**Statement of**

**Chad Calvert**

**Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary**

**Land and Minerals Management**

**U.S. Department of the Interior**

**Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee**

**Subcommittee on Public Lands & Forests**

**S. 3636, Washington County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006**

**November 16, 2006**

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on S. 3636, the Washington
County Growth and Conservation Act of 2006. This bill attempts to
resolve a wide range of public land issues in Washington County, Utah.
We strongly support the efforts of the Utah delegation to resolve the
longstanding issues surrounding Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs) and a
number of other public land issues. The Department of the Interior
supports the goals of the legislation, but opposes provisions that
require lands to be sold, regardless of whether they have been
identified for disposal. Furthermore, the Administration believes that
all taxpayers should receive some benefit from land sales. We have
concerns with the bill's revenue distribution and will work with the
Committee during the legislative process to determine an appropriate
percentage of proceeds to be returned to the Treasury. The Department
views this legislation as a good approach to resolving some of the
identified public land issues in Washington County, Utah and wants to
continue working with the sponsors and with other interested members of
Congress on some aspects of the bill.

**[Background]{.underline}**

Washington County, Utah, located in the southwest corner of the State
bordering Nevada and Arizona, covers nearly 2,500 square miles, and has
been one of the fastest growing counties in the U.S. With a population
of only about 10,000 in the mid-1960s, today Washington County has over
100,000 residents. At the same time, more than 75 percent of the County
is Federal land, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the
U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the National Park Service (NPS). In
addition, the County includes lands held in trust by the Federal
government for the Shivwits Indian Tribe and lands owned by the State of
Utah. How those lands are managed is a critical issue to the people of
Washington County; this bill addresses a wide range of land management
policies.

A number of provisions of this legislation have the potential to impact
the Shivwits Indian Tribe with their reservation in southwestern
Washington County. The Department would urge the sponsors to resolve any
remaining issues with the Tribe regarding traditional access and other
cultural and religious issues.

The bill as introduced references maps without dates. However, we have
been informed by the sponsors of the bill that it is their intention to
reference the three regional maps dated July 18, 2006, and created by
the BLM at the request of Senator Bennett. Therefore, this testimony is
based on those maps.

**[Title I---Land Disposal]{.underline}**

Title I of S. 3636 provides for the disposal of nearly 25,000 acres of
public lands out of BLM management and into private ownership. The
Department supports the general proposition of making some public lands
available for community growth where it is necessary and appropriate,
but cannot support requirements to dispose of a specific amount of
public lands that may not be suitable for disposal.

Under S. 3636 the disposal of land would take place in three phases.
Disposal for the first two phases is by auction and, for phase three, by
auction or through exchange. In the first phase, lands are to be
disposed of within the first year after enactment of the bill (described
in section 102(h)(1)(A)(i) as "First Directed Sale" lands), and include
1,125 acres of BLM-managed land specifically identified on the map in 15
separate, mostly smaller parcels. The majority of these lands have been
preliminarily identified by the BLM for disposal through the 1999 St.
George Resource Management Plan (SGRMP). The local BLM had previously
reviewed these lands for cultural and historic issues, threatened or
endangered (T&E) species conflicts and other potential values that could
preclude a conveyance out of federal ownership, and believes that sale
of these lands can be accomplished. Surveys and appraisals will be
required; therefore an 18-month window, rather than the one year
contemplated in the bill, would be more realistic.

In the second phase, the lands to be disposed of within the five years
following the first disposal outlined above (described in section
102(b)(1) as "Directed Sale Lands") include approximately 3,262 acres
specifically identified in one small and two large parcels. Most of
these lands had been preliminarily identified for disposal through the
SGRMP. However, that identification was only preliminary. The local BLM
has been made aware of conflicts on these lands, which include cultural
resources as well as the presence of T&E species. Section 102(i) of the
legislation anticipates these problems by allowing the Secretary of the
Interior to place restrictive covenants on lands sold in order to
protect the interests of the United States, including cultural or T&E
species. The language gives the Secretary sufficient discretion and we
do not oppose it.

Finally, the third phase includes lands to be disposed of not before
2010 (described in section 102(b)(2) as "Lands Eligible for
Consideration Under Section 102 Disposal"). This includes over 372,000
acres from which at least 20,000 acres are to be identified for disposal
and sold or exchanged (no upper limit is established by the legislation
for disposal lands). The selections of the specific parcels are to be
reached jointly by the BLM and the County. The legislation specifically
excludes from consideration any lands that are designated as wilderness
by this Act, the National Conservation Area designated by this Act, or
any areas of critical environmental concern (ACECs).

