GIVINGTHE LAND A VOICE VOL.XI, NO. 3— FALL/WINTER 1994 SOUTHERN UTAH tr.41 WILDERNESS ALLIANCE The Clinton Administration: Disappointing on Public Lands Hollywood: Gone, but not Forgotten Page 7

Logging to Save a Forest? Page 16

Lawsuits for Rivers Protection Page 15,20

Advantages The Clinton Administration's failure to address critical environmental issues could of being spell trouble for America's old growth forests. But the danger isn't limited to the Pacific Northwest. In this issue Executive Director Mike Matz and Washington Bovine Representative Cindy Shogan take us inside the White House for a glimpse at issues that affect our environment. (Photograph by Ray Wheeler) Page 19

Special Insert: A Report Card on the Leavitt Administration Page 2 Ittal Vol. XI, No. 3 Fall/Winter 1994 Southern Utah Wilderness Affiance The mission of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance This SUWA newsletter was written by Zach Frankel, Scott (SUWA) is the preservation of the outstanding wild lands at the Groene, Mike Matz, Amy O'Connor, Ken Rail, Brian Robinson, heart of the Colorado Plateau, and the management of these lands Chris Seldin, and Cindy Shogan and was compiled by the in their natural state for the benefit of all Americans. Communication Connection. SUWA promotes local and nation al recognition of the region' s Artwork/Photographs Needed for Newsletter unique character through research and public education; supports Contributions of photographs (especially of areas within the both administrative and legislative initiatives to permanently Utah Wilderness Coalition's proposal for 5.7 million acres of protect Colorado Plateau wildlands within the National Park and wilderness) and original art (such as pen-and-ink sketches) are National Wilderness Preservation system or by other protective appreciated. Please send (with SASE) to: Editor, SUWA, 1471 designations where appropriate; builds support for such initiatives on both the local and national level; and, provides leadership South 1100 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84105-2423. within the environmental movement through uncompromising advocacy for wilderness preservation. SUWA is qualified as a non-profit organization under section SUWA Board of Directors 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. Therefore, all contributions to Bert Fingerhut, Chair Darrell Knuffke SUWA are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Aspen, Colorado Denver, Colorado SUWA Staff and Offices Wayne Owens Vice Chair Jim Martin Salt Lake City, Utah Boulder, Colorado Mike Matz, Executive Director Ken Rait, Issues Director Mark Ristow, Treasurer Lori Potter Heidi McIntosh, Staff Attorney Indianapolis, Indiana Denver, Colorado Cindy Shogan, Washington Representative Ray Wheeler, Secretary Clay Puckett Scott Groene, Staff Attorney (Moab) Salt Lake City, Utah Bountiful, Utah Amy O'Connor, Development Associate LaRue Christie Janet Ross Shelley Sullivan, Executive Assistant Moab, Utah Monticello, Utah Erin Moore, Programs Aide Dottie Fox Del Smith Brant Calkin, Outreach Coordinator Snowmass, Colorado Lander, Wyoming Dave Pacheco, Canvass Director Rich Genser Terry Tempest Williams Tucson, Arizona Salt Lake City, Utah Metro Office: 1471 South 1100 East Ginger Harmon Hansjorg Wyss Salt Lake City, UT 84105-2423 Tucson, Arizona Paoli, Pennsylvania (801) 486-3161; fax (801) 486-4233 SUWA Advisory Committee Moab Office: P.O. Box 758 Bruce Berger Bill Lockhart Moab, UT 84532-0758 Aspen, Colorado Salt Lake City, Utah (801) 259-5440 (phone & fax) David Brower Roderick Nash Washington. D.C. Office: Berkeley, California Santa Barbara, Calif. 418 C Street, N.E. Lance Christie Edward Norton, Jr. Washington, D.C. 20002 Moab, Utah Washington, D.C. (202) 546-2215; fax (202) 544-5197 The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance newsletter is Ruth Frear Guy Saperstein published four times a year. Articles from our newsletter Novato, California Berkeley, California may be reprinted, provided credit is given both to the Kay Harris Ken Sleight author(s) and to SUWA. Cedar City, Utah Moab, Utah Save SUWA Dollars. Please Send Your Dale Johnson Gibbs Smith Layton, Utah Change of Address to: Boulder, Colorado Frandee Johnson James R. Udall SUWA, 1471 South 1100 East, Boulder, Colorado Carbondale, Colorado Salt Lake City, UT 84105-2423 Martin Litton SUWA is a member of Community Shares/Utah, a cooperative fund Portola Valley, Calif. raising body providing support to member non-profit groups. Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance Page 3

