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Show WASATCH MOUNTAIN TIMES Southern Utah Association and Wilderness the Sierra Club decided Waldholtz Noncommital that they had the political clout to do nationally what they wanted to do, and didn’t need to be part of an effort like this,” Holbrook on Wilderness says. Shepherd Says Enid Really Wants Smaller Designation By Katharine Biele ince Wayne Owens left office, Utah’s 2nd Congressional District has been numberless on the wilderness issue. And while neither Karen Shepherd nor newly-elected Enid Waldholtz has been willing to stamp an acreage on the debate, both surely know what they want. Shepherd was a_ passionate wilderness advocate without legislation during her term. Waldholtz is as yet an unknown quantity, insisting that she needs to go through the hearing process before making up her mind. Still, no one thinks she'll hold out for a substantial wilderness. “She’s enjoyed having access to wilderness areas,” says Waldholtz’s spokeswoman Kate Watson. But that enjoyment, Shepherd counters, is limited to taking her four-wheel drive out for a ride. “She’s said it a hundred times — she wants the smallest number of (wilderness) acreage. It’s where her heart is. She’s not sensitive to the outdoors.” however, says atson, Waldholtz is not only sensitive to the outdoors, but to her constituents, as well. “She has not been specific on amounts because she’s very interested in hearing what people in her district have to say.” Waldholtz attended several meetings in her district last month, environmentalists although were unhappy at her moving one from the Salt Lake County commission cham- bers to Eastmont Middle School. They suspected that she was trying to distance herself from the urban majority. Watson says the congress- woman is well aware that her district favors wilderness, but she wants to balance urban and rural concerns. “They do not have some of the economic concerns of the people trying to make a living in rural communities,” Waldholtz said in a local newspaper report. Waldholtz also talks a lot about “legal requirements,” but has not elaborated on what she means. “I’m very open to being persuaded on each parcel,” she told one newspaper reporter, adding that if an area meets the legal definition of wilderness, it should be protected. That, interestingly, may be a problem. The 1964 Wilderness Act recognizes wilderness as “an area where the earth and its community of life are where man does not untrammeled by man, himself is a visitor and remain.” But people finding now that some lands, fied as wilderness, have because of high usage, notes Holbrook of the Coalition for Future, Project now Institute classiroads Steve Utah’s 2000. Shepherd, JFK are of teaching Politics at the in Boston, worries that the wilderness debate has been compromised by a shortened time line. The Utah delegation and Gov. Mike Leavitt have said they will hammer out a proposal by June 1. “We now have a solidly anti-environment, pro-development delegation in Utah — in both the House and the Senate,” she says. “I was the only person who stood between this and total disaster. There’s no question that whatever the governor and the delegation come up with will pass in a heartbeat.” Cc when Shepherd was in office, was at a stalemate. While Resources the House Natural Committee was ronmentalist, She preferred, instead, to try to expand the options, and became a supporter of Project 2000. For the last four years, Project 2000 conducted “If the And by wilderness Emery break and state planners. With a third-party facilitator, the project attempted to look at the broader implications of wilderness, as well as the school trust lands issue, water and buffer zones. The problem was that some key environmental groups opted out. “After the 1992 election, the powering bill, down the Miller, tends who is now take that process statewide without giving it time to develop. “The problem was that the deadlines were unrealistic,” says Shepherd. “The question is about whether the Continued on page 8 Park City Nursery’s 3rd Annual Truck Load Sale Place your orders NOW! D-Calif., under the control of Utah’s Hansen. “Tt was possible on the floor of the House to win a vote on a strong wilderness bill even though two or three members of Utah’s delegation would have opposed it,” Shepherd says. “The problem was in the Senate.” There, both Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett opposed increasing wilderness, and tradition dictated that the Senate deferred to the state’s delegates. So, knowing it would fail in the Senate, Shepherd never refiled the Owens Wilderness Bill, which sought to designate 5.7 million acres. Shepherd, who says she favored a significant amount of wilderness, avoided the numbers game on purpose. “I have numbers in my head, but as soon as you name a number of acres, you’re having = Park City Nursery Cy mi No Better Prices Anywhere! Highest Quality Plants Delivery Available who would for one thing, Grows” Ee Colorado Spruce — win 649-1363 this war,” These prices apply to Truckload Sale only. Once trees are unwrapped and inventoried they are reasonable retail. Five tree minimum per one variety required. Blue Spruce only orders add 15%. Shepherd says. “It was pretty clear to me, What a war over a number of acres. That’s why this thing got stuck and is cast as a winlose situation.” nvironmentalists have drawn a line in the sand over 5.2 million acres, while rural interests say they want only 1.3 million acres. “The issue was enti “We Know that I wasn’t will- ing to lose it.” PAGE 7 to says supportive of Project Leavitt was 2000, also criticizes him for trying to so was the subcommittee on parks and public lands. That subcommittee Jim ‘92 through process Shepherd, led by a strong envi- George in power.” the Emery Wildlands Future Project, a joint effort between the people of County environmentalists decided they had all the power and didn’t need to talk to rural Utahns, the new Congress of ‘94 decided they had all the power. Both sides said they a e going to rely on |
