Utah Roadless Rulings Prompt New Lawsuit

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WASHINGTON, DC, April 27, 2004 (ENS) - "Conservationists sued the federal government last week for not releasing documents concerning the process for resolving claims to disputed dirt tracks across Utah and the rest of the West. The dispute centers on the use of a repealed 1866 law - known as RS2477 - to establish rights of way across federal lands managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

In April 2003 Interior Secretary Gale Norton and then Utah Governor Michael Leavitt brokered a controversial settlement that codified an interpretation of the repealed 19th century mining law, which was intended to grant the right to construct and use highways across public lands that were not otherwise reserved or protected for other public use.

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Critics fear the potential impacts of turning over rough trails to the state as highways include: destruction of existing wilderness areas, disqualification of unprotected areas as wilderness, damage to wildlife habitat, destruction of riparian areas, harm to watersheds important for drinking water, and the elimination of beloved hunting and hiking opportunities. "Interior has established a pattern of withholding information from the public about activities that will directly impact public lands," said Leslie Jones of The Wilderness Society. "Rather than try to resolve this issue in an open, commonsense manner, Interior has chosen a path choked with secrecy and confrontation."

SUWA and The Wilderness Society filed their lawsuit after waiting more than six months for the Interior Department and the Bureau of Land Management to provide information concerning the Leavitt-Norton settlement."

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http://www.forests.org/articles/reader.asp?linkid=31247