Eighteen Months of the Clinton Administration

Make the "no net loss" wetlands pledge a reality. By Cindy Shogan and Mike Matz Rededicate the agencies that manage our national Following their nomination, Bill Clinton and Al Gore took to parks and wilderness lands to a true conservation ethic. the road, stopping in towns large and small on an ambitious bus tour. Their message was about change. Designate the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as a wilderness area and halt the crusade for new offshore They knew people wanted more than empty slogans and drilling. trivial sound bites. America wanted substance. In response, they Nearly two years into the Clinton Administration's first term, told the American people their administration would be different. environmentalists are assessing the accomplishments and rightly They were committed to change. questioning why the goals remain unattained and the promises go The two put their substantive promises in writing for the unkept. There have been a few bright spots—in the international country to read. In Putting People First: How We Can All Change arena, for instance—but there are far more disappointments. America, Clinton and Gore outlined an inspiring plan to "fight for The disappointments started in the early days of the Clinton what American's deserve: good jobs, world-class education, Administration. Environmentalists were asked, during prepara- quality health care, and safe streets and neighborhoods." tion of Clinton's first budget, to suggest ways to raise revenue and Internally, the campaign stressed the economy—the oft- cut spending. Revenues, we suggested, could be increased by quoted Carville mantra "It's the economy, stupid."—as the issue charging a 12 percent royalty on the value of minerals extracted central to its success or failure at the voting booth. The campaign from public lands; by increasing pitifully low fees for grazing on began to take hold, and the American people appeared willing to public lands; and by imposing a tax on energy use measured in embrace the change the Clinton/Gore ticket represented. British Thermal Units (a BTU tax). We suggested that spending could be cut by eliminating timber sales on public land that cost Environmentalists nationally only became enthusiastic about more than they brought in receipts to the federal treasury. The Bill Clinton after the selection of Al Gore as his running mate. Clinton Administration included these suggestions in the budget as it went to Congress. Clinton's record in Arkansas, and his moderate stances within the Democratic party through the Democratic Leadership Coun- cil, made environmentalists leery. Other candidates' commit- Thanks to special interests and political ment to the environment were clearer. But with Gore on the backscratching, the American people ticket, optimism did run high that they could deliver on their exciting environmental platfonn. It was a welcome contrast to the aren't getting the reforms they expected. dark and dismal days of the Reagan and Bush presidencies. In Putting People First, the candidates offered pursuit of four Western senators and governors complained bitterly to the environmental goals: President about the mining royalty, the grazing fee increase—an issue the new Interior Secretary was championing—and the reduce solid and toxic wastes and air pollution; elimination of below-cost timber sales. In a meeting with several preserve places of natural beauty and ecological senators, Clinton said he would drop them all from his budget. importance; Within the first few months, Clinton undercut his Interior Secre- tary on the most important environmental issue facing the West. create a market-based environmental protection strategy; and Oil state senators objected to the BTU tax, an item the Vice President was earnestly advocating. According to the book The advance our nation's interest in a healthier global Agenda by Bob Woodward, President Clinton traded the tax for environment. Senator Boren's vote. Vice President Gore, after losing his first President Clinton's promises to preserve our public lands environmental battle internally, has abandoned the environment were quite specific in 1992: to promote the non-controversial information superhighway and ideas for reinventing government. • Preserve out ancient forests for their scientific and ecological importance. "Clinton" continued next page Page 4 ITG

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"Clinton" continued from previous page the summit, environmentalists felt a sensible resolution was In our opinion, Clinton's policies are not driven by his possible because the Clinton Administration emphasized deci- promises, nor are they driven by what is right for the environment. sions based on science. But the science quickly turned into a His policies are driven by pure politics. Clinton's policies are sham. After deliberations over the 24 million acres of remaining shaped by whatever will bring votes for key initiatives like health forests, a team of scientists presented a plan that included eight care reform, the crime bill, or NAFTA. He's also very concerned options. Each option offered varying degrees to risk for the about polls, and whether or not electoral college votes are survival of the spotted owl. preserved. When the plan met opposition from the Northwest politicians In this atmosphere, compromise is king. Clinton tries to make because of their economic concerns, the scientific team was sent everyone happy, and succeeds only in making everyone mad. back to the drawing board with a new set of rules. A ninth option Those who oppose the Administrations' s platform, and who are was the result. to be appeased by his compromises, now smell blood and want to Option 9 would allow the destruction of more than 30% of the go for the kill. Those who are—or were—part of the core remaining ancient forests in Washington, Oregon, and Northern constituency are seriously disillusioned. Environmentalists are California. Option 9 is not ecologically sound or legally respon- asking themselves: "Change? What change?" sible. It threatens the salmon industry. It allows too much logging Bum Deal for Ancient Forests under experimental and unproven logging practices. It also fails The very contentious debate over the future of the Northwest's to give the forests enough time to recover before logging is remaining old growth forest has been raging for years. Efforts to permitted again. protect an ecosystem were reduced to an argument over Spotted In response to Option 9, a coalition of 12 regional and national Owls versus jobs. Each side was drawn into a stalemate in the environmental groups filed a legal complaint challenging the courts and Congress. Administration's compromise. The challenge is a continuation During the Reagan and Bush era, the government perpetuated of lawsuits pending before U.S. District Judge William Dwyer. the myth that protection of the environment meant economic ruin. These suits have halted new logging in federally managed ancient Clinton, however, offered hope for change. In Putting People forest since 1991. Reaction to the President's forest plan has First, Clinton and Gore stated: "We need not make a false choice drawn serious criticism and legal action from the timber industry between protecting our environment and spurring economic as well. growth." Wetlands: Going. Going. Gone? Clinton partially delivered on his promise. He convened a An examination of Clinton's wetlands plan released last August summit to discuss the controversial Northwest forest issue. After left environmentalists wondering how the President would deliver on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance Page 5