I would note that without additional legislative direction, the BLM will
look to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) for
guidelines to determine the suitability of lands to be disposed. In this
case, the BLM has not yet identified 20,000 acres as suitable for
disposal in this area and believes it may be difficult to identify that
many acres that are suitable pursuant to FLPMA and in developable areas.
For example, there is a high concentration of listed threatened or
endangered species on BLM-managed land within Washington County and four
of the ten listed species are endangered plants that depend on public
land habitat to avoid extinction. Similarly the density of unique and
special cultural resources in the identified area is exceptionally high.
We recognize that the Department has discretion on the selection of
lands for disposal, but point out this may conflict with the apparent
non-discretionary target stated in Section 102(b)(2). The Department
could not support this third phase unless the bill is modified to give
BLM the flexibility to establish a discretionary disposal target through
a public process.

In addition to these concerns with the disposal language, we also have
concerns with language on the use of sales revenues. Section 103 of S.
3636 addresses the disposition of the proceeds from the sale of lands
directed in section 102. Specifically, it directs that 15 percent of the
proceeds be distributed to State and County entities, while 85 percent
would be retained by the Federal government. Among the allowed uses of
the Federal government's share are: reimbursement of costs to prepare
the lands for sale, acquisition of State and private inholdings within
the NCA proposed by Title VI, various conservation projects on Federal
land in Washington County, and other costs related to implementation of
the Act. Section 103(b) authorizes interest to be earned on amounts
deposited into the special account. As stated above, we'd like to work
with the Committee to address our concerns with this section.

In addition, the Administration does not support section 103(b), which
allows the land sales account to earn interest. The Department of the
Treasury strongly opposes such provisions, which effectively require the
Treasury to borrow more funds to pay this interest.

We would like the opportunity to address a few technical, but
nonetheless significant, issues. For example, section 102(g) would
withdraw over 375,000 acres in Washington County from the public land
laws, the mining laws, mineral leasing laws, and mineral materials laws.
Notably, this would preclude mineral materials sales for items such as
sand and gravel---critical for many infrastructure needs on an
unnecessarily broad swath of land. We would suggest modifying this
language to allow BLM to use its general segregation and withdrawal
authority once lands have been identified for disposal.

**[Title II---Wilderness Areas]{.underline}**

The bill would designate a number of wilderness areas within Washington
County including approximately 123,504 acres of wilderness to be managed
by the National Park Service within Zion National Park, approximately
92,937 acres of wilderness to be managed by the BLM in 13 individual
areas, and 2,643 acres of Forest Service wilderness. In addition, the
bill would release 11,370 acres of BLM-managed lands from Wilderness
Study Area status and would return them to the multiple public uses
authorized by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA).

The BLM-managed lands that would be designated wilderness by S. 3636
include areas of rugged beauty, solitude, and important wildlife
habitat. In the northeastern part of the County, the proposed Deep Creek
and Deep Creek North wilderness areas consist of sheer canyon walls
dropping to dramatic year-round rivers. Hanging gardens with wildflowers
compete with a variety of raptors, including bald eagles and giant
California condors, for the hiker's attention. The steep and rugged
Hurricane Cliffs form the most outstanding feature of the proposed
Blackridge Wilderness. Soaring in elevation by 2,000 feet in under a
mile, the area is a magnet for hikers, hunters and photographers.

In the southeast, Canaan Mountain's rugged topography includes peaks and
colorful vermilion cliffs which form the southern gateway to Zion
National Park. The scenic vistas available from these peaks increasingly
attract recreationists.

Within the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area (NCA) proposed by Title
VI of the bill, lie the proposed Cottonwood Canyon Wilderness on the
east and Red Mountain Wilderness on the west. The Cottonwood Canyon
Wilderness (and the adjoining Forest Service-managed Cottonwood Forest
Wilderness) forms the spectacular "front range" between the city of St.
George to the south and the Pine Valley Mountains to the north. Within
minutes of downtown St. George, this area is prized for its primitive
recreational opportunities. It lies within the Red Cliffs Desert
Reserve, which has been federally designated as habitat to protect the
threatened desert tortoise. It is also home to peregrine falcons and
state-listed species such as the Gila Monster. The aptly named Red
Mountain Wilderness provides a scenic backdrop to the communities of
Ivins and Santa Clara and is a popular destination for local citizens.

