FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Rep. DeFazio and Sen. Wyden Searching for “Treasure” With New Public Lands Bill

Legislation taps Devil’s Staircase, Wild Rogue, Oregon Caves for protection

Legislation would protect coast range wilderness, wild and scenic rivers, and expand Oregon Caves monument. More work needed to make up Oregon's Wilderness deficit.

Harnessing momentum from the recent passage of legislation protecting Mount Hood and other areas across Oregon, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Springfield) today introduced legislation to protect the Devil’s Staircase Wilderness west of Eugene, expand the Oregon Caves National Monument, and designate 143 miles of Rogue River tributaries as Wild & Scenic Rivers. Missing from the legislation is full Wilderness protection for the Wild Rogue area, a tremendously popular measure backed by dozens of outdoor recreation businesses that depend on Rogue River tourism and recreation.

“It’s encouraging to see Representative DeFazio and Senator Wyden paying attention to Oregon’s natural legacy even if the scale could be larger,” said Erik Fernandez with the conservation group Oregon Wild. Currently only 4% of Oregon is protected as Wilderness, while neighbors Idaho (8%), Washington (11%), and California (15%) have protected far more. “This legislation will bring the percent of Oregon that is protected from 4% to 4.1%, assuming you round up.”

The only area in the legislation receiving the gold standard for public lands protection, Wilderness, is the Devil’s Staircase area, located west of Eugene in the Coast Range. The 29,600-acre proposal features rugged mountains blanketed with some of the last old-growth remaining in the Coast Range, providing prime habitat for dozens of unique species. Locals have been fighting to protect this magical place for decades, often venturing to the remote cascading waterfall that gives the area its name.

The Wild & Scenic proposal for the Wild Rogue area would protect 143 miles of tributary streams that provide the backbone of one of the healthiest salmon and steelhead runs in the state. Included in the original bundle of Oregon public lands legislation signed by President Obama in March of this year, the Wild Rogue provisions were eventually dropped owing to lack of support from former US Senator Gordon Smith. The new Wild & Scenic designations included in the “Treasures 2” bill are a good start on protecting the Rogue, but Wilderness protection is needed to fully prevent destructive logging, mining, and other development. For more information see www.savethewildrogue.com

“Wilderness is the strongest form of protection we can give public lands, and anyone who has ever visited the Wild Rogue knows that it deserves nothing less. Oregon Wild, together with the rafters, hikers, anglers, and outdoor businesses who love the Rogue, will work to encourage congress to protect the Rogue as Wilderness,” commented Steve Pedery, Conservation Director with Oregon Wild.

Not to be forgotten is the smallest unit in the National Park Service system—the Oregon Caves National Monument. Currently celebrating its 100th anniversary of protection, Oregon Caves has been the focus of an expansion campaign for over 30 years. The proposal introduced by Rep. DeFazio would increase the Monument’s size by over 4,000 acres from its current 480 acres and also designate the nation’s first underground Wild & Scenic River—the Styx River.

Also absent from this legislation is protection for the key salmon runs in the Chetco River currently threatened by abusive suction dredge mining. Last year, the “Oregon Treasures” legislation included protection for this scenic stretch in the southern Oregon coast.

“While this legislation is a step in the right direction, we have a very long way to go to correct Oregon’s deficit of protected Wilderness,” added Fernandez.

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