his promise to make the "no net loss" pledge a reality. watching out for each other. Under this logic, granting interim protection to Utah wildlands oddly aligns Roy Romer and Mike "Protecting America's Wetlands: A Fair and Flexible Ap- Sullivan with Mike Leavitt and Orrin Hatch. proach," was developed by the White House Interagency Wet- lands Workgroup. Environmentalists who participated in the Yet, the BLM in all other Western states (except Arizona, which Workgroup deliberations "expected a much greater commitment has passed a BLM wilderness bill) has been asked informally to look to wetlands protection. The entire document is based on the false at their BLM wilderness inventories. The state BLM office in Oregon premise that federal wetlands protection programs are burden- was asked to do so officially. Why not Utah? It's an enigma. Unless some and onerous to landowners and need revision." the White House allows Babbitt to act as a Cabine t advisor should, we Clinton's wetlands package does contain some significant may never know the answer. The decision to adopt interim protection improvements to federal policy. Unfortunately, these advance- to Utah's superlative wildlands, just so Congress can debate the issue ments are outweighed by weakening provisions. On the plus side, and still have the opportunity to designate all 5.7 million acres, should be an easy one. the plan proposes reversal of the Bush exclusion of one percent of Alaska's wetlands from Section 404 protection. On the nega- Arctic National Wildlife Refuge tive side, Clinton would exempt 54 million acres of wetlands This promise was quite specific: designate the Arctic Na- converted to agricultural use. Seasonally fanned wetlands tional Wildlife Refuge as wilderness. Protecting the Arctic is provide important flood protection, ground water recharge, water another example of an action that would generate mild political filtration and wildlife habitat function. They also deserve the full fallout but would create a legacy enjoyed and appreciated for protection of the Clean Water Act. generations to come. But for the past twenty months the Another alarming weakness in the plan is the expansion of the Administration has been silent on the issue of protecting the regulatory role of state and local governments. Local control is Arctic. Now, in context of Clinton's Energy Department hoping becoming a recurring theme in the Clinton Administration. Like to lift the band on exporting oil that comes through the Trans- the draft grazing regulations, the wetlands package would remove Alaska Pipeline, the oil-development-versus-wilderness-protec- management from federal agencies and give it to political entities tion debate has emerged again. with far greater vulnerability to the pressures of local developers. Environmentalists were incredulous to learn that the Admin- Wilderness—Anywhere but Utah istration was seriously considering lifting the ban on oil export— In the lower 48 states there seems no easier or more deserving a decision that would benefit the oil industry and Alaska delega- place for this Administration to take a bold stand to protect tion—prior to fulfilling its promise on the Arctic Refuge. The wilderness than in Utah. While Congress retains exclusive au- environmental community opposes lifting of the ban on export of thority to make additions to the wilderness preservation system, Alaska oil because increased development pressure would endan- this Administration could insure the magnificent lands contained ger sensitive land and marine habitat in Alaska, California, and in the Utah Wilderness Bill remain unimpaired. elsewhere. More development would expose coastlines to height- ened risk of oil spills. Lifting the ban rewards an industry whose Politically there would be few foreseeable repercussions for environmental record is abysmal. the Administration in Utah. Clinton finished third behind Bush and Perot. Clinton can expect no votes for his top legislative The Clinton Administration now sees that it cannot give such priorities from any of the Congressional delegation but Rep. a gift to Alaska's Republican Congressional delegation and the oil Karen Shepherd. industry without extracting something in exchange. It now proposes to trade export of oil for "twinning" the Arctic Refuge Hopes were therefore high that Bruce Babbitt would act with adjacent Canadian parks—an act far short of wilderness quickly at the Department of the Interior. Unfortunately, Babbitt designation. Under the Clinton Administration's cosmetic pro- does not seem inclined to exercise his authority to protect the posal, which is still not a certainty, oil development still might not lands in H.R. 1500. His reluctance has grown stronger during the be precluded. past 20 months, which is likely due to the barrage of "War on the West" rhetoric by Western politicians and exploitive industries. Our Public Lands Such criticism, largely unwarranted, has the White House very Clinton may yet this year have the opportunity to sign into law skittish about losing the electoral votes in Montana and Wyoming the biggest land protection measure since the Alaska Lands Act that it won in 1992. was signed by President Carter (see sidebar next page). The Officials in the Interior Department say the Clinton Adminis- California Desert Protection Act will designate as new national tration is worried that action on wilderness in Utah will cause parks or preserves and wilderness areas over nine million acres. (The Alaska Lands Act protected 103 million acres.) other states' politicians to cry "War on the West." The White House political operatives apparently believe Western politi- Carter's Interior Department was engaged in the legislative cians—Republicans and Democrats—are sticking together and process. They communicated with champions like Senator Tsongas Page 6 ttal and Representative Udall, and coordinated with environmental- ists on legislative strategy. The Clinton Interior Department is nowhere to be found in the battle for California's deserts. Big Shoes to Fill: Public We Get the Shaft, They get the Gold Lands Accomplishments The same is mostly true on mining law reform—except for pulling off nifty public relations stunts like the press conference on during the Carter Years granting a patent to American Barrick for its gold mine in Nevada. To During the Carter Administration, environmentalists were pressure recalcitrant Western politicians into accepting meaningful displeased with certain environmental policies, especially its reform, the Interior Department could have instituted a moratorium energy policies. But overall, the Carter Administration ac- on issuance of mining claims until the bill was passed. complished plenty. Among the achievements:

