Scotchman Peaks fares well in forest plan

SANDPOINT — A U.S. Forest Service national forest management plan is recommending 25,900 acres in the Scotchman Peaks area be added to the federal Wilderness Preservation system.

The recommendation is contained in the draft record of decision for the Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle Plan Revision Zone, also known as KIPZ. The revision updates the existing 1987 plan and will guide forest management for the next 10-15 years.

The draft record of decision, revised forest plan and final environmental impact statement were released on Sept. 23, triggering a 60-day objection period that will be followed by a 30-day objection review period.

The development of the forest plan has spanned more than 12 years and is shaped by the best available science, current laws and public input, according to the Forest Service.

The final plan contains some of the same area designations and recommendations as the draft plan did, said Phil Hough, executive director of Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness.

“They’re very strong recommendations, so we’re very comfortable in terms of looking at that as an opportunity for us to gain more community support for the forest plan recommendations for wilderness,” Hough said.

The 1987 plan recommended 23,912 acres of the Scotchman Peaks area be designated wilderness. The revised plan recommends 25,900 acres.

Hough said the boundary adjustments, in general, lined up with geographically identifiable boundaries in the forest.

Friends of Scotchman Peaks has spent years cultivating broad-based support for the wilderness proposal, which includes forest lands in Idaho and Montana. The proposal has the support of timber and mining interests, in addition to sportsmen and hikers.

The issuance of a final record of decision on the forest plan is expected in about six months.

“As a whole, the plan moves forward a lot of things and, obviously, wilderness is only one aspect of management,” said Hough, noting that the group does not object to timber, mining, grazing and managed off-road vehicle activities in areas of the national forests.

“It’s a good step forward,” added Hough.

The current federal shutdown and dysfunction in Congress is not expected to have an impact on the wilderness proposal in the near term.

“We’re looking to the new session of Congress that starts in 2015 to really gauge our representatives and hopefully move legislation forward on one, if not both, sides of the border,” Hough said.