II

Calendar No. 455

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2137

To designate certain National Forest lands in the State of Montana as

wilderness, to release other National Forest lands in the State of Montana for multiple use management, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 19 (legislative day, MAY 16), 1994

Mr. BAUCUS introduced the following bill; which was read the first time

JUNE 7, 1994

Read the second time and placed on the calendar

A BILL

To designate certain National Forest lands in the State

of Montana as wilderness, to release other National Forest lands in the State of Montana for multiple use management, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be referred to as the ‘‘Montana

5 National Forest Management Act of 1994.’’
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

3 (1) many areas of undeveloped National Forest

4 System lands in the State of Montana possess out5 standing natural characteristics which give them

6 high value as wilderness and will, if properly pre7 served, contribute as an enduring resource of wild

8 land for the benefit of the American people;

9 (2) the existing Department of Agriculture

10 Land and Resource Management Plans for Forest

11 System lands in the State of Montana have identi12 fied areas which, on the basis of their landform, eco13 system, associated wildlife, and location will help to

14 fulfill the National Forest System’s share of a qual15 ity National Wilderness Preservation System; and

16 (3) the existing Department of Agriculture

17 Land and Resource Management Plans for National

18 Forest System lands in the State of Montana and

19 the related congressional review of such lands have

20 also identified areas that do not possess outstanding

21 wilderness attributes or possess outstanding energy,

22 mineral, timber, grazing, dispersed recreation, or

23 other values. Such areas should not be designated as

24 components of the National Wilderness Preservation

25 System but should be available for non-wilderness
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1 multiple uses under the land management planning

2 process and other applicable law.

3 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to—

4 (1) designate certain National Forest System

5 lands in the State of Montana as components of the

6 National Wilderness Preservation System, in fur7 therance of the purposes of the Wilderness Act (16

8 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), in order to preserve the wilder9 ness character of the land and to protect watersheds

10 and wildlife habitat, preserve scenic and historic re11 sources, and promote scientific research, primitive

12 recreation, solitude, and physical and mental chal13 lenge; and

14 (2) ensure that certain other National Forest

15 System lands in the State of Montana be available

16 for nonwilderness uses.

17 SEC. 3. WILDERNESS DESIGNATIONS.

18 (a) DESIGNATION.—In furtherance of the purposes of

19 the Wilderness Act of 1964, the following lands in the

20 State of Montana are designated as wilderness and, there21 fore, as components of the National Wilderness Preserva22 tion System:

23 (1) Certain lands in the Beaverhead, Bitterroot,

24 and Deerlodge National Forests, which comprise ap25 proximately twenty-nine thousand one hundred
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1 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Ana2 conda-Pintler Wilderness Additions—Proposed’’

3 (North Big Hole, Storm Lake, Upper East Fork),

4 dated September 1991, and which are hereby incor5 porated in and shall be deemed to be a part of the

6 Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness.

7 (2) Certain lands in the Beaverhead National

8 Forest, which comprise approximately twenty-five

9 thousand acres, as generally depicted on a map enti10 tled ‘‘Italian Peaks Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated

11 September 1991, and which shall be known as the

12 Italian Peaks Wilderness.

13 (3) Certain lands in the Beaverhead National

14 Forest, which comprise approximately seventy-nine

15 thousand five hundred acres, as generally depicted

16 on a map entitled ‘‘East Pioneer Wilderness—Pro17 posed’’, dated September 1991, and which shall be

18 known as the East Pioneer Wilderness.

19 (4) Certain lands in the Beaverhead National

20 Forest, Montana, comprising approximately seventy21 six thousand six hundred acres, as generally depicted

22 on a map entitled ‘‘West Big Hole Wilderness—Pro23 posed’’, dated September 1991, and which shall be

24 known as the West Big Hole Wilderness.
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1 (5) Certain lands in the Bitterroot, Deerlodge,

2 and Lolo National Forests, which comprise approxi3 mately sixty-four thousand eight hundred acres, as

4 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Stony Moun5 tain Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated November 1991,

6 and which shall be known as the Stony Mountain

7 Wilderness.

8 (6) Certain lands in the Bitterroot and Lolo

9 National Forests, which comprise approximately

10 fifty-five thousand six hundred acres, as generally

11 depicted on maps entitled ‘‘Selway-Bitterroot Wil12 derness Additions—Proposed’’, dated September

13 1991, and which are hereby incorporated in and

14 shall be deemed to be a part of the Selway-Bitter15 root Wilderness. The use of motorized equipment

16 shall be prohibited on those lands surrounding High

17 Lake which are excluded from the area designated

18 as wilderness by this paragraph, except for such

19 equipment (including access by helicopter) as the

20 Secretary determines to be necessary to allow for the

21 operation and maintenance of the impoundment lo22 cated on High Lake.

