STATEMENT OF JAMES J. EARDLEY, WASHINGTON COUNTY COMMISSIONER

Before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests

On S. 2834, the Washington County Growth & Conservation Act of 2008

April 22, 2008

Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, my name is Jim Eardley,
Chairman of the Washington County Board of Commissioners. I am here in
full support of *S. 2834, The Washington County Growth and Conservation
Act of 2008.* We are able to be here today because we have been engaged
in an extensive planning effort which has involved productive
discussions with a broad base of stakeholders. Compromise has been
necessary. Because of that, there are elements of this legislation which
give us discomfort. But the overall importance of S. 2834 overrides
those personally important items that many of us have given up in order
to create a final bill, and I would like to thank all the stakeholders
involved for their willingness to collaborate.

I also wish to thank the entire Utah Congressional delegation for their
support. I particularly want to thank Senator Bennett and Congressman
Matheson for sharing our vision and then working to advance it here in
the Congress. With their support, it has turned into the bipartisan
effort you see today.

It is very important for you to understand that S. 2834 is all about
getting something done. For the first time in Utah, we have managed to
get the right people at the table who possess a sufficient amount of
courage and a grasp of the bigger picture to finally be successful. I'm
sure you know something of the volatile nature of public land issues in
our state, much of which has played out here in the halls of Congress
like scenes from a Greek tragedy, with few positive results. But I
believe we have finally reached a point where making progress is more
important than holding to some rigid, unyielding position.

I'm grateful for that. Utah land management issues have too long been
twisting on the winds of rhetoric, contention, senseless positioning,
and fruitless debate. This legislation represents a new day in Utah
public land deliberations. The success of S. 2834 will usher in a new
era of problem solving and resolution\-\--something which is especially
important to those of us who are closest to the public lands and most
impacted by management decisions.

Washington County is experiencing tremendous growth. The U.S. Census
listed us as the fifth fastest growing county, and the fastest growing
metropolitan planning organization, in the country. Each month, around a
thousand new residents arrive in Washington County, along with tens of
thousands of visitors from all over the world, drawn by the wonderful
natural beauty of the land, the warm climate, and the diverse
recreational opportunities.

Washington County is just over 1.5 million acres, more than 29% of which
is currently under some form of special, restrictive management,
including protective habitat for twelve different threatened or
endangered species. Our legislation would add to that number of
specially-designated lands. Over 84% of our land is in Federal or State
ownership, leaving just over 15% of the total land area to accommodate
the heavy demands of growth and expansion.

It is important to note that there is no way to separate public land
issues from private land issues in a county like ours. Decisions we make
in our city and county meetings can seriously increase the burden
carried by federal land managers. And, conversely, decisions made by you
here, and by state and federal land managers can greatly impact our
lives as local citizens and leaders.

If we plan poorly or fail to address growth responsibly, the impacts on
adjacent public lands can be dramatic. On the other hand, we cannot plan
properly without taking into account the continual impacts created by
having large tracts of public lands next to us.

For example, in 2005 and again in 2006, wildfires burned out of control,
eventually covering nearly one-fourth of the County, with resulting
impacts on grazing, watershed damage, erosion, and so forth. We also
experienced devastating floods which left many stranded, some homeless,
and property damage in the tens of millions of dollars. The origin of
all these events was on our public lands.

The citizens of Washington County continue to be affected by these and
other events, and, combined with ever-changing management strategies and
ever-growing proposals for special forms of management, the impacts on
local officials, planners, and land-users can be terrific.

This legislation is part of a large effort to address these issues in
Washington County. I would like to make you aware of the extensive
planning, collaboration, and citizen involvement that has brought us to
this point. We began several years ago with a Comprehensive Land Use
Planning Project which involved many stakeholders in a working group
setting, examining and discussing the many public land challenges in
Washington County. State and federal land managers sat at the table in
advisory roles, offering invaluable insight and technical advice
regarding management challenges and potential solutions.

