# Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act

This bill would permanently protect millions of acres of public land in the Northern Rockies region—primarily in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming—from logging, mining, oil and gas drilling, and other commercial development. The protected areas would include national forests and other federal lands that are currently available for these activities. Essentially, the bill locks in these lands as wilderness or conservation areas where extractive industries cannot operate.

The bill would affect several groups of people differently. Outdoor enthusiasts like hikers, hunters, and fishermen would gain permanent access to these lands for recreation without worrying about future development. However, timber companies, mining operations, and energy companies would lose access to resources they might have wanted to extract. Local communities that depend on logging, mining, or oil and gas jobs could see economic impacts, though supporters argue that outdoor recreation and tourism create alternative economic opportunities. Ranchers with grazing rights on these lands would need to understand how their existing permits would be affected.

From a practical standpoint, if this bill becomes law, landowners and businesses would need to know exactly which acres fall under protection and plan accordingly. The federal government would need to manage these lands for conservation purposes rather than resource extraction. Environmental groups support the bill as a way to protect wildlife habitat, water sources, and carbon-storing forests, while industry groups and some local officials oppose it, arguing it limits economic development and local control over land management decisions.

Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act

Whitehouse, Sheldon

Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act This bill designates specified National Forest System lands, National Park System lands, and public lands in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming as wilderness and as components or additions to existing components of the National Wilderness Preservation System. The bill also designates specified federal lands as biological connecting corridors and as special corridor management areas. The Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) shall accept the donation of valid existing permits or leases authorizing grazing on specified public lands or National Forest System lands. The bill designates segments of specified rivers and creeks in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The bill designates specified areas as wildland recovery areas. USDA shall develop a wildland recovery plan for each recovery area. A panel of independent scientists shall study roadless lands greater than 1,000 acres that are within the National Forest System in the Wild Rockies bioregion in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, or Wyoming, but not designated as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System, for their role in maintaining biological diversity. The bill prohibits road construction, timber harvest, oil or gas leasing, mining, or other development that impairs the natural and roadless qualities of the land.