23 (7) Certain lands in the Custer National For24 est, which comprise approximately five thousand

25 eight hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map
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1 entitled ‘‘Lost Water Canyon Wilderness—Pro2 posed’’, dated September 1991, and which shall be

3 known as the Lost Water Canyon Wilderness.

4 (8) Certain lands in the Custer National For5 est, which comprise approximately six thousand

6 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Ab7 saroka Beartooth Wilderness Additions—Proposed’’

8 (Burnt Mountain, Timberline Creek, Stateline and

9 Mystic Lake), dated November 1991, and which are

10 hereby incorporated in and shall be deemed to be a

11 part of the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness.

12 (9) Certain lands in the Deerlodge and Helena

13 National Forests, which comprise approximately

14 nineteen thousand acres, as generally depicted on a

15 map entitled ‘‘Blackfoot Meadow-Electric Peak Wil16 derness—Proposed’’, dated September 1991, and

17 which shall be known as the Blackfoot Meadow Wil18 derness.

19 (10) Certain lands in the Deerlodge and Bitter20 root National Forests, which comprise approximately

21 fifty-six thousand acres, as generally depicted on a

22 map entitled ‘‘Sapphires Wilderness—Proposed’’,

23 dated November 1991, and which shall be known as

24 the Sapphires Wilderness.
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1 (11) Certain lands in the Flathead National

2 Forest, which comprise approximately thirty thou3 sand acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

4 ‘‘North Fork Wilderness—Proposed (Tuchuck and

5 Mount Hefty)’’, dated November 1991, and which

6 shall be known as the North Fork Wilderness.

7 (12) Certain lands in the Flathead, Helena,

8 Lolo, and Lewis and Clark National Forests, which

9 comprise approximately two hundred fifteen thou10 sand seven hundred acres, as generally depicted on

11 maps entitled ‘‘Arnold Bolle Additions to the Bob

12 Marshall Wilderness—Proposed’’ (Silver King-Falls

13 Creek, Renshaw, Clearwater-Monture, Deep Creek,

14 Teton High Peak, Volcano Reef, Slippery Bill, Lime15 stone Cave, and Crown Mountain), dated November

16 1991, which shall be known as the Arnold Bolle-Bob

17 Marshall Wilderness Additions and are incorporated

18 in and shall be deemed to be a part of the Bob Mar19 shall Wilderness.

20 (13) Certain lands in the Flathead National

21 Forest, which comprise approximately nine hundred

22 and sixty acres, as generally depicted on a map enti23 tled ‘‘North Mission Mountain Wilderness Addi24 tions—Proposed’’, dated September 1991, and which

25 are hereby incorporated in and shall be deemed to
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1 be a part of the North Mission Mountain Wilder2 ness.

3 (14) Certain lands in the Flathead and Lolo

4 National Forests, comprising approximately one

5 hundred and fifty-nine thousand five hundred acres,

6 as generally depicted on maps entitled ‘‘Jewel Basin/

7 Swan Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated November

8 1991. Those lands contiguous to the west slope of

9 the Bob Marshall Wilderness referred to in this

10 paragraph are hereby incorporated in and shall be

11 deemed to be a part of the Bob Marshall Wilderness,

12 while the remaining lands shall be known as the

13 Swan Crest Wilderness.

14 (15) Certain lands in the Gallatin National

15 Forest, which comprise approximately five thousand

16 five hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map

17 entitled ‘‘North Absaroka Wilderness Additions—

18 Proposed’’ Republic Mountain and Dexter Point),

19 dated November 1991, and which are hereby incor20 porated in and shall be deemed to be a part of the

21 North Absaroka Wilderness.

22 (16) Certain lands in the Gallatin National

23 Forest, which comprise approximately thirteen thou24 sand seven hundred acres, as generally depicted on

25 a map entitled ‘‘Lee Metcalf Cowboys Heaven Addi-
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1 tion—Proposed’’, dated September 1991, and which

2 are hereby incorporated in and shall be deemed to

3 be a part of the Lee Metcalf Wilderness.

