COEJL ACTION ALERT:

CALL YOUR SENATORS TO STOP THE PUBLIC LANDS GIVEAWAY
(07/16/03)

The Bush Administration has revived a Civil War era statute that could allow old livestock trails, footpaths, and even streambeds on our nation’s public lands to be converted into paved roads and highways. This loophole threatens the integrity of our National Parks and Monuments, Wildlife Refuges, National Forests, and even Wilderness Areas. If enacted, this rule would threaten many of our last great wild places, and endanger the already dwindling habitats necessary for the protection of America’s biodiversity. Genesis 2:15 teaches us that "The Eternal placed the Human Being in the Garden of Eden to till it and to tend it." There is no mention of paving it over.

Congress will be voting on this critical piece of legislation this Thursday, July 17 so please call your Representative today and ask him or her to support the Udall amendment to the Interior Appropriations bill to stop the giveaway of our public lands! You can find your Representative, and their contact information at www.house.gov.

BACKGROUND

• In January, the Bush Administration issued a new rule which resurrected a loophole in a 137-year-old mining law, originally intended to promote settlement in the Western states, called Revised Statute 2477 (RS2477).
• The new, “disclaimer” rule has placed our treasured National Parks, Wildlife Refuges, National Monuments and Wildness-quality lands at risk because the RS2477 loophole could spur irresponsible development—including road construction, utility lines, pipelines and cell towers on our public lands.
• Under the new rule, any foot path, stream bed or off-road trail through public land created before 1976, can be claimed by a state, county or private entity and made into a paved road or highway.
• The RS2477 loophole was justly repealed by Congress in 1976 and was replaced with an updated process for honoring existing, valid right-of-way claims on public lands.
• When the law was created, in 1866, there were no national parks or concerns about environmental damage; but today, we know about the detrimental impact of development and roads on our environment. In fact, in 1993, a memo by the National Park Service stated, “[The impact of RS 2477 claims] could be devastating…[They] could cross many miles of undisturbed fish and wildlife habitat, historical and archeological resources, and sensitive wildlands.”
• Places at risk for road development include Denali, Canyonlands, and Zion National Parks, Dinosaur National Monument, our National Wildlife Refuges, National Forests and existing wilderness study areas.
• Property rights of individual landowners—including homesteaders and ranchers—could also be jeopardized under the rule, in addition to municipalities and federal lands used for military installations.
• This arcane road statute would permit the creation of thousands of new roads in wild areas and would increase the risk of vandalism to archeological sites, expand already unmanageable use of dirt bikes, all-terrain vehicles, increase habitat fragmentation and erosion and undermine federal conservation efforts for lands that should be preserved for future generations.
• The Bush Administration’s new rule has opened Pandora’s Box and abdicated its responsibility to protect the land it holds in trust for the American people. States have already begun to claim roads under RS2477; Utah has asserted 15,000 roads and Alaska has processed 2,000. In California, San Bernardino County alone has mapped 2,567 miles of road claims.

TALKING POINTS

1. Be sure to mention that you are a constituent and an active member of the Jewish community.
2. Point out that this law was created in 1866, and repealed in 1976.
3. Under RS2477, the Bureau of Land Management can use citizen tax dollars to process state, county and private rights-of-way claims.
4. The Udall Amendment protects the environment, property rights, and taxpayers.