[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 167 (Tuesday, October 17, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S6465]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KAINE (for himself and Mr. Warner):
  S. 1975. A bill to designate additions to the Rich Hole Wilderness 
and the Rough Mountain Wilderness of the George Washington National 
Forest, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Agriculture, 
Nutrition, and Forestry.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, this bill authorizes additions to two 
existing wilderness areas within the George Washington National Forest 
in Virginia; the Rich Hole and Rough Mountain Wilderness Areas. It's a 
relatively simple bill, and it provides only a small window into the 
volume of work done by Virginians to manage a vast swath of Federal 
land in this region collaboratively and responsibly.
  America's Federal lands are some of our most precious assets. We may 
hike or bike them; derive energy, minerals, or goods from them; or 
sometimes just leave them to nature. There is a long history of 
conflict among stakeholders who disagree on which Federal lands are 
best suited to which purposes.
  Many years ago, forest users with different views and interests 
formed the George Washington National Forest Stakeholder Collaborative. 
Through hard work and consensus, the Collaborative agreed upon a number 
of recommendations for forest management and protection. Everyone got 
some of what they wanted and gave some ground. Preservation advocates 
consented to timber harvest and other active forest restoration and 
management in certain areas. The forest products industry consented to 
wilderness and lightly-managed areas elsewhere. The U.S. Forest 
Service's 2014 revised GW Forest Management Plan reflected many of 
these agreements.
  Subsequently, the Forest Service convened the Lower Cowpasture 
Restoration and Management Project, bringing more stakeholders to the 
table, earlier in the process, to negotiate out how to manage this 
particular part of the Forest, located in the lower portion of the 
Cowpasture River watershed, in ways that work for everyone. Within this 
process, further compromises were made to achieve a mutually 
satisfactory project that could gather broad support. All members of 
the Stakeholder Collaborative now support the wilderness additions 
identified in this bill.
  I am proud to partner on this with my colleague Senator Mark Warner, 
and we are following in the path blazed by Senator John Warner and 
Representative Rick Boucher, who were instrumental in passing the 
original Virginia Wilderness Act in 1984.
  Taking care of our Nation's outdoor resources is good for our economy 
and good for our environment. Land disputes may sometimes be difficult, 
but the example of the GW Forest Stakeholder Collaborative proves they 
don't have to be. When everyone comes to the table and invests the 
necessary time, we can find common ground. I hope this will be a lesson 
for us in other tough policy challenges, and I encourage the Senate to 
support this bill.

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