This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utah's sportsmen haven't really weighed in on efforts of some in the Legislature to obtain federal lands. Groups representing sportsmen and women across the country have noticed and are voicing valid concerns for anglers, hunters and anybody who enjoys visiting Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management areas.
The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership released its first annual Top 10 Underreported Conservation Stories of the year list.
On top of the list is the effort of some western states to take over management of public lands. The Utah Legislature's effort to obtain a transfer of more than 31 million acres by 2015.
"America's public lands legacy dates back to Theodore Roosevelt and today is one of our nation's greatest assets, not a liability," Whit Fosburgh, president and CEO of the TRCP told the Tribune. "We should invest in our public lands and the recreation economy they support. Instead of harebrained schemes to sell off or industrialize our public lands, Congress should take the steps necessary to ensure that our lands are well managed and that all Americans have access to them."
The TRCP is a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit with a mission to "guarantee all Americans quality places to hunt and fish by uniting and amplifying our partners' voices to strengthen federal policy and funding".
TRCP reports that 3 out of 4 hunters depend on public lands and that more than half of the overall land base in Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Utah is under federal management. The group fears millions of acres could be closed to public access if the states take over federal lands and eventually privatize the property. Utah legislators have said that is not something they expect to happen if the transfer happens.
There is no mention on the list regarding the efforts of Utah Congressman Rob Bishop's Public Lands Initiative involving counties and other interested groups working together to "establish a framework for a better and more collaborative process that will give greater certainty to the way public lands are managed and used."
Bishops efforts have drawn the support of some recreation-based groups in Utah.
Two other national non-profit groups — Backcountry Hunters and Anglers and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation - have come out in support of leaving federal lands federal.
Do some reading and see why it is worth adding your voice to this debate.
Issues making the TRCP list - details of each available on the website - include:
1 - America's National Forests and Parks for Sale?
2 - Money Earmarked for Conservation Gets Spent Elsewhere
3 - Budgeting Restrictions for Wildfire Management Burn Up Cash
4 - World's Largest Marine Reserve Embraces Recreational Fishing
5 - Regulations for Management of 245 Million Acres of Public Land Being Rewritten for the First Time
6 - Public Denied Access to 35 Million Acres of Public Lands
7 - Gulf of Mexico Restoration Offers Once-in-a-Lifetime Conservation Opportunities
8 - Federal Red Snapper Regulations Have Anglers Seeing Red
9 - 'Not Dead Yet': Alaska's Proposed Pebble Mine Still a Threat
10 - While California Fights, Western Sportsmen and Ranchers Collaborate – and Win
Twitter: @BrettPrettyman