As an extension of that first effort, the County then engaged in a
county-wide growth planning process, which we called "Vision Dixie".
Vision Dixie is a comprehensive growth planning effort modeled after the
Envision Utah process used in some of the major communities on the
Wasatch Front and in other areas of the of the country with great
success.

This project involved over 3000 of our citizens, as well as
representatives from many stakeholder groups, in creating a county-wide
footprint for growth. Some of the results of this process were quite
predictable, some were a little surprising, but all were guided and
developed by the many citizens and stakeholders who participated. In the
end, a set of visionary "Guiding Principles" were created, which will
guide the County and all the municipalities in directing and controlling
the manner in which we grow in the future. I have included a copy of our
"Dixie Principles" with my written testimony.

Some of the elements of Vision Dixie include:

-   Maintaining the quality of our air and water

-   Conserving our precious water

-   Protecting our unique "signature" landscapes

-   Preserving our agricultural and ranching heritage

-   Preserving our open spaces

-   Creating "connectability" through a system of trails

-   Greatly improving our transportation infrastructure

-   Focusing growth inward first, contiguous next

The objectives of Vision Dixie and the overall objectives of this
legislation are very similar\-\--to protect our special places, enhance
open space, develop trails and parks, and accommodate accelerated
growth. In fact, except for this legislative effort, Vision Dixie would
never have taken place. The land sales element of S.2834 not only
provides the tools to finally deal with the private in-holdings within
the Red Hills Desert Tortoise preserve, but the 10% earmarked for the
County allows us to accomplish the very things described above, and to
implement the Vision Dixie vision in a very real way.

It is not difficult to conclude, then, that the Vision Dixie process and
this legislation are inseparably connected. The legislation empowers,
the growth planning process directs, and one cannot work to its fullest
benefit without the other. S.2834 is an excellent balance between
conservation and growth planning, and the methods we have used to create
it have been an extraordinary blend of stakeholders, citizens, state and
federal managers, local leaders, and congressional delegation
representatives.

I'm not sure I can adequately define the importance of these two efforts
to the future of Washington County in the five minutes I have been
given. I also believe that I cannot emphasize enough the possibilities
this legislation creates in finally resolving public land management
issues across the state. Clearly, it is very important that we pass S.
2834.

As I mentioned before, there has been a great deal of compromise on many
levels to reach this point, and Washington County has some concerns
about several elements of the legislation to which I would like make
reference.

First, county-wide access for all public land users is of critical
importance, and the County has a large number of RS 2477 assertions
which make up the core of our county public land transportation system.
Some of these roads may be impacted by this legislation, and the County
would like the opportunity to work with Senator Bennett and Congressman
Matheson to continue to clarify and protect these important
transportation issues and to assure that the County's interests are
protected.

Also, we have concerns regarding the land sales portion of the bill.
There are a large number of private in-holdings, particularly in the
Tortoise reserve, which have not been appropriately dealt with by the
federal government. The proceeds from the land sales are intended to
address this important issue. It is also the County's desire to do some
of the critical conservation projects which have not had adequate
funding. However, the limited number of acres remaining in this
legislation after our negotiations is hardly enough to successfully
resolve all the in-holding problems and accomplish the many conservation
projects which demand attention. The County would like the opportunity
to continue to work with the Delegation members on this matter as well.

The County is also concerned about some of the language regarding the
establishment of the National Conservation Areas, and would like to
continue to work with the Delegation members to resolve these concerns.
We would like to be sure the NCAs accomplish the purposes for which they
are being created, while protecting historic uses.

Summarily, we have worked very hard to get to this point, and there is
much good to be accomplished with the passage of S. 2834, not only for
the citizens of Washington County, but for all people who enjoy the
beauty and diversity of our public lands. But, just as important, it
establishes a format for resolving these contentious issues on a much
broader scale, and could lead to similar collaborative efforts across
the West. We strongly urge you to support this legislation. Thank you.