4 (17) Certain lands in the Gallatin National

5 Forest, which comprise approximately twenty-two

6 thousand acres, as generally depicted on a map enti7 tled ‘‘Earthquake Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated

8 September 1991, and which shall be known as the

9 Earthquake Wilderness.

10 (18) Certain lands in the Helena National For11 est, which comprise approximately twenty-six thou12 sand acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

13 ‘‘Camas Creek Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated Sep14 tember 1991, and which shall be known as the

15 Camas Creek Wilderness.

16 (19) Certain lands in the Helena National For17 est, which comprise approximately fifteen thousand

18 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

19 ‘‘Mount Baldy Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated Sep20 tember 1991, and which shall be known as the

21 Mount Baldy Wilderness.

22 (20) Certain lands in the Helena National For23 est, Montana, which comprise approximately ten

24 thousand five hundred acres, as generally depicted

25 on a map entitled ‘‘Gates of the Mountain Wilder-
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1 ness Additions—Proposed’’ (Big Log), dated Sep2 tember 1991, and which are hereby incorporated in

3 and shall be deemed to be part of the Gates of the

4 Mountain Wilderness.

5 (21) Certain lands in the Helena National For6 est, which comprise approximately eight thousand

7 five hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map

8 entitled ‘‘Black Mountain Wilderness—Proposed’’,

9 dated September 1991, and which shall be known as

10 the Black Mountain Wilderness. The Secretary of

11 Agriculture, using existing statutory authority, shall

12 give special attention to the acquisition of non-feder13 ally owned lands within the Black Mountain Wilder14 ness.

15 (22) Certain lands in the Kootenai National

16 Forest, which comprise approximately thirty-one

17 thousand acres, as generally depicted on a map enti18 tled ‘‘Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Additions—

19 Proposed’’, dated November 1991, and which are

20 hereby incorporated in and shall be deemed to be

21 part of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness.

22 (23) Certain lands in the Kootenai National

23 Forest, which comprise approximately fifty thousand

24 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

25 ‘‘Scotchman Peaks Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated
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1 September 1991, which shall be known as the

2 Scotchman Peaks Wilderness.

3 (24) Certain lands in the Kootenai and Lolo

4 National Forests, which comprise approximately sev5 enteen thousand nine hundred acres, as generally de6 picted on a map entitled ‘‘Cateract Peak Wilder7 ness—Proposed’’, dated September 1991, which

8 shall be known as the Cateract Peak Wilderness.

9 (25) Certain lands in the Lolo and Kootenai

10 National Forests, which comprise approximately sev11 enteen thousand nine hundred acres, as generally de12 picted on a map entitled ‘‘Cube Iron/Mount Silcox

13 Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated November 1991,

14 which shall be known as the Cube Iron/Mount Silcox

15 Wilderness.

16 (26) Certain lands in the Lolo National Forest,

17 which comprise approximately ninety-four thousand

18 seven hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map

19 entitled ‘‘Great Burn Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated

20 September 1991, which shall be known as the Great

21 Burn Wilderness.

22 (27) Certain lands in the Lolo National Forest,

23 which comprise approximately sixty thousand one

24 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map enti25 tled ‘‘Quigg Peak Wilderness—Proposed’’, dated
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1 September 1991, which shall be known as the Quigg

2 Peak Wilderness.

3 (b) MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS.—(1) The Sec4 retary of Agriculture (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Sec5 retary’’) shall file the maps referred to in this section and

6 legal descriptions of each wilderness area designated by

7 this section with the Committee on Energy and Natural

8 Resources of the United States Senate and the Committee

9 on Interior and Insular Affairs of the United States House

10 of Representatives, and each such map and legal descrip11 tion shall have the same force and effect as if included

12 in this Act.

13 (2) The Secretary may correct clerical and typo14 graphical errors in the maps and the legal descriptions

15 submitted pursuant to this section.

16 (3) Each map and legal description referred to in this

17 section shall be on file and available for public inspection

18 in the office of the Chief of the Forest Service, Washing19 ton, D.C. and at the office of the Region I Forester, Mis20 soula, Montana.

21 (c) ADMINISTRATION.—Subject to valid existing

22 rights, each wilderness area designated by this section

23 shall be administered by the Secretary of Agriculture in

24 accordance with the provisions of the Wilderness Act of

25 1964, except that, with respect to any area designated in
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1 this section, any reference to the effective date of the Wil2 derness Act shall be deemed to be a reference to the date

3 of enactment of this Act.

