[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 37 (Thursday, March 20, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E527]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E527]]
     EXTEND WILDERNESS PROTECTION FOR SPANISH PEAKS AREA, COLORADO

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. SKAGGS

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 20, 1997

  Mr. SKAGGS. Mr. Speaker, today I am again introducing a bill to 
continue the protection of wilderness values in the Spanish Peaks area 
in Colorado.
  The bill is cosponsored by my colleagues from Colorado, Mr. McInnis 
and Ms. DeGette. I greatly appreciate their assistance and support.
  The mountains now usually known as the Spanish Peaks are two volcanic 
peaks in Las Animas and Huerfano Counties whose Native American name is 
Wayatoya. The eastern peak rises to 12,683 feet above sea level, while 
the summit of the western peak reaches 13,626 feet. The two served as 
landmarks not only for Native Americans but also for some of Colorado's 
other early settlers and for travelers along the trail between Bent's 
Old Fort on the Arkansas River and Taos, NM. With this history, it's 
not surprising that the Spanish Peaks portion of the San Isabel 
National Forest was included in 1977 on the National Registry of 
Natural Landmarks.
  The Spanish Peaks area has outstanding scenic, geologic, and 
wilderness values, including a spectacular system of over 250 free-
standing dikes and ramps of volcanic materials radiating from the 
peaks. The State of Colorado has designated the Spanish Peaks as a 
Natural Area, and they are a popular destination for hikers seeking an 
opportunity to enjoy an unmatched vista of southeastern Colorado's 
mountains and plains.
  The Spanish Peaks area was considered for possible wilderness 
designation in the 1970's, but the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1980 
provided instead for its continued management as a wilderness study 
area. A decade later, the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 included 
provisions for long-term management of all the other wilderness study 
areas in our State's national forests, but questions about the land-
ownership pattern in the Spanish Peaks Area led to a decision to 
require continued management of that area as a wilderness study area 
for three years--until August 13, 1996. The 1993 Act also required the 
Forest Service to report to Congress concerning the extent of non-
Federal holdings in the area and the likelihood of acquisition of those 
holdings by the United States with the owners' consent.
  The required report was submitted in 1995. It indicated that within 
the approximately 20,825 acres being managed as a wilderness study 
area, there were about 825 acres where the United States owned neither 
the surface nor the mineral rights, and about 440 acres more where the 
United States owned the surface but not the minerals.
  To date, through voluntary sales, the United States has acquired some 
of the non-Federal holdings in the Spanish Peaks area, and there are 
indications that others will or can be acquired in the same way.
  I think there is every reason to believe that it will soon be 
possible to designate lands within the Spanish Peaks area as part of 
the National Wilderness Preservation System. However, last year it 
became clear that it wouldn't be possible to do this before the end of 
the 3-year period specified in the 1993 Act, so I introduced a bill to 
simply provide that the Forest Service will continue to manage the 
Spanish Peaks as a wilderness study area until Congress determines 
otherwise.
  Because that bill was not acted on before the adjournment of the 
104th Congress, I am reintroducing it today. It will remove an 
artificial, arbitrary deadline and will ensure that decisions about the 
future management of this very special area will made deliberately, 
through legislation, rather than by default.

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