Wilderness Characteristic Information
Days before Christmas, Secretary Ken Salazar released orders to secure more wilderness lands across the West through a Wild Lands Initiative.To learn more about the orders please view these whitepapers, courtesy of Public Lands Advocacy. Both Master Leasing Plans and Lands with Wilderness Characteristics are huge issues in this draft RMP.
Wild Lands Whitepaper
Master Leasing Plans White Paper
The Bighorn Basin is a great example of how detrimental Salazar’s Wilderness Characteristic Order (Secretarial Order 3310) will be to our way of lives. County Commissioners and Conservation Districts have teamed up to inventory lands that were nominated to be ‘wild’ and found oil and gas wells, roads, irrigation infrastructure, pipelines and more – showing the land is truly ‘multiple use’. In the Bighorn Basin, we value our multiple use lands. Grazing, recreation, oil and gas and mining have co-existed for years. Secretarial Order 3310 will destroy our way of life and cause our economy to plummet. Wyomingites come here to enjoy the beautiful scenery – to hunt and to fish; yet, our economy is largely based on the production of oil. Jobs are abundant in the oil and gas and mineral sectors, creating opportunities for people who love Wyoming and want to stay and raise their family here. Wyoming is blessed with great schools, safe roads, well-staffed hospitals and numerous programs to help the residents thrive. Without oil and gas and other minerals, these benefits would not be possible. Secretarial Order 3310 will devastate the state.
If you are a resident – contact your state and federal officials and tell them how problematic Secretarial Order 3310 is!
Please read this press release by Bighorn Basin County Commissioners and Conservation Districts.
Here is an image in the Bighorn Basin showing a nominated 'wilderness land'. The infrastructure is in existence for years.