4 (d) WILDERNESS AREA PERIMETERS.—Congress

5 does not intend that the designation of wilderness areas

6 in this section will lead to the creation of protective perim7 eters or buffer zones around such areas. The fact that

8 nonwilderness activities or uses can be seen or heard from

9 areas within a wilderness area shall not, of itself, preclude

10 such activities or uses up to the boundary of the wilder11 ness area.

12 (e) GRAZING.—The grazing of livestock, where estab13 lished prior to the date of enactment of this Act, in wilder14 ness areas designated in this section shall be administered

15 in accordance with section 4(d)(4) of the Wilderness Act

16 of 1964 and section 108 of an Act entitled ‘‘An Act to

17 designate certain National Forest System Lands in the

18 States of Colorado, South Dakota, Missouri, South Caro19 lina, and Louisiana for inclusion in the National Wilder20 ness Preservation System, and for other purposes’’ (94

21 Stat. 3271; 16 U.S.C. 1133 note).

22 (f) STATE FISH AND GAME AUTHORITY.—In accord23 ance with section 4(d)(7) of the Wilderness Act of 1964,

24 nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting the ju25 risdiction or responsibilities of the State of Montana with
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1 respect to wildlife and fish in the national forests of

2 Montana.

3 (g) HUNTING.—Subject to applicable law, Congress

4 recognizes hunting as a legitimate and beneficial activity

5 within wilderness areas designated in this section. Nothing

6 in this Act or the Wilderness Act of 1964 shall be con7 strued to prohibit hunting in such areas.

8 (h) COLLECTION DEVICES.—(1) Within the wilder9 ness areas designated in this section, neither the Wilder10 ness Act of 1964 or this Act shall be construed to prevent

11 the installation and maintenance of hydrological, meteoro12 logical, or climatological collection devices and ancillary fa13 cilities subject to such conditions as the Secretary deems

14 desirable, where such facilities or access are essential to

15 flood warning, flood control, and water reservoir operation

16 purposes.

17 (2) Access to the devices and facilities described in

18 paragraph (1) shall be by the means historically used, if

19 that method is the least intrusive practicable means

20 available.

21 SEC. 4. WATER RIGHTS.

22 (a) FINDING.—The Congress finds that the waters

23 within the wilderness areas designated by section 3 of this

24 Act are headwaters, and accordingly, this Act has no effect
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1 on the appropriation or adjudication of waters within the

2 State of Montana under applicable law.

3 (b) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act

4 is intended or shall be construed—

5 (1) to affect the downstream appropriation or

6 adjudication of water;

7 (2) to affect existing water rights as provided

8 under Montana State law;

9 (3) to affect the determination of express or im10 plied reserved water rights as determined under

11 other laws; or

12 (4) as establishing a precedent with regard to

13 any future wilderness designations or any interpreta14 tion of any other Act or wilderness designation.

15 SEC. 5. RELEASE TO NONWILDERNESS MULTIPLE USE.

16 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

17 (1) the Department of Agriculture has ade18 quately met the wilderness study requirements of

19 Public Law 94–557;

20 (2) the Land and Resource Management Plans

21 and associated Environmental Impact Statements

22 (hereinafter referred to as ‘‘Land and Resource

23 Management Plans’’) for all the National Forests in

24 the State of Montana have been completed as re25 quired by section 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Re-
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1 newable Resources Planning Act of 1974, as amend2 ed by the National Forest Management Act of 1976;

3 (3) the Department of Agriculture, with sub4 stantial public input, has reviewed the wilderness po5 tential of these and other areas; and

6 (4) the Congress has made its own examination

7 of National Forest System roadless areas in the

8 State of Montana and of the environmental and eco9 nomic impacts associated with alternative allocations

10 of such areas.

