Tag: wilderness

  • A Maine Woods National Park?

    I helped to create RESTORE the North Woods in 1991 which put forth a proposal for a 3.2 million acre national park in the Maine Woods. I’ve been a board member and now president for a long time now. We still are advocating for a large national park in Maine and achieved the beginnings of…

  • Mythologizing the Practice of Burning by Native Americans

    Did Native American use of fire make it so that wild country never really existed? When reporting about wildfire, current stories in the media often claim that in prehistory, fire was deliberately set by tribal groups so often that big or severe wildfires hardly existed. So, if that practice is restored today, it will be…

  • “Conservation” Groups Cheer Recreation over Wilderness Protection

    The Custer Gallatin NF plan that so-called big green groups are cheering reduces wilderness protection for the Gallatin Range. The Forest plan recommended wilderness consists of high alpine terrain while promoting less protection for the best lower elevation wildlife habitat. Photo George Wuerthner  The following link to an editorial by Winter Wildlands appeared in the…

  • Custer-Gallatin National Forest Plan is a Disappointment

    Hike on the crest of the Gallatin Range looking down on the Porcupine drainage. Photo George Wuerthner  Many conservation groups are heralding the recently released Final Custer Gallatin National Forest Plan as a “win” for the environment. At least in my initial review, I am less sanguine and enthusiastic about the outcome. The CGNF proposes…

  • Problems With Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act

        Clearcuts in Swan Range near Seeley Lake, Montana. Photo George Wuerthner  Several editorials have been published widely in Montana papers and elsewhere by supporters Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act (BCSA) sponsored by Senator Tester.  Many are attacking Senator Daines for his attempt to put a poison pill in the legislation that would remove Wilderness…

  • A Response To Treuer’s Atlantic Magazine National Parks and Tribes

    Old Faithful is emblematic of Yellowstone National Park. Photo George Wuerthner A recent article Return the National Parks to the Tribes in Atlantic Magazine by David Treuer is worth a detailed review because it represents a common set of inaccurate assumptions and historical imprecision about the relationship of conservation, national parks and Native Americans. Rather…

  • Rewilding on a Global Scale: Addressing the Biodiversity Crisis

    Chapter 3: Rewilding on a Global Scale: a Crucial Element in Addressing the Biodiversity Crisis George Wuerthner 30 Rewilding on a Global Scale According to the report, the average abundance of native species has declined by 20% since 1900. Other groups have suffered significant declines, including more than 40% of amphibian species. At least 680…

  • BTNF Plans To Expand Livestock Grazing In Upper Green River Vacant Allotments.

    The Upper Green River Valley and Wind River Range from the Elk Ridge grazing complex in the Gros Ventre Range. Photo George Wuerthner.  In a breach of trust and faith, the Bridger Teton National Forest (BTNF) proposes to stock 30,577 acres with cattle in the Elk Ridge area of the Gros Ventre Range, including the…

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