FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

With Summer, Environmental Groups Turn Up Heat For Crater Lake Protections

Coalition Launches Expanded Campaign to Protect Crater Lake

Over 500,000 acres along the crest of the Cascades inside and surrounding Crater Lake National Park is worthy of Wilderness protection. Conservation coalition begins effort to secure Congressional designation.

Contact:
Dave Mathews, Environment Oregon 775-781-9690
Sean Stevens, Oregon Wild, 503-283-6343 x 211

As summer temperatures rise, winter snow melts away giving outdoor enthusiasts access to their most beloved wilderness areas in Oregon.  Today, a group of environmental organizations are turning up the heat as well, announcing the launch of an expanded campaign to permanently protect the Crater Lake Wilderness.

“Everyone loves Crater Lake but many Oregonians don’t realize that the wildlands surrounding the park are unprotected, threatened by logging and other destructive activities,” said Dave Matthews, associate with Environment Oregon. “This summer, we have launched a campaign to educate 130,000 Oregonians about the threats to Crater Lake and what they can do to help protect it.”

A coalition of environmental organizations including Oregon Wild, Environment Oregon, Umpqua Watersheds, the Crater Lake Institute, and others are pressing Congress to protect over 500,000 acres in and around Crater Lake National Park as Wilderness. A Congressionally-passed Wilderness designation is the gold standard of protection for public lands.

The proposed Crater Lake Wilderness stretches 90 miles along the crest of the southern Cascades. In addition to fulfilling a National Park Service recommendation to protect the backcountry of Crater Lake National Park the proposal would also safeguard wild gems such as Sawtooth Mountain, the headwaters of the Umpqua River, Bitterlick Creek, and Pelican Butte. 

“Crater Lake is a world class natural treasure that should be protected for future generations to experience as we do today,” said Erik Fernandez, Wilderness Coordinator with Oregon Wild. “Protecting habitat corridors like these is critical to ensuring the survival of wildlife in a changing climate.” These forests and rivers are home to Roosevelt elk, black bear, and spawning salmon

The coalition is asking Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley to introduce legislation that would officially designate Crater Lake and its surrounding environs as federal Wilderness, bestowing upon the area the strongest federal protections possible. The proposal would not affect existing access to the Park and its facilities.  Senators Wyden and Merkley – responding to a 2009 proposal to fly helicopter tours around the lake rim – have previously worked to craft legislation that would clarify the authority of the Park Service to deny aerial tours of the park.

Proposed helicopter tours are not the only threat to the cherished Crater Lake area. There are currently three logging projects proposed by the US Forest Service that threatened pristine forests adjacent to the park. Some of the logging proposed would see trees toppled right up to the edge of the Park boundary. To ensure that Crater Lake and the surrounding scenic forests are protected for future generations, a Wilderness designation is needed.

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