11 (b) On the basis of such review, the Congress deter12 mines and directs that—

13 (1) without otherwise passing on the question of

14 the legal and factual sufficiency of the Land and Re15 source Management Plans and their associated envi16 ronmental impact statements for National Forest

17 System lands in the State of Montana completed

18 prior to the enactment of this Act, prior to the revi19 sion of such Plans, decisions to allocate roadless

20 areas to wilderness or nonwilderness categories, and

21 the environmental analyses directly related to such

22 allocations shall not be subject to judicial review:

23 (A) Provided, however, That, except for de24 cisions allocating lands to wilderness and

25 nonwilderness categories, nothing in this section
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1 shall preclude judicial review of Department of

2 Agriculture decisions implementing such Plans

3 or decisions made concerning the management

4 of National Forest lands subsequent to their

5 allocation to wilderness and nonwilderness

6 categories:

7 (B) Provided further, That, except for deci8 sions allocating lands to wilderness and

9 nonwilderness categories, nothing in this section

10 shall preclude judicial review of Forest Service

11 regional guides and other departmental policies

12 of general applicability, nor prevent a court

13 from invalidating forest planning decisions

14 which fail to comply with applicable law;

15 (2) except as specifically provided in sections 3,

16 6, 7, 8, and 9 of this Act and in Public Law 95–

17 150, with respect to the National Forest System

18 lands in the State of Montana which were reviewed

19 by the Department of Agriculture under Public Law

20 94–557, the unit plans that were in effect prior to

21 completion of RARE II, the 1978 Forest Plan for

22 the Beaverhead National Forest, and the Land and

23 Resource Management Plans, that such reviews shall

24 be deemed an adequate consideration of the suit25 ability of such lands for inclusion in the National
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1 Wilderness Preservation System, and the Depart2 ment of Agriculture shall not be required to review

3 the wilderness option prior to the revision of the

4 Land and Resource Management Plans, but shall re5 view the wilderness option when such plans are re6 vised, which revisions will ordinarily occur on a ten7 year cycle, or at least every fifteen years, unless

8 prior to that time the Secretary finds that conditions

9 in a unit have significantly changed;

10 (3) those National Forest System lands in the

11 State of Montana referred to in paragraph (2) of

12 this subsection which were not designated as wilder13 ness, special management, national recreation or wil14 derness study areas by this Act shall be managed for

15 multiple use in accordance with land and resource

16 management plans pursuant to section 6 of the For17 est and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning

18 Act, as amended by the National Forest Manage19 ment Act, and those areas need not be managed for

20 the purpose of protecting their suitability for wilder21 ness designation prior to or during revision of the

22 initial Land and Resource Management Plans;

23 (4) if revised Land and Resource Management

24 Plans for the National Forest System lands in the

25 State of Montana are implemented pursuant to sec-
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1 tion 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Re2 sources Planning Act, as amended by the National

3 Forest Management Act and other applicable law,

4 areas not recommended for wilderness designation

5 need not be managed for the purpose of protecting

6 their suitability for wilderness designation prior to

7 or during revision of such plans, and areas rec8 ommended for wilderness designation shall be man9 aged for the purpose of protecting their suitability

10 for wilderness designation as may be required by the

11 Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Plan12 ning Act, as amended by the National Forest Man13 agement Act, and other applicable law; and

14 (5) unless expressly authorized by Congress, the

15 Department of Agriculture shall not conduct any

16 further statewide roadless area review and evalua17 tion of National Forest System lands in the State of

18 Montana for purposes of determining their suit19 ability for inclusion in the National Wilderness Pres20 ervation System.

21 (c) As used in this section, and as provided in section

22 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Plan23 ning Act, as amended by the National Foreign Manage24 ment Act, the term ‘‘revision’’ shall not include an amend25 ment to a land and resource management plan.
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1 (d) Except as where specifically provided elsewhere

2 in this Act, the provisions of this section shall also apply

3 to those National Forest System roadless lands in the

4 State of Montana which are less than five thousand acres

5 in size.

6 (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph

7 (b)(2) of this section, the requirements of Public Law 95–

8 150 are deemed to be satisfied with respect to the Sap9 phire and Middle Fork of the Judith Wilderness study

10 areas.

11 SEC. 6. SPECIAL MANAGEMENT AREAS.

12 (a) For the purposes of conserving, protecting and

13 enhancing the exceptional scenic, fish and wildlife, biologi14 cal, educational and recreational values of certain National

15 Forest System lands in the State of Montana, the follow16 ing designations are made:

17 (1) The Mount Helena National Education and

18 Recreation Area located in the Helena National For19 est, comprising approximately three thousand nine

20 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map enti21 tled ‘‘Mount Helena National Education and Recre22 ation Area—Proposed’’, dated September 1991.

