Frequently Asked Questions

Below is a collection of questions we are most frequently asked, with their respective answers. Be sure to also check our Background Facts page for more information, and if you have other questions, please email us at info@scotchmanpeaks.org or use our Contact page.


Place

Where is the area that would be designated as Wilderness?

The Scotchman Peaks roadless area is an 88,000-acre inventoried roadless area (IRA) straddling the Idaho-Montana state line. FSPW believes the entire IRA deserves protection as designated Wilderness. The Idaho Panhandle and Kootenai National forest management plans manage approximately 64,000 acres as recommended wilderness. FSPW supports the forest plans recommendations. This area is bordered by the Clark Fork River and Highway 200 on the south, the Bull River and Highway 56 on the east, Rattle Pass Road on the north and Lightning Creek on the west.

Who owns these lands? 

The Scotchman Peaks are public lands owned by all the American people and managed by the U.S. Forest Service.  Wildenress designation would not be a transfer of lands from one entity to another.

Process

How is Wilderness designated?

The Forest Service conducts assessments and makes recommendations identifying places deserving Wilderness protection. The forest service is then required to manage these areas in a way that preserves their wilderness character. Congress can make Wilderness designation permanent by passing legislation that then must be signed into law by the President. Congress will tend to act as their constituents want, so building public support is important. Any future changes to an area designated as Wilderness would require additional congressional approval.

How were the boundaries chosen for recommended Wilderness?

The recommended wilderness boundaries are a result of several extensive public processes, dating back to the Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE) of the 1970’s. Through RARE I and RARE II in the 1970’s, the 1987 Forest Plan, the 2009 Idaho Roadless Rule, and the 2015 Forest Plan Revision, the boundaries were gradually shaped and refined by public input. Revised Forest Management Plans which were implemented in January 2015 provide the boundaries that are currently recommended for Wilderness

How has the public been involved in this wilderness proposal?

The public review processes from RARE I and II, the 1987 forest plan, Idaho Roadless rule and 2002-2015 revised forest plan period included hundreds of meetings and field trips in locations accessible to all interested parties. Written comments were submitted by thousands of local residents.

Isn’t there enough designated Wilderness in Idaho and Montana already?

There are no designated Wilderness areas in Idaho’s nine northern counties. The Idaho portion of the proposed wilderness would designate 13,900 acres of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests as wilderness, only one half of one percent of the forest as a whole (2.3 million acres). There is only one designated Wilderness area in the Kootenai Forest in northwestern Montana. The Cabinet Mountain Wilderness comprises less than 5% of the Kootenai, leaving that forest with the least amount if Wilderness of any forest in Montana.

Can formerly logged areas be designated as Wilderness?

Yes. Lands that have been logged are eligible for Wilderness designation if the affected areas are naturally reverting. Wilderness designation is meant to allow natural processes to continue and to be the primary way that lands are shaped.

Are there roads in the Scotchmans that Wilderness designation would close? 

No. In the Forest Service inventory of open roads or motorized trails there are none in the proposed Scotchman Peaks Wilderness area. So nothing would be closed upon designation. Snowmobiling is not currently allowed within the area proposed for wilderness.

Threats and Benefits

What is Wilderness?

The Wilderness Act of 1964 defines it as “an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.” The Act’s purpose is to preserve and protect the natural ecosystems and wild areas and also provide opportunities for solitude and retrospective or primitive recreation. Wilderness areas are valuable for the historical, scientific, educational, geologic, and ecological benefits. They help the environment and the economy.

But perhaps one of the greatest benefits is what wilderness areas can do for a person. For those who travel into wilderness areas the experience can be awe inspiring and life changing. Those treks are what make great novels and critically acclaimed essays. Many who venture into Wilderness areas come back out changed with a deeper understanding of why these lands are set aside. Each person has their own story.

What is allowed and what is not allowed in Wilderness?

Wilderness is the highest level of protection for our public lands. It is designed to preserve lands and wildlife in their natural state. Wilderness designation would protect and preserve the natural condition of the Scotchmans’ steep and deep valleys, which hold diverse communities of plants and animals, clear flowing streams and precious solitude. A wide range of recreational activities can be enjoyed in Wilderness, including: hiking, backpacking, climbing, berry-picking, hunting, fishing, horseback riding, skiing, mountaineering, photography, wildlife viewing, and bird watching. (Wilderness Act, Section 4(a)) Mining, logging, off-road vehicle use, and oil and gas drilling are not permitted. Use of motorized equipment and mechanical transport, including mountain bikes, are also not permitted.

Why Wilderness?

Wilderness designation will preserve the processes that keep this area in its natural state for our future and our children’s future.

What benefits would Wilderness designation bring?

Wilderness brings the highest level of protection available for public lands and their natural landscape. These are places where nature operates on its own with almost zero disturbance. There are no roads, no motors or mechanical devices, or development of any kind. The core idea behind Wilderness is placing value on our country’s wildest places precisely because they’re wild. Sportsmen will tell you that wilderness areas are often the very best places to hunt and fish — because elk, deer, and fish don’t like to be disturbed either. You can camp, climb, hike, and paddle in Wilderness. There is a spiritual concept as well — preserving places where people can go to find solitude and escape the noise of civilization.

Let’s Look at Timber and Mining

The Scotchman Peaks enjoy broad support for Wilderness designation partly because there are no logging or mining activities or proposals for such and not much opportunity within the area. There are no mining or timber resources in the area that are economically recoverable. There are a few pockets of big timber that are higher up and harder to get to than other areas, so they are not part of the “timber base” (areas suitable for timber production). Timber companies are focused on areas outside of roadless areas which are more accessible. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) surveys in the 1970’s determined that there are isolated mineral deposits, but they are of such low concentration that they are not economically viable.

