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February Policy Update – Exciting Times for Public Lands

Making tracks in Yellowstone National Park, photo by Hilary Eisen

Although it’s been pretty cold across the Snowbelt lately, things have been hot on the public lands front! Especially in D.C., where Congress just passed the biggest public lands bill in a decade. On Tuesday, February 26, the House passed the public lands package (S47, the Natural Resources Management Act) by a vote of 363-62. Two weeks earlier the Senate passed the same bill 92-8. Now the bill heads to the President’s desk, where we expect he will sign it into law.

The public lands package permanently authorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fund, protects backcountry ski terrain in the Methow Headwaters (WA) and near Yellowstone National Park (in MT) from industrial-scale mining, and designates 1.3 million acres of new Wilderness, among many other public land protections. This bill was the culmination of years of hard work by the outdoor recreation and conservation community and we’re super excited that it has passed. You can send a message thanking Congress for passing the public lands package using this form. We’d love to see this Congress continue to support – and fund – public lands, so it’s important to thank them for the good work they’ve done so far.

Outside the Beltway, the big thing we’ve been working on this month has been to review the Tahoe National Forest’s draft winter travel plan. The Tahoe published a final EIS and draft Record of Decision on February 8. Overall they’ve done a pretty good job – despite a highly contentious planning process, the Tahoe has produced a draft plan that clearly aims to meet the interests of all stakeholders while also protecting natural resources and complying with the Over-Snow Vehicle Rule. The draft plan protects most of the priority ski zones that we’ve advocated for and their analysis is the most robust that we’ve seen to date (they considered a wide range of alternatives, including a couple that were very conservation-focused). However, we’d still like to see some protection for non-motorized use in a couple of high-profile spots on the forest, we’re not thrilled that they’re proposing to allow OSV use adjacent to the Pacific Crest Trail (a Congressionally designated non-motorized trail), and we’re disappointed that they’ve reversed course on using minimum snow depth as a management tool to protect soils and vegetation from over-snow vehicle impacts. Objections are due March 22.

In other news, this week marks the first full week in over 14 years where Mark Menlove has not been at the helm of Winter Wildlands Alliance. We’re excited to see what he accomplishes in his new role as Idaho State Director for The Nature Conservancy, and we’re actively searching for a new Executive Director. The application deadline for this position closed on March 6, 2019.

That’s all for now – February is a short month so it’s a short policy update!

Hilary Eisen, Policy Director

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January 2019 Policy Update: Re-starting Land Management

Snowmobilers, backcountry skiers lobby U.S. Forest Service to adopt shared-use plan for the Lookout Pass backcountry area (Spokesman-Review)

The longest-ever government shutdown ended late last week. During the shutdown all of the land management and travel planning that we work on was on hold, as most Forest Service and Park Service employees were furloughed. Despite the shutdown, however, the Department of Interior continued to move ahead with changing how they respond to Freedom of Information Act Requests (comments due January 28) and permitting drilling in the Arctic Refuge (comments due February 11). We are working with our Outdoor Alliance partners to comment on both of these DOI actions.

Last week we published a blog post detailing some of the impacts that the government shutdown is having on public lands and winter recreation. We expect that as the government re-opens all of the planning processes that are on-going will pick up where they left off. Time-sensitive scientific research, however, may have to be postponed until next year or cancelled altogether. For example, NASA announced last week that it would be postponing its SnowEx campaign until 2020. Not only is this a lost opportunity for SnowSchool students who would have assisted with data collection this winter, it is a setback to gathering valuable information about Western snowpack.

We also expect that things won’t be back to normal right away even with the government re-opened. For example, it will take time to re-open roads and trailheads that have not been plowed for weeks (like in Rainer National Park). The shutdown will have longer-term implications as well. This is the time of year when the Forest Service and other agencies hire their summer crews and apply for grants to fund recreation programs. Not being able to work for most of January has put the Forest Service, Park Service, and BLM behind in their summer hiring and it’s possible that not all offices will be fully staffed for summer. Likewise, if grant deadlines passed during the shutdown or agency staff don’t have time to get a grant in between when they’re back at work and the grant deadline, they won’t have the funding needed run recreation programs.

Although planning was on hold for most of January, comment deadlines weren’t delayed because of the shutdown. Comments on the Plumas National Forest’s winter travel plan draft EIS were due on January 24th and we worked with our California partners to make sure Plumas skiers got their comments in. David travelled to Quincy, CA for a couple of great outreach events put on by Friends of Plumas Wilderness (including screenings of Jeremy Jones’ Ode to Muir and the Backcountry Film Festival) to help rally skiers to comment on the Plumas travel plan.

