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Show Sierra Club Meeting Held In Escalante Members of the Sierra and the Wasatch Mountain Clubs met on Saturday with Escalante and Boulder representatives on the issue of the 600,000 acre Wilderness Area the clubs have proposed. Following a two day trek through Escalante River canyons, members of the Sierra Club held their quarterly meetings at Escalante. For one session they invited representatives of the Escalante Cattlemen's Association and Chamber of Commerce to present their views on the controver-sal issue. The chairman of the Wasatch Mountain Club proposed rebuilding and surfacing of existing roads - the Burr Trail road through Circle Cliffs and on to both Notam and Bullfrog and the Boulder Mountain road to connect with 'U '24 near Tor rey He said these roads would boost the tourist trade in the area and would not mar the scenery as would the Parkway. Escalante spokesmen think that the Parkway road would greatly increase the number of visitors to Escalante and other towns of the county since it would put the scenic river canyons within reasonable access to thousands of people. The main controversy was over the great extent of the proposed wilderness which would enclose almost all the winter grazing land of Escalante and Boulder cattlemen and would prohibit development of oil and minerals on the land. The Sierra Club members said they were willing that the lands be administered by the BLM as a Wilderness . . that grazing would be continued. Not permitted would be mining of oil sands and uranium, road building, and use of wheeled vehicles. Dale Marsh. Garfield County Commissioner, explained the gain to the county tax base already made by Upper Valley oil field and the importance to tli2 county and slate of development of t' c rich oil sands nntl oil wells in Circle Cliffs and of uranium deposits. Bob Sorcnson, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce, told how Escalante has receiv- ed support in the controversy not only from eleven southern Ufa organizations, but from people In northern Utah and other Western States. |