[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 127 (Thursday, October 12, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S10489]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STEENS WILDERNESS ACT OF 2000
Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
now proceed to the consideration of H.R. 4828, which is at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (H.R. 4828) to designate wilderness areas and a
cooperative management and protection area in the vicinity of
Steens Mountain in Harney County, Oregon, and for other
purposes.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
Mr. MURKOWSKI. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered
read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon
the table, and any statement relating to the bill be printed in the
Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The bill (H.R. 4828) was read the third time and passed.
Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Mr. President, moments ago, by unanimous
consent, the Senate passed H.R. 4828, the Steens Mountain Cooperative
Management and Protection Act. This bill, supported by the entire
Oregon delegation, is a very unique piece of legislation to enhance the
protection of Steens Mountain in Southeastern Oregon, while preserving
the local ranching economy.
As the sponsor of the Senate companion bill, S. 3052, cosponsored by
my colleague, Senator Wyden, I am here to thank my colleagues for the
swift consideration of the House-passed bill.This bill enjoys broad
support, ranging from the local community officials and the Oregon
Cattlemen's Association, to Oregon Trout and the Sierra Club.
For those of my colleagues who have not had the good fortune to visit
this special place, the Steens Mountain area in southeastern Oregon is
a unique geologic formation that is home to a wide diversity of flora
and fauna. The Steens Mountain fault block stretches sixty miles. It
rises to an elevation of 9,700 feet and drops 5,500 feet in three miles
to the historic lakebed of the Alvord Desert.
The federal lands on Steens Mountain are managed by the Bureau of
Land Management. There is significant private ownership in the area,
with over 270 separate landowners controlling about one-third of the
land. There are several large ranching operations that graze both
public and private lands in the Steens Mountain area.
Faced with multiple landowners, and a wide range of views on how best
to protect the land, we finally crafted a great bill that enjoys local
and national support, and that the President has indicated he will
sign.
Through this bill, we are going to designate over one hundred and
seventy thousand acres of wilderness. We are permanently removing
cattle from over a hundred thousand acres in the High Steens. We will
permanently withdraw over 1.1 million acres, including the Alvord
Desert, from mining and geothermal development. We are also creating
innovative management tools, such as a Redband Trout reserve and a
Wildlands Juniper Management Area, to respond to the diverse
stewardship needs of the Steens and the wildlife that finds its home
there.
Mr. President, it was no easy task to achieve such wide-ranging
environmental protection in my state without decimating the way of life
of an entire community, and without creating more distrust of federal
land management policies. This solution, though, works for the land and
the people, rather than trying to make the land fit an existing
management classification.
The best way to preserve special places like Steens Mountain, with
significant private ownership, is not to force people off the land or
to buy them all out. It is to ensure that open spaces are preserved in
private ownership, and to provide incentives for the preservation of
these open spaces. After all, it is the stewardship of this area by the
private landowners over the last one hundred years that makes Steens
Mountain the special place that it is today.
For over a year now, the entire Oregon congressional delegation and
the Governor have worked closely with the Secretary of the Interior and
stakeholders to achieve one primary goal: the preservation of Steens
Mountain for future generations of Americans while ensuring that the
ranchers can pass their ranches down to their children and
grandchildren.
At the risk of leaving someone out, I would like to take a moment to
mention some of the people who have contributed to this landmark
process. I want to thank all of the Members of the Oregon delegation,
the Secretary of the Interior, and the Governor, and all the dedicated
staff members who worked on this bill--especially Valerie West, my
Natural Resources Director, as well as Kurt Pfotenhauer and Matt Hill
of my staff; Lindsay Slater, and Troy Tidwell in Congressman Walden's
office; David Blair, Josh Kardon, and Sarah Bittleman in Senator
Wyden's office; Amelia Jenkins with Congressman DeFazio; Chris
Huckleberry with Congresswoman Hooley; Michael Harrison with
Congressman Blumenauer; and working on behalf of Governor Kitzhaber--
Kevin Smith and Peter Green. In the Secretary of the Interior's office,
I want to extend thanks to Molly McUsic and Laurie Sedlmayr. I also
want to recognize the work of Mike Menge, David Dye, and David Brooks
of the Senate Energy Committee, who helped bring this legislation
before the Committee and to the floor of the Senate.
There are also many in Oregon that have been essential to this
process. First and foremost, those who live in the shadow and beauty of
Steens Mountain, and who will continue to act as its stewards: Stacy
Davies, Fred Otley and Charlie Otley. There are also those who have
represented the various environmental groups in Oregon: Bill Marlett,
Andy Kerr, Sybil Ackerman, Jill Workman, and Jim Myron.
Mr. President, this bill is a historic achievement that will protect
a mountain and a way of life that are deeply intertwined in the spirit
of the American west, and I thank my colleagues for their support.
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