The bill also designates the Cougar Canyon Wilderness located in the
northwest corner of Washington County. Abutting the Nevada state line,
this wilderness area would connect with the Tunnel Spring Wilderness in
Lincoln County, Nevada, designated by Public Law 108-424. The area is
dominated by wooded canyons and low mountain peaks and its designation
would form a more manageable unit across state lines.

We applaud the hard work of the sponsor and other members of the Utah
delegation in reaching consensus on BLM wilderness designation and WSA
release. Congress has the sole authority to designate lands to be
managed permanently as wilderness and we believe these areas are
manageable as such. There are some technical issues related to Title II
that we would like the opportunity to clarify. We would also like the
opportunity to work with the sponsor and the Committee on possible minor
boundary adjustments to ensure efficient manageability.

S. 3636 would also designate 123,743 acres of Zion National Park as
wilderness. The lands proposed for wilderness designation are similar to
those that were included in a proposal to recommend wilderness for the
park that was originally transmitted to the President on June 5, 1974,
by then Secretary of the Interior Rogers CB Morton and in the 2001
General Management Plan (GMP) for the park. The 1974 proposal
recommended designation of 120,620 acres of the park as wilderness.

Differences in the acreage figures between the 1974 transmittal and S.
3636 are the result of land acquisition in the park that has taken place
since 1974, acquisition of water and grazing rights, and termination of
non-conforming uses. Additional lands within the park consisting of
approximately 9,000 acres, but located in Kane County, have also been
recommended for wilderness designation and were included in the 1974
transmittal and the 2001 GMP. Although the Department supports the
wilderness designation for the park included in S. 3636, we suggest that
the bill be amended to include this additional, previously recommended
wilderness so that all the lands proposed for wilderness designation
within the park are designated.

The four small units surrounding Zion National Park vary in size from 32
to 663 acres. These are logical extensions of the proposed wilderness
areas within Zion National Park and are appropriate for wilderness
designation. The legislation transfers administrative jurisdiction for
the largest of these parcels, Watchman Wilderness, to the National Park
Service but leaves the other three isolated pieces of wilderness with
the BLM. Transferring all three of these small parcels -- Beartrap
Canyon Wilderness (40 acres), Goose Creek Wilderness (98 acres), and
Taylor Creek Wilderness (32 acres) -- to the National Park Service could
make land management more efficient and would reduce confusion for the
public. Transfer of these lands to Zion will improve their management
and enhance the opportunities for visitor enjoyment of these special
areas.

**[Title III---Wild and Scenic River Designation]{.underline}**

The legislation amends the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act by adding
approximately 170 miles of segments of the Virgin River and its
tributaries within and adjacent to Zion National Park to the Wild and
Scenic Rivers system. Seven of the segments are partially or wholly on
BLM-managed lands while the remaining 32 segments are wholly within Zion
National Park. All of the segments of the rivers that are recommended
for designation as wild, scenic, or recreational rivers were found
eligible and suitable for inclusion within the Wild and Scenic River
System through the Zion National Park 2001 GMP and through the BLM St.
George Field Office Resource Management Plan completed in March 1999.
The Department supports the designation of these segments.

**[Title IV---Utility Corridors and Rights-of-Way]{.underline}**

Section 401 of the bill addresses a number of issues related to utility
corridors, transportation corridors and rights-of-way grants for
water-related facilities.

The utility corridors established under section 401(a) total over 900
linear miles at a width of approximately ½ mile in most locations. The
corridors are intended to be used for utilities, water infrastructure,
and transportation purposes. While many of the miles of corridors cross
BLM-managed public lands and Forest Service-managed lands, large
segments also cross private land, Indian tribal land, and land within
Zion National Park. The proposal indicates seven segments that cross the
Shivwits Indian Reservation. In addition, some of the corridors on the
map appear to be duplicative. We believe a close and careful review of
these corridors needs to be completed before this legislation proceeds
to markup. We note that the Secretary is allowed to collect funds from
the users of these corridors for cost-recovery, which we support.

