The Great Burn Proposed Wilderness

The Great Burn roadless area, Bitterroot Mountains, Montana and Idaho. Photo by Bob Clark.

SEE ALSO:

Public Lands: Racetracks or Sanctuaries?
This photo gallery shows the damage illegal ORV (offroad vehicle) use can cause to our fragile public wilderness.

by Adam Rissien and Phil Knight

The Great Burn Roadless Area sprawls across the Bitterroot Mountains on the border between Idaho and Montana, and embodies the beauty of natural fire recovery. Huge forest fires transformed the area in 1910. It is now one of the most wild and spectacular areas found so close to Missoula. Vibrant forests of Western hemlock, cedar, larch, ponderosa pine and Douglas fir create a spectacular contrast to the subalpine tundra. More than thirty mountain lakes are found in high glacial basins along the border. The Great Burn is also part of an important wildlife corridor between the Selway-Bitterroot and Cabinet-Yaak ecosystems, as well as part of the larger Yellowstone to Yukon wildlands corridor.

History of the Great Burn
The Great Burn has been in need of protection since the early '70's. Local citizens have tried to ensure that the wilderness character of the area endures, and through their efforts the Lolo and Clearwater national forests designated over 224,000 acres as proposed Wilderness. The Great Burn has been included in nine wilderness bills introduced in Congress between 1984 and 1992, none of which have become law. The only active legislation calling for Wilderness protection for the Great Burn is the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act.

The Clearwater Forest Plan leaves the Idaho side completely open to cross-country snowmobile travel, while the Lolo N.F. restricts snowmobile travel. Trespass by snowmobilers on the Montana side of the Great Burn is a major problem which the Last Refuge Campaign and others have worked hard to address.

Great Burn Critical for Wildlife Survival
The Great Burn is home to many different species and contains some of the Northern Rockies' most crucial habitat for declining wildlife populations. On the Clearwater N.F., 110,000 acres have been identified as grey wolf habitat, and some of the nation's largest elk herds live here. Moose, black bear, mountain goat, mountain lion, pine marten, osprey and golden eagles inhabit the area. The wolverine, recently denied listing under the Endangered Species Act, is known to exist in the area. Both the Lolo and Clearwater national forests have identified the Great Burn as prime Canadian lynx habitat, a species listed as Threatened under the ESA. The importance of preserving the wilderness habitat for these species cannot be overstated.

Big Toys Mean Big Impacts
The impacts of snowmobiles on the backcountry are poorly understood but very real. Snowmobile manufacturers and riders would have us believe that since the snow melts and tracks disappear, the impact of these high-powered toys is minimal.

The Lolo National Forest recently published the Stateline Snowmobile Environmental Assessment, which analyzed the effects of these machines. It found that wolverine dens could be severely impacted by snowmobile use, causing stress and jeopardizing the survival of the young. Snowmobiles were found to disturb grey wolves as well. The Forest Service states that increased winter recreation within the Stateline analysis area could degrade air, soil and water quality, damage vegetation, and result in a lack of areas devoid of human noise. Snowmobiles can damage tree stems, break trunks and remove bark. They also may negatively impact aquatic life. Their exhaust contains ammonium, nitrate and sulfate ions which, when mixed with water, create acids. These acids may stress tree seedlings and can impact seedling germination, growth and survival.

Researchers have observed other snowmobile impacts to wildlife. Compacted snowmobile trails give bobcats and coyotes access through deep snow to remote lynx habitat and allow them to compete with lynx for snowshoe hares, the sole food of the lynx. Pocket gophers and other rodents rely on extensive networks of tunnels under the snow. The tunnels provide protection from predators and the elements and allow the gophers to forage for vegetation. When snowmobiles collapse these tunnels, rodents become trapped and have to burrow out, exposing themto predators and requiring crucial winter survival energy.

Stopping Snowmobile Trespass in the Great Burn
During the winters of 2001-02 and 2002-03 the Native Forest Network's Last Refuge Campaign documented extensive snowmobile violations in the protected areas of the Great Burn. The 1986 Lolo Forest Plan designated the Montana portion of the Burn as off limits to motorized use year round, except on Surveyor Road for six weeks in the summer. Trespass by snowmobilers in the Montana side of the Great Burn has been on the rise since the forest plan was written. With the Lolo Winter Recreation Area so close to the southern boundary, violations there are not surprising. The route over Schley Mountain, Surveyor Road, and into Idaho is another point of access. Snowmobilers on their way into Idaho drop down into the protected areas. Highway 250 provides access to the State-Line Trail, Hoodoo Meadows and Trail 171T, and from here they can easily get further into the Burn.

Forest Service Increases Enforcement Efforts in the Burn
Due to three winters of intensive monitoring of snowmobile use by NFN, Great Burn Study Group, Sierra Club and others, the Forest Service has taken huge steps to curtail illegal snowmobile use. The Lolo National Forest has changed their approach from education to active enforcement. New signs have been posted and Superior District Ranger Rob Harper issued an enforcement plan detailing the steps for patroling the area. Law enforcement personnel talked with snowmobilers, informing them of the closure. However, we still documented trespass by snowmobilers, and no one was ticketed for trespass.

The Clearwater National Forest has added a new law enforcement officer and made attempts to curtail trespass. They have posted signs and conducted patrols, resulting in documentation of vandalism and trespass. The new officer wrote six tickets for trespass and replaced the signs. With updated travel maps, new signs and regular patrols the Powell District has done much to stop the trespass in their portion of the Great Burn. However, their job is made harder by the fact that they can only enforce trail closures, and any snowmobile use off-trail is permitted. We urge the Clearwater N.F. to enact an area-wide closure for their portion of the proposed Wilderness, thereby removing conflicting management directives and making law enforcement easier and safer.

Though the Forest Service has taken significant steps to stop trespass, in 2003 NFN's patrols still found plenty of evidence of snowmobile trespass at Heart Lake, in key areas along the Idaho/Montana border such as Cache Saddle, and at Kid Lake, Trio Lakes, Dalton, and Pearl Lakes as well as elsewhere.

Both the Lolo and Clearwater Forest Plans will soon be revised, and due to the rise in motorized use, portions of the Great Burn risk losing their current protected status. However, plan revision also offers a chance to gain new protections and tell the Forest Service to unify their management of the Great Burn.

We need your help:

• Contact the Clearwater NF Supervisor and ask him to protect the Great Burn from motorized use in order to maintain the wilderness character of the proposed Wilderness.
• Contact the Region 1 Forester and the Lolo and Clearwater NF Supervisors and ask that a unified management strategy be developed for the Great Burn which restricts motorized use, protects the Wilderness character of the area, and allows for secure habitat for imperiled species such as lynx, grey wolf, grizzly bear and wolverine.

We need everyone to send a clear and strong message to the Forest Service. Keep the Great Burn Wild! One proposed wilderness, one unified plan!

Addresses:

1. Region 1 Forester Brad Powell
   PO Box 7669
   Missoula, MT 59807
   (406) 329-3511
2. Lolo NF Supervisor Debbie Austin
   Fort Missoula Bldg. 24
   Missoula, MT 59804
   (406)329-3750
3. Lolo NF Superior District Law Enforcement Officer Steve Didier
   PO Box 460 209 West Riverside
   Superior, MT 59872
   (406) 822-4233
4. Lolo NF Missoula and Ninemile Law Enforcement Officer Don Polanski
   Fort Missoula Bldg. 24-A
   Missoula, MT 59804
   (406)329-3750
5. Clearwater NF Supervisor Larry Dawson
   12730 Highway 12
   Orofino, Idaho 83544
   (208) 476-4541