Contributed by: Gil Riddell, AOC Policy Manager

May 23, 2016

Owyhee Canyonlands fills hearing room. Interim Legislative Days began its three-day May run Monday with an informational hearing held by the House Committee on Rural Communities, Land Use, and Water on the subject of greater federal protections for the Owyhee Canyonlands of Malheur County. If you showed up on time to hearing room C in the Capitol, you were too late for a seat. The considerable overflow was herded down the hall to hearing room F to watch proceedings on close-circuit television.

The proponents of greater federal protections spoke first, describing the area as the last great unprotected expanse of the American West, unspoiled but unprotected. They cited threats of oil and gas development to the remote area, and its prime habitat for over 200 species and cultural sites.

AOC had earlier endorsed the Malheur County Court’s resolution opposing heightened protections that included details of negative economic impacts and wildfire threats. The resolution also referred to a diverse local group of stakeholder agreeing to an alternative Wilderness area of over 45,000 acres in the southern part of the county. AOC added information about the American County Platform of the National Association of Counties’ support for locally developed and supported special use designations.

Veteran Malheur County Sheriff Brian Wolfe spoke for his county, their citizens, and AOC. He asked that there not be a proposal that divides citizens, particularly after the recent wildlife refuge takeover in Harney County.

State Representative Cliff Bentz testified that far from being unprotected, the area could list 11 different existing regulatory protections on this 2,579,032 acres, including Wilderness Study Areas, BLM Sage Grouse Range Management Plan, the Department of Interior mining withdrawal, and Wild & Scenic Rivers.

Congressman Greg Walden weighed in by letter with the warning of large wildfires and the top-down nature of National Monument designations.

The committee is not expected to recommend any action.