In addition, the Secretary is charged with identifying a transportation
corridor either through or around the Red Cliffs NCA designated by Title
VI of this bill. Location of a transportation corridor in this type of
sensitive area could be problematic or controversial. The Department
would comply with NEPA and would proceed in full consultation with all
affected Federal, state and local interests on this study. We appreciate
the legislative language being clear on this point.

Finally, Title IV establishes ten areas totaling 8,844 acres as
rights-of-way for water-related projects including reservoirs, canals,
wells, storage and other related facilities. The areas range in size
from 39 acres to two large areas of 1,770 and 5,408 acres. We have a few
general concerns and one specific concern with these rights-of-way
grants.

Under Title V of FLPMA the BLM has the authority to grant rights-of-way
for a wide variety of uses including: roads, powerlines, pipelines,
communications sites and reservoirs. The applicants for these
rights-of-way pay both administrative cost recovery fees as well as
rentals. In the case of linear rights-of-way, rent is determined by a
published schedule. Rent for aereal rights-of-way is based on appraised
value. Municipal utilities are charged rent if their principal source of
revenue is customer charges.

In general, the legislation appears to allow the BLM to charge
administrative cost recovery for these grants; however it does not allow
the BLM to charge rent. We believe it is appropriate that the
legislation either allow for the payment of rent, or provide for the
outright purchase at appraised value of these lands by the water
district. In addition, the grants for use are made in perpetuity. If the
rights-of-way are not provided for outright purchase, we believe it
would be more appropriate to make these easements dependent on their
actual use and approval by any State or Federal agencies and for the
life of the facility -- so as not to permanently encumber the public
lands for projects that may never be developed.

Our greatest specific concern is that one of the areas identified for a
reservoir is in the Ft. Pearce area near the Arizona state line. A
reservoir or flood control project on this site could inundate historic
Ft. Pearce which is a National Historic Register site, as well as
parking areas, a well-used designated OHV trail, interpretive displays
and other important cultural sites including rock art panels. We believe
that there are potential sites for flood control along the Ft. Pearce
wash further upstream that would result in far less negative impacts to
the resources. We would like to work with the Committee to identify a
better site.

**[Title V---High Desert OHV Trail]{.underline}**

Title V directs the Secretary to develop a travel plan within two years
of enactment of this legislation to designate an OHV trail in Washington
County. The trail is to be established on existing roads and trails.
This trail has the potential to be a significant draw for tourism and
will allow visitors and residents another way to experience and enjoy
their public lands while hopefully minimizing OHV use outside of
designated trail networks. We support the development of this trail. The
agencies would like to combine the final travel plan and the management
plan into a single document and would request the sponsor extend the
time for developing the plan to three years.

**[Title VI---Red Cliffs National Conservation Area]{.underline}**

The Red Cliffs National Conservation Area (NCA) would be the first NCA
in the State of Utah. Each of the NCAs designated by Congress and
managed by the BLM is unique. However, for the most part, they have
certain critical elements; these include public land, mining and mineral
leasing law withdrawal, OHV-use limitations, and language that charges
the Secretary to only allow those uses which further the purposes for
which the NCA is established. Furthermore, NCA proposals do not diminish
the protections that currently apply to the lands. The Red Cliffs NCA
proposal honors this spirit and the Department supports its designation.

The proposed Red Cliffs NCA would overlay the existing Red Cliffs Desert
Reserve which was designed as a part of the Washington County Desert
Tortoise Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) adopted in 1996. The HCP
protects important Desert Tortoise habitat while also allowing continued
development in St. George and nearby communities. As directed, the BLM
has acquired nearly 8,000 acres of State and private inholdings within
the Reserve from willing sellers.

In addition to providing important habitat for the recovery of the
desert tortoise and other listed species such as the Shivwits milkvetch
and the Woundfin Minnow and Virgin River Chub, the proposed NCA is a
popular area for recreationists. Over 130 miles of trails provide
excellent opportunities for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians
while ensuring compatibility with the species' recovery. The boundaries
of the proposed NCA include nearly 44,000 acres of BLM-managed land.

There are significant cultural and historic resources within the NCA as
well as the natural resources described in the legislation. We recommend
that cultural, historic and paleontological resources protection be
added to the purposes for which the NCA is established.

**[Conclusion]{.underline}**

We would like the opportunity to work with the sponsors and the
Committee to address the issues we have raised in our testimony along
with some technical amendments. We applaud the hard work of the members
of the Utah Congressional delegation on this legislation and we look
forward to working with you to move the legislation forward.