Protecting Idaho’s Public Lands
Idaho’s national forests and public lands—and the clean water flowing from them—are the foundation of Idaho’s unique way of life and Idaho’s economy. We live in Idaho for the freedom of enjoying those wild lands—and the chance to pass this heritage on to our families.
But we cannot take our public lands for granted. Droughts, fires, and floods are becoming more common. Inappropriate development, unbalanced use, and outright abuse will destroy the natural setting that makes Idaho special.
Idaho’s public lands are vast enough to support many uses long into the future, and can continue to drive economic prosperity—but only if we think ahead and work together as Idaho grows. We need to bring Idahoans together to make sure our voices are heard, and pound out practical solutions that respect all users, future generations, and the fish and wildlife that cannot speak for themselves.
Our long-term goal is that public lands provide the ecological conditions needed to sustain native biodiversity, while offering opportunities for multiple uses.
ICL works hard to keep Idaho’s public lands in public hands. We participate in collaborative projects across the state to help develop and implement policies that help restore and sustain the natural resources of Idaho’s public lands while laying the groundwork for permanent protective designations. Our focus is protecting public lands for future generations and the native plants, fish, and wildlife that depend on them.
Why Public Lands Work
The vast majority of public lands are managed for multiple uses. ICL supports these uses, but often these activities have used unsustainable practices. We take time to understand the various ways these lands are important to Idahoans, advocate for better stewardship, and help our members participate in decisions that affect them. Working together, we help keep Idaho, Idaho.
Public lands work best when the public is involved. We work to keep public lands in public hands. While Idahoans with different interests often have spirited debates about what is the best use for a particular area, the fact that these are public lands means we can be part of these debates. This means listening to others, finding common ground and collaborating or co-managing where possible, and stepping up to defend our natural heritage when necessary. When it comes to lands that are in state or private ownership, you don’t have much of a say.
Unfortunately, there are some people at local, state, and federal levels who have made it clear they do not share these values and believe that public lands should be transferred to state or private ownership. We make sure Idahoans have a voice in the management of the lands they own.
Keeping Public Lands in Public Hands
Wilderness
Idaho is known as the wilderness state. Many of our most stunning landscapes and richest habitats are designated by Congress as wilderness.
The Wilderness Act was enacted in 1964. Wilderness designation is the gold standard for preservation of America’s public lands. These special areas are managed for their wilderness character: natural, untrammeled, undeveloped, solitude, or primitive and unconfined recreation. Wilderness areas are open to hunting, fishing, hiking, berry picking, camping, horseback riding, and paddling. These areas are closed to motorized and mechanized vehicles and activities such as mining and timber harvest that would interfere with wilderness characteristics.
ICL’s history of wilderness advocacy is rich. ICL was instrumental in the establishment of the Frank Church-River of No Return, Owyhee Canyonlands, and Boulder-White Clouds wilderness areas.
Wild and Scenic Rivers
The 1968 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act was passed to preserve certain rivers that possess outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational, or other similar values in a free-flowing condition and to protect such rivers for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. Each river is carefully managed to protect and enhance the outstandingly remarkable values that caused it to be designated. These values can include scenery, recreation, fisheries, geology, among others.
The Middle Fork Clearwater, Selway, Lochsa and Middle Fork Salmon rivers were designated upon passage of the original bill. Idaho has 891 miles of Wild and Scenic Rivers, which is less than 1% of the state’s total rivers. Other iconic protected rivers include the Saint Joe, Salmon, Snake, Rapid, Jarbidge, Bruneau and Owyhee Rivers.
There are still hundreds of thousands of acres of BLM Wilderness Study Areas, Forest Service Recommended Wilderness, and thousands of miles of eligible Wild and Scenic Rivers in Idaho that are worthy of designation but are waiting to be reviewed by Congress. We work to protect these wild places and support permanent congressional designations.
Forest Planning
There are more than 20 million acres of national forest lands in Idaho. These public lands provide opportunities for recreation, habitat for fish and wildlife, and clean water. National forest lands are where you will find some of Idaho’s most precious wildlands and waterways like the Sawtooth Mountains and the Salmon River.
The National Forest Management Act requires every national forest management office to adopt a plan to spell out the management direction for each national forest and guide the conservation of natural resources. These plans are to national forests as comprehensive plans are to your cities and counties. Forest management plans are revised only once every 20 to 30 years and provide overarching guidance that all forest projects must adhere to, so they are crucial to get right. As part of the forest management plan revision process, the U.S. Forest Service evaluates potential areas for protection under both the Wilderness Act and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. These plans also include direction for fish and wildlife habitat management. ICL works with agencies and collaboratives to ensure that land management plans result in the restoration and protection of watersheds, ecosystems, and climate refugia at the landscape scale.
Mining
Idaho has a long and colorful history of mining, but too many of these mines have polluted streams and contaminated landscapes. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 40% of watersheds in the West have been contaminated by mining activity. The Idaho Conservation League works to ensure that mining activities don’t threaten human health, special places, or Idaho’s clean water. We scrutinize proposed new mines, improving those that are acceptable, and fighting those that are not in Idaho’s best interests.
Fish and Wildlife
Idaho is one of a very few states where you can still find virtually all of its native fish and wildlife species, but we cannot take them for granted. Many native species face the possibility of loss or extinction. At ICL, we work to protect healthy populations of native fish and wildlife, and recover those at risk.
