Real wilderness is possible!

So states an alert from the Western Lands Project, regarding the Congressional hearing today for the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA), a bold, multi-state proposal for wilderness and ecosystem recovery in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Oregon, and a tad bit of Washington.

Lately, wilderness bills have included all sorts of bad provisions--but NREPA, which has been around since the early 1990's (and shelved by the Republicans since 1994)is a real, old-fashioned land protection bill that simply...um...protects land.

According to WLP's alert:

NREPA will protect as wilderness nearly 7 million acres of wilderness in Montana, 9.5 million acres of wilderness in Idaho, 5 million acres of wilderness in Wyoming, 750,000 acres in eastern Oregon, and 500,000 acres in eastern Washington on YOUR PUBLIC LAND. No federal land will be put up for sale; no water pipelines will be built; no transmission corridors will be created in wilderness. There is no quid pro quo.

A hearing was held in the House today, but testimony in support of NREPA can still be sent in through October 28. See the above-linked NREPA home page for more info on how and to whom you can express your support.

-Eskarne