The facts on forest planning and wilderness recommendations

As I reflect on the beauty and peace one finds in the Scotchman Peak area, I’m perplexed that it seems there are still questions about Forest Service recommendations and management of the Scotchman Peaks area. This area has always been a special place for generations for hunting, fishing, hiking, and horseback riding. Now retired, I was the public affairs officer and the facilitator of the collaborative meetings for many years during the recent Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle National Forest Plan revision process. I feel I can speak to the management history of the Scotchman Peaks area.

The Forest Service first recommended a Scotchman Peaks Wilderness during the Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE I and II) process of the 1970s. The first Forest Plan in 1987 officially identified this area as suitable to be designated by Congress as a wilderness area. At this point, specific standards were implemented to ensure that management activities would not preclude it from becoming wilderness. This decision was strongly supported by the public during that planning process.

In 2015, the Kootenai and Idaho Panhandle National Forests Forest Plans were revised and updated, and again with strong public support and hundreds of collaborative meetings during the Forest Plan revision process, Scotchman Peaks was recommended for wilderness again. The Forest Service will continue managing this area to maintain its wilderness characteristics, until Congress officially designates it as Wilderness. Specific management directives have changed over time to address the needs of the community and the land; however the goal of preserving the landscape in its natural state has remained the same from the 1970s on through today.

Many people, including myself, hope that Congress acts upon the Forest Service’s recommendations and designates this special place as Wilderness for all of us and future generations.

JODI KRAMER

Sandpoint