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Another chance for the Badlands?

One senator held up the bill until time ran out, but its backers express confidence for 2009

By Keith Chu / The Bulletin

WASHINGTON — A procedural tactic was used to torpedo a bill to create a Badlands Wilderness area east of Bend this year, but U.S. Senate leaders expect the bill to pass early next year, according to Sen. Ron Wyden.

In a telephone interview last week, Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said Democratic leaders assured him they hoped to act quickly on it in the new Congress.

“They understand there was really an overwhelming demand,” for the package, which included more than 150 separate bills, said Wyden, who is chairman of the Energy Committee’s Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee. “I’m very hopeful we’ll be able to move it early.”

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., managed to block a huge package of public lands bills this year by using a Senate procedure known as a hold, which lets a single senator stall legislation. There are several ways to defeat the tactic, but they’re time-consuming or require 60 votes. The hold held up when Democrats couldn’t muster the votes they needed to overcome Coburn’s maneuver.

The package included a handful of other Oregon wilderness bills, including Mount Hood Wilderness, the Copper Salmon Wilderness on the southern Oregon Coast and the Spring Basin Wilderness near the John Day River, south of Clarno.

The Oregon Natural Desert Association has lobbied for years to set aside about 30,000 acres of High Desert. Wyden first proposed the Badlands Wilderness legislation in the spring.

The area provides habitat for yellow-bellied marmots, bobcat, mule deer, elk and pronghorn, according to the Bureau of Land Management.

New mining, pipelines, roads and other developments are banned in wilderness areas, but hiking, hunting and existing grazing allotments are allowed under federal law.

ONDA Executive Director Brent Fenty said staffers for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Energy Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., told his group they plan to act quickly on the bill.

“I think most people feel confident there were enough votes to defeat the hold … on the bill even in the lame duck session, but it would have taken too much time,” Fenty said.

Beyond protecting open spaces and wildlife, a wilderness area near Bend would bolster local businesses, Wyden said. In troubled economic times, “Everything is going to be seen through that prism,” he said.

Silver Moon Brewing owner Tyler Reichert said it’s no secret that Central Oregon’s many outdoor recreation options draw visitors to Bend. A new wilderness area about 20 miles east of town would add to that draw.

“If you can add more recreational opportunities that are easy to get to, I think you add to the attraction of the city,” Reichert said.

Reichert saw the impact of recreation on his own business this winter, when Mt. Bachelor didn’t open until the middle of this month. Now that the resort is open, business has picked up, Reichert said.

“The resort getting open so late, that was definitely a trying period for restaurants,” Reichert said.

U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, R-Hood River, had not taken a position on the Badlands proposal, when asked about Wyden’s bill this fall. His spokesman did not return a call seeking comment on Monday.

In addition to wilderness legislation, Wyden said he has already begun discussing forest management and potential political appointees with future officials in President-elect Barack Obama’s administration. In a phone conversation just before Christmas, Tom Vilsack, Obama’s nominee for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was generally supportive of Wyden’s priorities, he said, although he made no firm commitments.

“He was very gracious,” Wyden said.

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