Also this month, I travelled to Lookout Pass on the Montana/Idaho border to participate in a collaborative meeting with the Stevens Peak Backcountry Coalition (which includes several groups, such as the Spokane Mountaineers and Montana Backcountry Alliance), snowmobile clubs from the Montana and Idaho sides of Lookout Pass, and the Lookout Pass ski area. At stake is a high-value winter recreation zone and backcountry skiers, snowmobilers, and the ski resort are working together to find agreement on how to share and manage the area.

Finally, we were excited to see our newest grassroots group, Teton Backcountry Alliance host a fun and well-attended event aimed at raising awareness around access to Teton Pass. Teton Pass is an extremely popular backcountry ski zone, but access is not guaranteed if skier activity threatens the safety of people driving on the road.

This week the entire Winter Wildlands Alliance crew is headed to the winter Outdoor Retailer show. If you’re in Denver, come find us at the show or join us for the Night of Stoke, featuring an exclusive lineup of films from the Backcountry Film Festival (and beyond) and presentations from featured outdoor adventurers, athletes, and activists about how to turn passion into action.

 

 

 

 

Hilary Eisen, Policy Director

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Uphill Rising

Skiers enjoying the new uphill policy at Mammoth Mountain.

Backcountry skiing is booming, and while most backcountry skiers are in it for powder turns and backcountry adventure, many of us have found another use for our skins and free-pivot bindings: skinning uphill at the local resort. Uphill travel at ski resorts is growing in popularity as more people add backcountry ski gear to their winter quiver. It’s a great way to get a workout, either in conjunction with a day or riding the lifts, or to start or cap off a day of other activities. Added benefits include not having to break your own trail and not having to worry as much about avalanche danger! And as more uphill skiers express interest in hitting the groomers, resorts are responding by creating or modifying guidelines to allow uphill travel to occur safely in conjunction with other resort activities.

What you need to know about uphill travel at ski resorts

Uphill travel is not allowed at every resort. Of the 400+ ski resorts currently operating in the US, we are aware of 90 that have official uphill travel policies. Policies vary, but many share a few common elements:

  • Uphill pass required
  • Uphill travel restricted to designated routes and uphill skiers must descend on designated routes
  • Uphill travel prohibited or restricted during resort operating hours
  • Uphill travel subject to change (open or not) based on conditions – it is the uphill skier’s responsibility to ensure the resort is open for uphill travel
  • Uphill travelers must abide by the skier’s responsibility code and the resort is not responsible/liable for their safety
  • No dogs

Uphill skiers should wear bright, reflective, clothing and stay well out of the way of machinery and other ski area equipment. Before you go, check the resort’s website to confirm that uphill travel is allowed and review their policy.

Where is Uphilling Allowed?

Our friends at Backcountry Magazine have compiled an Uphill Travel Guide, listing published uphill travel policies as of January 1, 2018. Other resorts like Mammoth Mountain have established uphill policies more recently. Check with your resort today!

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December Policy Update: What the New Congress Will Mean for Backcountry Skiers

Senators Daines (R-MT) and Gardner (R-CO) champion #bipartisan effort to reauthorize LWCF, America’s favorite conversation program.

Winter Wildlands Alliance policy staff has been in Washington D.C. this past week for our annual Outdoor Alliance policy summit, as well as to check in with Federal land management agencies and meet with members of Congress. Congress is still limping through its lame-duck session, and it’s our last chance to make a case for legislation we’d like to see included in a possible last-ditch, year-end public lands package, and to get some important bills passed into law before having to start over with the new Congress next year.

With Democrats in control of the House and its committees, we expect to see House Republicans putting more pressure on the agencies as a way of achieving their policy priorities outside of the legislative process.

As many bad bills as there are in Congress these days (and there are plenty!), there are some good ones too. One of our top priorities has been to bring back the Land and Water Conservation Fund (#SaveLWCF). Congress let this program expire in September despite the fact that it’s America’s most popular conservation program, with broad bi-partisan support, and a critical source of funding for public land acquisition and recreation infrastructure. We’re still getting mixed beta from Senate offices and members of Congress about whether it’ll get re-authorized — either permanently or temporarily — and at what level, but we’re staying optimistic in these final days of the session.

Which brings me to the primary topic of this policy update – what will the midterm election results and a new Congress in 2019 mean for backcountry skiers who love public lands?