23 (2) The Hyalite National Education and Recre24 ation Area located in the Gallatin National Forest,

25 comprising approximately eighteen thousand nine
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1 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map enti2 tled ‘‘Hyalite National Recreation and Education

3 Area—Proposed’’, dated September 1991.

4 (3) The Northwest Peak National Recreation

5 and Scenic area located in the Kootenai National

6 Forest, comprising approximately sixteen thousand

7 seven hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map

8 entitled ‘‘Northwest Peak National Recreation and

9 Scenic Area—Proposed’’, dated September 1991.

10 (4) The Buckhorn Ridge National Recreation

11 Area located in the Kootenai National Forest, com12 prising approximately twenty thousand acres, as

13 generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Buckhorn

14 Ridge National Recreation Area—Proposed’’, dated

15 September 1991.

16 (5) The Tenderfoot/Deep Creek National Recre17 ation Area located in the Lewis and Clark National

18 Forest, comprising approximately fifty thousand

19 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Ten20 derfoot/Deep Creek National Recreation Area—Pro21 posed’’, dated November 1991.

22 (b) The Secretary shall file the maps referred to in

23 this section with the Committee on Energy and Natural

24 Resources, United States Senate, and the Committee on

25 interior and Insular Affairs, United States House of Rep-
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1 resentatives, and each such map shall have the same force

2 and effect as if included in this Act: Provided, That correc3 tion of clerical and typographical errors in such maps may

4 be made. Each such map shall be on file and available

5 for public inspection in the office of the Chief of the Forest

6 Service and the office of the Region I Forester.

7 (c)(1) Except as otherwise may be provided in this

8 subsection, the Secretary shall administer the areas des9 ignated in subsection (a) so as to achieve the purposes

10 of their designation as national recreation areas in accord11 ance with the laws and regulations applicable to the Na12 tional Forest System.

13 (2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), all

14 federally owned lands within the areas designated in sub15 section (a) are hereby withdrawn from all forms of entry,

16 appropriation and disposal under the mining and public

17 land laws, and disposition under the geothermal and min18 eral leasing laws.

19 (B) The Secretary, under such reasonable regulations

20 as he deems appropriate, may permit the removal of the

21 nonleasable minerals from lands or interests in lands with22 in the areas designated in subsection (a) in the manner

23 described by section 10 of the Act of August 4, 1939, as

24 amended (43 U.S.C. 387), and he may permit the removal

25 of leasable minerals from lands or interests in lands within
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1 the recreation areas in accordance with the mineral leasing

2 laws, if he finds that such dispostiion would not have sig3 nificant adverse effects on the administration of the recre4 ation areas.

5 (C) Nothing in this subsection shall affect valid exist6 ing rights within the areas designated in subsection (a).

7 (3) Management activities may be permitted by the

8 Secretary if compatible with the purposes for which the

9 areas are designated: Provided, That nothing in this Act

10 shall preclude such measures which the Secretary, in his

11 discretion, deems necessary in the event of fire, or infesta12 tion of insects or disease.

13 (4) Where the Secretary determines that such use is

14 compatible with the purposes for which an area is des15 ignated, the use of motorized equipment shall be permitted

16 in the areas subject to applicable law and applicable land

17 and resource management plans.

18 (5) The grazing of livestock, where established prior

19 to the date of enactment of this Act shall be permitted

20 to continue subject to applicable law and regulations of

21 the Secretary.

22 (d) The Secretary shall manage the Mount Helena

23 and Hyalite National Education and Recreation Areas

24 with a focus on education. All management activities shall

25 be conducted in a manner that provides the public with
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1 an opportunity to become better informed about natural

2 resource protection and management.

3 (e) Those areas established pursuant to subsection

4 (a) shall be administered as components of the national

5 forests wherein they are located. Land and resource man6 agement plans for the affected national forests prepared

7 in accordance with the Forest and Rangeland Renewable

8 Resources Planning Act, as amended by the National For9 est Management Act, shall emphasize achieving the pur10 poses for which the areas are designated.

