Expand Rogue protection

A fitting way for Congress to observe next year's 40th anniversary of the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act would be to add 70 miles of tributary streams to the protections already in place for the lower Rogue River.

A fitting way for Congress to observe next year's 40th anniversary of the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act would be to add 70 miles of tributary streams to the protections already in place for the lower Rogue River.

The Rogue was one of the original eight rivers designated as national treasures when Congress passed the federal law in 1968. And rightly so: Anyone who has ever boated, fished or hiked along this magnificent river has been touched by its free-flowing magic - the solitude, the roiling white water, the epic salmon and steelhead runs, the undulating canyons and forests, and an Edenic wealth of flora and fauna unmatched anywhere in the Pacific Northwest.

The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act protects a corridor that extends roughly a quarter mile along each side of the Rogue. But the tributaries - the (take a deep breath) Kelsey, Whisky, Big Windy, Howard, Mule, Grave, Anna, Missouri, Jenny, Rum, Wildcat, Montgomery, Quartz, Hewitt and Dulog creeks - and the roadless areas that they run through lack significant federal protections.

A coalition of conservation groups, including American Rivers and Oregon Wild, is justifiably concerned about the Bureau of Land Management's plans to log hundreds of acres in the Zane Grey Roadless Area through the Upper East Kelsey Creek and Whisky Creek timber sales. It's unclear how these projects would affect the main Rogue, but there's no doubt that a steady stream of similar timber sales eventually will take a toll on this world-class river, silting salmon streams and stripping forests that are integral to the Rogue watershed.

The coalition's proposal would add 60,000 acres to the existing Wild Rogue Wilderness. Any effect on the timber industry would be offset by the resulting growth in tourism, which already contributes more than $13 million to the region's economy. Protection of the tributaries would enhance the river's salmon and steelhead runs, which are essential to Oregon's recreational and commercial fishing industries.

Oregon's congressional delegation - starting with Sen. Ron Wyden, who heads a subcommittee on forests and public lands - should embrace this proposal and start building support for an enhanced Wild and Scenic Rogue River.