As you will have heard by now, Democrats won enough House races to take back control of the House of Representatives next year, while Republicans maintained control of the Senate. For the past two years, all three branches of government have been controlled by one party, but starting in January we’ll return to a divided government. In the House, the Democrats will control the agenda, forcing both the White House and Republican-controlled Senate to negotiate with them. Given our partisan politics, we expect there will be a lot of vilifying going on too, with each party continuing to focus on blaming the other for the nation’s woes. So, what do we think this means for public lands?

  • Legislation: We expect the scariest legislative threats – such as large-scale public lands transfers and attempts to gut environmental laws – to fade. These attacks on public lands and the public process have been driven by House Republicans and now they don’t have the votes to move these extreme proposals. At the same time, with a hyper-partisan divided Congress, we’re not sure that Congress will get much done in the legislative arena at all.
  • Investigations: With Democrats taking control of the House, we’re expecting a lot of investigations into the conduct and decision-making of Trump Administration officials. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is likely to be on the hot seat as Legislators look into his decisions to reduce Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, among other controversial actions of the past two years.
  • Confirmations:The Republicans have strengthened their majority in the Senate, which will likely make it easier for the President to get the 60 votes needed to confirm his nominees, from the Courts to the Cabinet. Many federal appointments are currently vacant and the rumor mill is churning with word that Secretary Zinke is on his way out. Although Zinke has been a huge disappointment for public lands enthusiasts, we’re not optimistic about who his replacement might be. In fact, there are some frightening nominees waiting in the wings to take positions across the federal public lands agencies. It’s no secret that the Trump Administration and Senate Republicans are highly motivated to change the federal judiciary by confirming as many conservative judges as possible. This will have a delayed, but major, effect on environmental and administrative law, with conservative judges likely giving less deference to land management agencies in how they interpret the laws that govern public lands management.
  • Pressure on the Agencies: It’s not unusual to see members of Congress putting pressure on the Forest Service or other land management agencies. Most recently, we saw members of the Congressional Western Caucus weighing in on winter travel planning in California and asking the Forest Service to re-evaluate any potential restrictions on snowmobile use and even to reconsider the planning process itself. With Democrats in control of the House and its committees, we expect to see House Republicans putting more pressure on the agencies as a way of achieving their policy priorities outside of the legislative process.

We’ll see how these predictions play out in the coming year. For the next week or so, we’ll remain focused on the lame duck session, with fingers crossed that we can get a few things across the finish line in the next couple of weeks!

 

 

 

 

Hilary Eisen, Policy Director

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October Policy Update

October has been a busy month here at Winter Wildlands Alliance! Last week, we wrapped up a meeting in Boise with other conservation partners, representatives from snowmobiling organizations, Forest Service staff, state biologists, and Fish and Wildlife Services biologists. We came together to talk about how winter recreation impacts wolverines, and to start working toward science-based recommendations that we can all agree on for managing winter recreation in wolverine habitat. It was just the first meeting of many, but we’re optimistic and excited to engage with such a broad range of partners in a collaborative manner.

Meanwhile, we’re nearing the end of the public comment period for the Chugach Forest Plan. The Chugach, America’s northernmost national forest, is soliciting public feedback on the draft EIS they have developed. The Chugach features spectacular coastal mountains with some of the best and wildest backcountry terrain in the world. In this planning process we’re advocating for Alternative D. Comment now (Public comment period ends November 1)!

Also in Alaska, we’re continuing the engage in the Wrangell-St Elias National Park backcountry management plan. Right now the Park Service is looking for comments from those who have personal connections to Wrangell-St Elias. If you’ve been lucky enough to visit Wrangell-St Elias, please consider telling the Park Service about your experience. Comments are due October 31.

We directed a lot of attention to Alaska in October but Utah is on our radar as well. Alaska has been working on getting an exemption to the Roadless Rule in order to open up untouched coastal rainforests on the Tongass to commercial logging (that comment period ended October 15). Now Utah is drafting a petition, asking the Department of Agriculture and U.S. Forest Service for an exemption to the federal Rule and permission to write a state-specific Rule, just like Alaska. We’re working with our Utah-based grassroots groups to stand up for roadless lands in Utah. Stay tuned to our channels in case the opportunity arises for people outside of Utah to weigh in!

We’re also still working to save LWCF. Congress let the Land and Water Conservation Fund expire on September 30. There are two bills that would permanently reauthorize and fully fund LWCF – Senate bill S. 569 and House bill H.R. 6759. Please contact your Senators and Representative and ask them to both support these bills and push for a vote before the end of the year.

And hot off the press: the Plumas National Forest just published a draft EIS for its winter travel plan. Public comments are due December 10. Stay tuned for our outreach on that!

Finally, don’t forget to vote (and vote for public lands!) on November 6!

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