11 SEC. 7. ELKHORNS NATIONAL RECREATION AND WILDLIFE

12 AREA.

13 (a)(1) The area of the Helena and Deerlodge Na14 tional Forests comprising approximately one hundred sev15 enty-five thousand seven hundred acres, as generally de16 picted on a map entitled ‘‘Elkhorns National Recreation

17 and Wildlife Area—Proposed’’, dated September 1991, is

18 hereby designated as a national recreation and wildlife

19 area and shall hereafter be managed as a national recre20 ation area that emphasizes enhancement of big game habi21 tat. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the Sec22 retary shall administer the area so as to achieve the pur23 poses of its designation as a national recreation and wild24 life area. Where compatible with such emphasis, and con25 sistent with applicable law and applicable land and re-
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1 source management plans, management also shall provide

2 for recreational opportunities (including, but not limited

3 to, opportunities for motorized recreation) and the mainte4 nance and enhancement of habitat for nongame species.

5 Hunting shall be permitted within the area subject to ap6 plicable State and Federal law.

7 (2) Those lands within the Elkhorns National Recre8 ation and Wildlife Area designated as ‘‘Elkhorns-2’’ on the

9 map referenced in paragraph (1) shall, notwithstanding

10 any other provision of this section, remain roadless. Mo11 torized equipment may be used by the Secretary, or other

12 public agencies with the approval of the Secretary, after

13 public notice and opportunity for comment and a finding

14 by the Secretary that such use is required for habitat im15 provement for fish and wildlife. Any area disturbed by

16 such motorized equipment shall be restored to contour and

17 revegetated with appropriate native plant species as expe18 ditiously as possible.

19 (b) The Secretary shall file the map referred to in

20 this section with the Committee on Energy and Natural

21 Resources of the United States Senate, and the Committee

22 on Interior and Insular Affairs of the United States House

23 of Representatives, and the map shall have the same force

24 and effect as if included in this Act: Provided, That correc25 tion of clerical and typographical errors in the map may
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1 be made. The map shall be on file and available for public

2 inspection in the office of the Chief of the Forest Service,

3 Department of Agriculture.

4 (c) Subject to valid existing rights, all federally owned

5 lands within the area designed as ‘‘Elkhorns-2’’ are hereby

6 withdrawn from all forms of entry, appropriation and dis7 posal under the mining and public land laws, and disposi8 tion under the geothermal and mineral leasing laws.

9 (d) Management activities may be permitted by the

10 Secretary if compatible with the purposes for which the

11 Elkhorns National Recreation and Wildlife Area is des12 ignated: Provided, That nothing in this section shall pre13 clude such measures which the Secretary, in his discretion,

14 deems necessary in the event of fire, or infestation of in15 sects or disease.

16 (e) The Elkhorns National Recreation and Wildlife

17 Area established pursuant to this section shall be adminis18 tered as a component of the Helena and Deerlodge Na19 tional Forests. Land and resource management plans for

20 these National Forests prepared in accordance with the

21 Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning

22 Act, as amended by the National Forest Management Act,

23 shall emphasize achieving the purposes for which the area

24 is designated.
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1 SEC. 8. WILDERNESS STUDY AREAS.

2 (a) DESIGNATION.—The following areas are hereby

3 designated as wilderness study areas and shall be man4 aged in accordance with the provisions of this section:

5 (1) Certain lands in the Custer National For6 est, comprising approximately seventeen thousand

7 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Line

8 Creek Plateau Wilderness Study Area—Proposed’’,

9 dated September 1991.

10 (2) Certain lands on the Gallatin National For11 est, comprising approximately twenty-one thousand

12 five hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map

13 entitled ‘‘Sawtooth Mountain Wilderness Study

14 Area—Proposed’’, dated September 1991.

15 (3) Certain lands in the Lolo National Forest

16 which comprise approximately twenty-two thousand

17 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

18 ‘‘Sheep Mountain Wilderness Study Area—Pro19 posed’’, dated November 1991.

20 (4) Certain lands in the Flathead National For21 est which comprise approximately thirty eight thou22 sand acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

23 ‘‘Thompson-Seton Wilderness Study Area—Pro24 posed’’, dated November 1991.

25 (b) Not later than five years after the date of enact26 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a report to
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1 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the

2 United States Senate and the Committee on Interior and

3 Insular Affairs of the United States House of Representa4 tives containing recommendations as to whether the areas

5 designated in subsection (a) should be added as compo6 nents of the National Wilderness Preservation System.

7 (c)(1) Subject to valid existing rights and except as

8 provided in paragraph (2), the wilderness study areas des9 ignated in subsection (a) shall be managed to protect their

10 suitability for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preser11 vation System for a period of seven years from the date

12 of enactment of this Act. At the end of such seven-year

13 period, the areas shall be managed, subject to valid exist14 ing rights, in accordance with the applicable land and re15 source management plans.

