Wild Olympics Plan to Protect Washington's Peninsula Passes House: Trump Admin.Threatens Veto
The Trump administration is threatening to veto legislation, passed Wednesday in the House, that would protect an additional 126,544 acres on Washington's Olympic Peninsula as wilderness, and designate parts of 19 rivers and tributaries under the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
The Protecting America's Wilderness Act covers 1.37 million acres in Washington, California and Colorado, as well as additional protections in Southern California's San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains, wild area adjoining Los Angeles and its surrounding population centers.
The "Wild Olympics" proposal was crafted by U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash., who argued in a House floor speech that it is "a clear win-win" for the Olympic Peninsula communities he represents. He noted the economics of Washington's outdoor recreation economy, pumps $22 billion into Washington's economy and sustains 200,000 jobs in the Evergreen State.
"That's why it makes sense to protect these places," said Kilmer.
But Rep. Doug Lambro, R-Colorado, read a veto threat from the Trump administration. The administration claimed designation of new wilderness in the three states will impose "unnecessary and harmful restrictions" and "greatly reduce opportunities for multiple use."
The House vote, 231-183, was largely along party lines, and demonstrated Trump's increasing domination of the Republican Party, even in such "green" states as Washington.
In years past, our Republicans in the "other" Washington championed wilderness designations. Rep. Tom Pelly, R-Wash., introduced legislation to create a North Cascades National Park. Then-Gov. Dan Evans championed the Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area, and persuaded President Gerald Ford to sign the legislation even as the U.S. Department of Agriculture clamored for a veto.
As a U.S. Senator, Evans helped craft the 1984 Washington Wilderness bill, which protected more than a million acres. Evans and U.S. Rep. Sid Morrison, R-Wash., were instrumental in creating the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area, along with Oregon's two Republican senators at the time, Mark Hatfield and Bob Packwood.
None of that was witnessed Wednesday in the House. All three Republican members of Congress from Washington -- U.S. Reps. Jaime Herrera Beutler, Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse -- voted against the Protecting America's Wilderness Act. Herrera Beutler represents Southwest Washington.
The House debate on Wednesday harkened back 40-50 years to days when wild claims were made about efforts to protect wild places. The wilderness bill was described as a "massive federal land grab" by Rep. Tom McClintock, R-California, even though the protected lands are already federal lands. McClintock warned of "draconian restrictions" on use.
"This puts critical military readiness at risk," argued Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, citing no evidence.
The American Forest Resources Council put out a release critical of Wild Olympics, saying the wilderness designations will impose "costly new procedural requirements" on staff of the Olympic National Forest. The donut shaped national forest surrounds the north, east and south sides of Olympic National Park.
Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona, who chairs the House Natural Resources Committee, described protecting wild places as "one of the most important actions Congress can take in this climate crisis." Of the Trump administration, Grijalva added: "Extraction and profits are their only objectives for public lands."
President Trump has already acted unilaterally to cut 80 percent of land out of Bears Ears National Monument, created under President Obama, and open the land to drilling and mining. Outdoors groups, conservationists and a big company in outdoor gear -- Patagonia -- are challenging the action in court.
Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., carried an amendment that requires the Government Accounting Office to study how preserving wilderness lands can help reduce flood risk in downstream residential area.
The Protecting America's Wilderness Act moves to the Senate. Republican detractors predicted on Wednesday that it will die there.
By: Joel Connelly
Source: Seattle Pi