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Show i . Moss Introduces Amendments To Canyonlands Park Proposal I Senator Frank E. Moss said Wednesday that he has introduced intro-duced an amended Canyonlands National Park bill incorporating the recommendations of the Secretary Sec-retary of the Interior on access roads and other amendments. An amending mining provision will allow prospecting, location, entry, and production, in addition addi-tion to the maintaining existing rights as does the present bill. A new section will permit hunting in the park under a wildlife conservation plan to be worked out by the Utah State Department of Fish and Game and the National Park Service. Senator Moss pointed out that present grazing permits will continue con-tinue to be recognized. He said that the changes are being made after study and conferences con-ferences on th bill, and after an evaluation of the report of the Secretary of the Interior. He said: "The mining language exactly duplicates that in the bill establishing estab-lishing the Great Basin National Park in Nevada which the Sen ate recently passed. This wording word-ing was worked out in the Senate Sen-ate Interior Committee and was approved by that group. It permits per-mits substantial application of the general mining laws, with the exception that the Secretary of the Interior may promulgate rules and regulations to protect the scenic and recreation uses. "There is precedent for the National Park Service to build access roads outside the park, and for hunting within national parks. "The Service has already built roads to Grand Canyon National Park and some others which are in remote areas. The Secretary's report points out that this is the most remote area in the United States, and I believe that having the Park Service instead of the state built the access roads to the Canyonlands is a sound approach to the problem of park development. develop-ment. "While the general rules has been that hunting in national (Continued on page 4) Moss Introduces Amendments To Canyonlcmds Park Proposal (Continued from page 1) parks is prohibited, a tremendous tremen-dous increase in wildlife in some parks has forced consideration of a new policy. "This last season, the Director of the National Park Service approved the opening of Grand Teton National Park to limited elk hunting. "There is considerable controversy contro-versy about killing animals in our parks. No heedless slaughter is intended or will be permitted under my bill. "The decline of the natural predators, such as the wolf and the mountain lion, which have previously kept down the herds of game animals, has led to an expansion in some areas which increase without control, such as the deer of Kaibab Plateau, has brought about the acute suffering suf-fering and starvation of the animals. "The bill provides that hunting hunt-ing shall be carried out according to the terms of a permanent wildlife conservation plan, and when it is required to prevent game animals from injuring the soil, the plant life, or wild or domestic animals which depend on the park. The conservation plan shall be jointly approved by the Governor of Utah and the Secretary of the Interior. Any hunters entering the park will be licensed by the state of Utah and deputized as rangers by the Secretary. the forage supply can't support. Obviously, we must have game management. As the Park Service Serv-ice has acknowledged, in some areas the best way to do this is by controlled public harvesting of the game. "Our experience in the areas where game has been allowed to Senator Moss said that public hearings will be held in Utah this spring, probably in April, and that any further perfecting amendments may be made following fol-lowing those hearings and during consideration of the bill by the Senate Interior Committee. |