ZionMojave Wilderness Area

What’s The US Senate Washington County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006 all about?

 

There currently is a Zion Mojave Wilderness Proposal being debated. It is called Washington County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006. It is currently being debated in both the US Senate and House of Representatives. The Wilderness Society and Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance are playing a lead in helping protect this area. Located in Washington County, UT, near Saint George, this area is predicted to grow by 5 times over in the next 45 years.

Author: Bob Therrien

http://www.adventurezonetours.com

On July 12, 2006, Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT) officially introduced his Washington County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006 (S. 3636). The next day, Congressman Jim Matheson (D-UT) introduced companion legislation in the House (H.R. 5769).
These bills could change the face of Washington County, Utah. It could protect lands, but many people also believe it will promote sprawl. Washington County, is located in the southwest corner of Utah bordering Nevada and Arizona. The area covers nearly 2,500 square miles, and has been one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. In the mid 1960s there were only about 10,000 residents; today Washington County has over 100,000 residents. More than 75 percent of the County is Federal land, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the National Park Service (NPS). Also in Washington County include lands held in trust by the Federal government for the Shivwits Indian Tribe and lands owned by the State of Utah. How those lands are managed is a critical issue to the people of Washington County; this bill addresses a wide range of land management policies.

The utility corridors in this bill also plan room for the proposed Lake Powell Pipeline that would direct water into Washington, Kane and Iron counties. The pipeline legislation was signed into law in May of 2006. In order to meet the water demands of an ever-growing population in Southern Utah, these counties are pursuing a pipeline that would run from Lake Powell to Sand Hollow Reservoir. These 158 miles of pipeline would bring 70,000 acre feet of water to Washington County, 10,000 acre feet to Kane County and 20,000 acre feet to Iron County. The pipeline would most likely cost $494 million or more in current dollars.

The Lake Powell Pipeline would allow Utah to tap into its unused portion of the Upper Colorado River water, which was defined in the 1922 Colorado River Compact. The Compact divides the river basin into two areas: the Upper Colorado (comprising Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming) and the Lower Basin (comprising Nevada, Arizona and California). Currently Utah is using 74 percent of its annual allocation of 1,369,000 acre feet.

The Washington County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006 bill would designate more than 219,000 acres as wilderness, preserve utility corridors, create an off-road trail system, develop a new conservation area, protect 170 miles of the Virgin River, and sell to the highest bidder up to 25,000 acres of public land at fair market value. As with any change, many people are concerned about the wording of the bill and the future rights for people to use the outdoor lands that they have had access to for years. Saint George has been growing, fast for the past few years and there is a concern about the developers who would buy the land up for bid. Controlling urban sprawl in this area is a concern to many. So much of Southern Utah is an adventure outdoor wilderness area, not many people want to see changes take place that would restrict their access to this ZionMojave Wilderness Area.

This is an area where the Mojave Desert intersects with the Colorado Plateau and the Great Basin. Red Mountain’s incredible sandstone formations, the Beaver Dam Mountains, Cougar Canyon, Dixie National Forest, Cottonwood Canyon, Joshua Trees and Doc’s Pass provide deer hunting, hiking, climbing, cycling, fishing, horseback riding and ATV opportunities.

Lizards, rattlesnakes, iguana, desert tortoise, deer, cougars, and bear all call this area home. Mostly to the west of Saint George, UT the Zion Mojave Wilderness would create one huge recreational adventure opportunity. With Zion National Park to the east and additional parks and BLM lands within miles. In the northeastern part of Washington County, the proposed Deep Creek and Deep Creek North wilderness areas consist of sheer canyon walls which drop to dramatic year-round rivers. There are hanging gardens with wildflowers with bald eagles and giant California condors. The steep and rugged Hurricane Cliffs form the most outstanding feature of another proposed Blackridge Wilderness. Soaring in elevation by 2,000 feet in under a mile, the area is popular for hikers, hunters and photographers.

Here are some of the sections of US Senate Bill number S. 3636
TITLE III–WILD AND SCENIC RIVER DESIGNATION

Sec. 301. Zion National Park Wild and Scenic Rivers.

TITLE IV–UTILITY CORRIDORS

Sec. 401. Utility corridors and rights-of way.

TITLE V–HIGH DESERT OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE TRAIL

Sec. 501. High Desert Off-Highway Vehicle Trail.

TITLE VI–RED CLIFFS NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA

(1) BEARTRAP CANYON- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 40 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Beartrap Canyon Wilderness’.

(2) BLACKRIDGE- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 7,145 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Blackridge Wilderness’.

(3) CANAAN MOUNTAIN- Certain Federal land in the County managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 35,344 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Canaan Mountain Wilderness’.

(4) COTTONWOOD- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 11,650 acres, as generally depicted on the Central Map, which shall be known as the `Cottonwood Wilderness’.

