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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Badlands Bill Stalled: interview with Brent Fenty on KOHD
Mar 12, 2009CLICK here for the video.
A discussion about the recent failure of a bill that would've included protecting the Badlands.
OR-S. 22, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 came up just
two votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass the US House
under suspension of the rules Wednesday, with 282-144 members voting in
support of the lands bill. House leaders will now look at other options
for bringing the bill up again.
With nearly twice as many members in favor of the bill as those
against it, supporters say that it is a matter of when and how - not
"if" -- S. 22 will move forward. Containing more than 160 bills,
including measures to designate the Oregon Badlands and Spring Basin as
Wilderness, S. 22 would protect over 2 million acres of Wilderness in 9
states. Despite the disappointment of the vote, local supporters of the
Badlands and Spring Basin Wilderness expressed optimism about the
future of the bills.
"While we're disappointed that these important measures will be
delayed, we remain confident that these areas will be protected very
soon thanks to overwhelming local support," said Brent Fenty, Executive
Director of the Oregon Natural Desert Association.
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