-mail your Representative TODAY and urge your Representative to >> support the Udall Amendment to the Interior Appropriations bill to preven= t >> the give-away of our parks and public lands. Click >> >http://capwiz.com/awc/issues/alert/?alertid=3D2778501 > > to send a free email to >> your member. Tell them why protecting our public lands is important to >you. >> >> Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be put through >to >> the office of your member! Tell them to please support the Udall >Amendment >> to the Interior Appropriations bill to stop the RS2477 give-away of our >> public lands. Leave your name and address and ask for a response in >> writing. Say thanks! >> >> Forward this alert to as many of your friends, family and coworkers, and >> anyone else who would care about our public lands that you can think of. >> >> Write a letter to your paper about the issue and tell them that Congress >> needs to put the brakes on RS2477 before we irrevocably damage some of ou= r >> most pristine public lands. Go to http://www.opedletters.com/ to find >your >> local paper. >> >> >> >> >> Erik DuMont >> National Field Director >> Alaska Wilderness League >> 122 C Street, NW, Suite 240 >> Washington, DC 20001 >> P: 202-544-5205 >> F: 202-544-5197 >> www.alaskawild.org >> >> >> >> >> ---------------------------- >> You are currently subscribed to ak_field as: sc...@alaskacoalition.org >> To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-ak_field-79...@lists.b-team.or= g >