In the end, the best opportunity in 122 years for reform of the Passed the Endangered American Wilderness Act, Mining Law of 1872 is being squandered. The warriors on Capitol adding 1.25 million acres in 17 different areas to the Hill now just want to get a bill out. Most are thoroughly disgusted National Wilderness Preservation System. with the process after so many years of effort. Added acreage to the Indian Peak Wilderness in The Citizens Coal Council gave the Administration a report Colorado card on its performance under the Surface Mining Control and Added more wilderness in the Boundary Waters Canoe Reclamation Act, the nation's coal mining law. The Administra- Area in Minnesota. tion received an "A" for saying the right things, a "D-" for Designated wilderness in eight National Park System protecting federal lands, and an "F" for protecting private lands. area located from Hawaii to New Mexico. Clinton's Character Added to the Sandia Wilderness in New Mexico, On July 31 the New York Times carried a piece describing Established the River of No Return Wilderness in what shaped Clinton into a politician, and whether in that process, central Idaho, encompassing 2.2 million acres, the politics now has swallowed Clinton. At times, Clinton can be largest wilderness area in the lower 48 states. truly sincere, speaking off the cuff on something he genuinely believes. At other times, it's all a stage, and he's performing the Established the Selway-Bitteroot and Rattlesnake Wilderness Areas in Montana. role of leader, rather than actually leading. Clinton's overwhelm- ing desire to be liked, and his inability to make decisions and stick Pushed for, and successfully achieved, passage of the by them, also contribute to the manner in which he governs, which Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, is reflected in his Cabinet's approach on the issues. which protects 103 million acres as national parks and preserves, wildlife refuges and other conservation But most instructive on environmental issues is Clinton's expe- units. In the deliberations, supported the designation rience in his first term as governor in Arkansas, and the lessons he of the Arctic National Wildlife Range as wilderness. apparently teamed after losing his bid for a second successive term. Passed strong Federal legislation for automakers to Governor Clinton campaigned as areformer, a progressive willing to build smaller cars, and to increase the gas mileage take on entrenched interests on behalf of the little guy. Once elected, standards. Clinton waged a war against utilities trying to pass cost overruns to Put in place an effort to enforce the 55 mile per hour consumers. He pressed the timber industry to get them to conduct speed limit, so that motorists will get more miles to their operations in amore environmentally sensitive manner. Clinton the gallon. went after the state's poultry industry, which was fouling the rivers. In short, Clinton was using his position to be a genuine crusader for Increased funds to research both cleaner burning coal processes and in finding cheaper ways to burn coal. populist causes and public good. Proposed stronger safety and environmental standards The authority went to his head, and his arrogance did not sit at nuclear power plants. well with the voters. In his crusade, he also alienated the special interests that financed campaigns. In the end, everyone lined up Introduced assistance for the cost of installing insulation, storm windows, weather stripping, and behind his opponent and Clinton lost. other energy saving devices in the home.

Next time around, a contrite Clinton learned how to "talk the Added over 1,300 miles of eight separate rivers to the talk," but not in a way that upset the special interests. Once back National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. in the governor's office, Clinton only tackled issues lacking Added three new trails to the National Scenic Trails controversy. He completely shied away from environmental System totalling more than 7,000 miles. issues. As President, he hasn't changed.