(5) COTTONWOOD FOREST- Certain Federal land managed by the Forest Service, comprising approximately 2,642 acres, as generally depicted on the Central Map, which shall be known as the `Cottonwood Forest Wilderness.’

(6) COUGAR CANYON- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 10,568 acres, as generally depicted on the Western Map, which shall be known as the `Cougar Canyon Wilderness.’

(7) DEEP CREEK- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 3,320 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Deep Creek Wilderness’.

(8) DEEP CREEK NORTH- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 4,264 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Deep Creek North Wilderness’.

(9) GOOSE CREEK- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 89 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Goose Creek Wilderness’.

(10) LAVERKIN CREEK- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 445 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `LaVerkin Creek Wilderness’ .

(11) RED BUTTE- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 1,124 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Red Butte Wilderness’.

(12) RED MOUNTAIN- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 18,716 acres, as generally depicted on the Central Map, which shall be known as the `Red Mountain Wilderness’.

(13) TAYLOR CREEK- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 35 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Taylor Creek Wilderness’.

(14) WATCHMAN- Certain Federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, comprising approximately 600 acres, as generally depicted on the Eastern Map, which shall be known as the `Watchman Wilderness’.

(15) ZION-

It will be an interesting period of time to see ZionMojave grow and prosper.

 

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Activities to Enjoy:
Hiking	Golf	ATVs	Boating
Camping	Ice Skating	Biking	Rafting
Hunting	Wildlife	Fall Colors	Scenic Drives
Museums	Lakes/Rivers	Snowmobiling	Dog Sledding
Horseback Riding		Fresh Water Fishing
Climbing/Canyoneering		Festivals/State Fairs
Alpine & Nordic Skiing/Snowboarding

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National Parks, State Parks, National Monuments, and Wilderness Areas, All in One Website!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT OUR NATIONAL PARKS –

On AdventureZoneTOURS.com

Cedar City, UT (February 27, 2007) The good news is that the United States of America has protected some of the most unique and incredible places to see on earth, and to encourage visitors, AdventureZoneTOURS.com brings all the parks, monuments, and wilderness areas into one online message board where people can share information about these fantastic outdoors resources.

The bad news is that the National Parks face a budget crisis. Struggling to protect the historic, cultural and natural resources, the parks are short of funds for operating facilities, repairs to roads, bridges, trails and buildings. In 2006, a $814 million shortfall was reported. With the National Park Service covering almost 400 protected areas, NPS has fewer employees to service the growing number of visitors per year. Over 273,000,000 people visited the National Parks in 2005, with reports of declining visitors. AdventureZoneTOURS.com fills in the gap where information on locations and services are currently lacking. Instead of contacting a variety of parks or wilderness areas to compile your trip, now planning and previewing a vacation or adventure is just a click away on AdventureZoneTOURS.COM.

In a recent trend, volunteering has become very popular with more people willing to offer their time or vacation in assisting the parks and outdoor organizations with clean up, rebuilding trails and other important tasks. AdventureZoneTOURS.com not only features a message board for each region of every state but under the category Special Interests members are invited to post messages for volunteer opportunities or find links to the volunteer opportunity just right for them.

Bob Therrien, President of TrainingPASS Sales, Inc., creator of AdventureZoneTOURS.com, outdoor writer, and constant traveler commented, “Over the years, the hardest part for me has been the research about which parks, hikes, climbs, guides I want to visit with my family and friends. Exploring site after site, then mapping the distance from each area of interest is inefficient and many times lacking in information. To solve that inefficiency we (AdventureZoneTOURS.com) have collected all the basic information about our parks, wilderness areas and national monuments into one website. We’re still working on the mapping solution right now, so that a visitor can visually see just a region of a state and distances between multiple areas of interest. AdventureZoneTOURS.com is an outdoors recreation message board that now needs real trip reports from people who love these parks and are willing to share information on their special places.”

The Outdoor Adventure Message Board opens up to reveal historic park photos and a listing of U.S. States separated into travel regions. Click on search to find your park or any state region and there are sub forums for all the parks, monuments and wilderness areas in that region. You’ll find links to park maps, webcams and several interesting choices to pick from within a state region. Choose just the park to visit or check special interest message boards for posts on volunteer opportunities and travel for women only, men, training retreats, or shuttle posts.

For the activity-specific minded, AdventureZoneTOURS.com encourages users to share trip reports for a variety of outdoor activities from hiking, climbing, canyoneering, geo exploring, photography, ghost towns, mines, and cave to water sports such as boating, fishing, jet and water skiing, tubing, rafting, and scuba. Winter travel sports locations for snowmobiling, skiing and snowboarding are featured. Hunting locations, ATV and horseback trails as well as the most scenic areas for outdoor photography are also available as individual topic posts. To research or share your favorite adventure travel location, and for more information, log on to www.AdventureZoneTOURS.com.