Founded in 1989, Wilderness Watch is the only national organization whose sole focus is the preservation and proper stewardship of lands and rivers already included in the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) and National Wild & Scenic Rivers System (NWSRS). The organization grew out of the concern that while much emphasis was being placed on adding new areas to these systems, the conditions of existing Wilderness and Wild rivers waslargely ignored. We believe that the stewardship of these remarkable wild places can only be assured through independent citizen oversight, education, and the continual monitoring of federal management activities.


OUTGOING CONGRESS WHACKS AWAY WILDERNESS PROTECTIONS
Precedent Setting De-Designation of Wilderness in Last Minute Riders
November 22, 2004

Senate Bill Seeks to Overturn Court Decision to Remove Illegal Resorts Along the Wild Salmon River, ID
June 11, 2003

In May, Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) introduced Senate bill S. 1003, a piece of legislation that would allow for the continuing operation and maintenance of three illegal resorts despite their violation of Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and the Central Idaho Wilderness Act. S. 1003 would reverse decades of administrative and congressional protection for the Salmon River by granting special rights to three outfitters not afforded to the thousands of other outfitters operating legitimately on America’s wildernesses and wild rivers...

Chronology of Illegal Outfitter Resorts and the Protection of the Wild Salmon River (1931 to present)

Court decision in Wilderness Watch v. United States Forest Service (pdf)

Wilderness Watch hearing statement on S.1003

Victory on the Wild Salmon River! — By George Nickas (Wilderness Watcher, Nov. 2000)


For More Information: George Nickas, Executive Director (406) 542-2048



OUTGOING CONGRESS WHACKS AWAY WILDERNESS PROTECTIONS
Precedent Setting De-Designation of Wilderness in Last Minute Riders
November 22, 2004

COURT RULES PARK SERVICE VIOLATES WILDERNESS ACT - End of Motorized Vehicle Tours in Georgia’s Cumberland Island Wilderness
July 1, 2004

The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has slammed the door on the National Park Service's motorized sightseeing tours through the Cumberland Island Wilderness. The three judge panel ruled that the motorized tours violated both the Wilderness Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. The court wrote, "The language of the…Wilderness Act demonstrate[s] that Congress has unambiguously prohibited the Park Service from offering motorized transportation to park visitors through the wilderness area."

Read Wilderness Watch v. Mainella

Senate Bill Would Seriously Degrade Cumberland Island Wilderness
November 2003

Georgia Senators Chambliss and Miller have introduced S. 1462, a bill that would seriously degrade the Cumberland Island Wilderness by undesignating the existing Wilderness, then "reestablishing" the Wilderness with corridors for motorized access and with large natural and historical areas open to development. Currently, only a handful of island residents with valid access rights, which phase out over time, are legally allowed to drive the primitive roads through the Wilderness and potential Wilderness, and all development is prohibited. S. 1462 eliminates these protections, and opens the Wilderness, in perpetuity, to government vehicles, commercial tours, and unmitigated development. This bill is unprecedented as it essentially guts an area protected within the National Wilderness Preservation System - a system created to preserve our last wild lands for future generations.

S.1462 Fact Sheet

Judge Ok's Motorized Tours in Cumberland Island Wilderness (GA) — By George Nickas (Wilderness Watcher, Sept. 2003)

Drive-Thru Wilderness? Wild Cumberland up for grabs — By George Nickas (Wilderness Watcher, March 2001)

For More Information: George Nickas, Executive Director (406) 542-2048