What are the threats if the area is not designated as Wilderness?

Current growth trends and future technological development could pose many threats that are hard to predict today. Areas recommended for wilderness designation by forest plans are administrative decisions, subject to shifting boundaries, and reclassification and changes in management direction as forest plans change.

Technology could increase the potential for motorized recreation which could lead to a loss of wilderness character (solitude) as well as pose negative impacts on wildlife habitat and security. Development pressures could lead to potential boundary changes.

Threats to the area could emerge in five, ten, 20 or more years. Protecting the area as Wilderness will ensure that future generations will enjoy the area the way that we do today.

What is the economic impact of Wilderness designation?

Multiple studies by Headwaters Economics and others have concluded that protected federal public lands like Wilderness areas can be an important economic asset. Wilderness preserves the “quality of life” upon which most economic growth in Western counties is currently based. People want to live close to protected lands because they want to be able to enjoy all these lands have to offer, and they know that these lands will be around for their future enjoyment because they are protected. Western counties with protected public land support above average rates of job growth, exceeding that of counties with no protected lands. Headwaters Economics has also found that there are higher levels of per capita income in places where there is more protected public land. (Protected Lands and Economics, 2016).

Management

What would change from proposed wilderness to designated Wilderness?

The Forest Service has managed the Scotchmans area as ‘recommended wilderness’ since 1987. There would be little change in on-the-ground management between the current recommended wilderness and designated Wilderness. The main difference is that with designated Wilderness, management will be more durable over time and better assure preservation of the area’s wilderness character. All traditional uses of this area — hiking, hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing, photography, and berry picking — will be preserved by Wilderness designation.

Will I be able to hunt and fish in the Scotchman Peaks after designation?

Yes. Idaho Fish and Game & Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks would still manage wildlife on public lands in their respective states. There is nothing in the Wilderness Act which limits hunting or fishing in Wilderness areas.

Speaking of animals, what animals live in the Scotchmans?

The Scotchmans are home to many threatened, endangered, and sensitive species including grizzly bear, mountain goat, bull trout, west slope cutthroat trout, Canada lynx, wolf, and wolverine. It’s also an important habitat for many other animals including bighorn sheep, white tail and mule deer, moose, elk, black bear, coyote, bobcat, cougar, martin, ermine, snowshoe hare, and dozens of bird species, both large and small.

Will the Forest Service be able to control fire, insects, and disease?

Yes. Section 4(d) of the Wilderness Act states that “such measures may be taken as necessary in the control of fires, insects and diseases” within wilderness. The Forest Service may fight fires as they deem fit in wilderness areas. They have all the same tools, techniques, and authorities to do so available to them. They may even use prescribed fire and other treatments before a major fire breaks out. Although these can be controversial and require some greater level of analysis.

Will the area be closed to off-road vehicles, snowmobiles and mountain bikes?

Yes, although access to the proposed wilderness will not change. The USFS already prohibits the use of motorized and mechanized vehicles within the area proposed for wilderness.

Does the proposal affect search and rescue operations?

No. Helicopters have landed in the Scotchman Peaks several times in recent years for health and safety purposes. Wilderness designation would not stop the use of mechanical means for rescue. Section 4(c)(1) of the Wilderness Act of 1964 allows search and rescue officials to use motorized vehicles and aircraft in “emergencies involving the health and safety of persons within the area.”

Are wheel chairs allowed in wilderness?

Yes. Section 508(c) of the Americans with Disabilities Act “reaffirms that nothing in the Wilderness Act prohibits wheelchair use in a wilderness area by an individual whose disability requires its use.”

Is Grazing allowed in Wilderness?

Yes. Section 4(d)(4) of the Wilderness Act allows existing grazing operations to continue when a wilderness area is established. However, there are currently no grazing operations in the Scotchman Peaks.

How will trails be maintained?

Long-term trail maintenance and other stewardship activities will be conducted in large part as they are today – by volunteers. The Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness are committed to training a dedicated group of volunteers about the use of traditional tools and methods such as crosscut saws, pulaskis, and hand-work for trail maintenance.

About the “Friends”

What will money I donate to Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness be spent on?

Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness is a volunteer-driven, nonprofit association with a small staff. The funds we raise go to education and outreach to bring about community awareness of the value of the Scotchmans as wilderness. Funds are also used for stewardship activities to maintain a healthy ecosystem and sustainable trails in the proposed wilderness. Visit www.scotchmanpeaks.org/stewardship/ to learn more about our stewardship activities.

Are donations tax deductible?

Yes. FSPW is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Receipts are provided for all donations, whether online or by check.

How can I find more information about Wilderness, the Wilderness Act and the Scotchmans?

There is a great deal of information about the Scotchman Peaks to be found on our website. Look under the About tab. For specific questions, write to info@scotchmanpeaks.org. To stay in the loop, become a Friend and sign up for our quarterly (electronic or hardcopy) newsletter, Peak Experience.

For specific information on the Wilderness Act and wilderness management, visit www.Wilderness.net. Wilderness.net is a public wilderness information website formed in 1996 through a collaborative partnership between the Arthur Carhart National Wilderness Training Center and the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute–the federal government’s wilderness training and research arms, respectively–and the College of Forestry and Conservation’s Wilderness Institute at the University of Montana.

You can also view The Wilderness Society’s comprehensive Wilderness Act handbook.

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