16 (2) Subject to valid existing rights, the Thompson17 Seton Wilderness study area shall be managed to protect

18 its suitability for inclusion in the National Wilderness

19 Preservation System until Congress determines otherwise.

20 (d) The Secretary shall file the maps referred to in

21 this section with the Committee on Interior and Insular

22 Affairs, United States House of Representatives, and the

23 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United

24 States Senate, and each such map shall have the same

25 force and effect as if included in this Act: Provided, That
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1 correction of clerical and typographical errors in these

2 maps may be made. Each map shall be on file and avail3 able for public inspection in the office of the Chief of the

4 Forest Service and the Region I Forester.

5 SEC. 9. BADGER-TWO MEDICINE AREA.

6 (a)(1) Subject to valid existing rights, all federally

7 owned lands as depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Badger-Two

8 Medicine Area’’, dated September 1991, comprising ap9 proximately one hundred sixteen thousand six hundred

10 acres, are withdrawn from all forms of entry, appropria11 tion, and disposal under the mining and public land laws

12 and from disposition under the geothermal and mineral

13 leasing laws. Until otherwise directed by Congress, the

14 Secretary shall manage this area so as to protect its cur15 rently existing wilderness qualities.

16 (2) Nothing in this section shall preclude the gather17 ing of timber by the Blackfeet Tribe (the ‘‘Tribe’’) in exer18 cise of valid treaty rights within the Badger-Two Medicine

19 Area.

20 (3)(A) With respect to oil and gas leases on Federal

21 lands within the Badger-Two Medicine Area, no surface

22 disturbance shall be permitted pursuant to such leases

23 until Congress determines otherwise.

24 (B) Notwithstanding any other law, the term of any

25 oil and gas lease subject to the limitations imposed by this
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1 section shall be extended for a period of time equal to the

2 term that such limitation remains in effect.

3 (b) The Secretary shall conduct a review of this area

4 in accordance with the Wilderness Act of 1964 and the

5 following provisions. Not later than five years after the

6 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall report

7 his findings to Congress. In conducting this review:

8 (1) The Secretary shall establish a committee

9 composed of representatives of the Blackfeet Tribal

10 Business Council, the Blackfeet Tribal traditional11 ists, the National Park Service, and representatives

12 of the user public including environmental groups

13 and representatives of user industry groups (the

14 ‘‘committee’’). The committee shall regularly advise

15 the Secretary during the preparation of the report

16 required in subsection (b) and submit its findings to

17 Congress concurrently with those of the Secretary.

18 (2) Special consideration shall be given to the

19 religious, wilderness and wildlife uses of the area,

20 taking into account any treaties the United States

21 has entered into with the Blackfeet Nation.

22 (3) In consultation with the committee, the Sec23 retary shall establish a process to provide informa24 tion to the Tribe and interested public about options
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1 for future designation of the Badger-Two Medicine

2 Area.

3 SEC. 10. LANDS ADMINISTERED BY BUREAU OF LAND MAN4 AGEMENT.

5 (a) FINDING.—The Congress has reviewed the suit6 ability of the Bitter Creek Wilderness Study Area (MT–

7 064–356, BLM Wilderness Study Number) and approxi8 mately two thousand five hundred acres of the Axolotl

9 Lakes Wilderness Study Area (MT–076–069, BLM Wil10 derness Study Number) as generally depicted on a map

11 entitled ‘‘Axolotl Lakes WSA’’, dated March 1990, for wil12 derness designation and finds that those lands have been

13 sufficiently studied for wilderness pursuant to section 603

14 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976

15 (43 U.S.C. 1782).

16 (b) DIRECTION.—The areas described in subsection

17 (a) shall no longer be subject to the requirement of section

18 603(c) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act

19 of 1976 pertaining to management in a manner that does

20 not impair suitability for preservation as wilderness.

21 (c) Administrative jurisdiction over those lands des22 ignated as wilderness pursuant to paragraphs (3) and (26)

23 of section 3(a) of this Act, and which, as of the date of

24 enactment of this Act, are administered by the Bureau
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1 of Land Management, is hereby transferred to the Forest

2 Service.

3 SEC. 11. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

4 (a) Those lands comprising the Rattlesnake National

5 Recreation Area and Wilderness, as designated in Public

6 Law 96–476 are hereby redesignated as the ‘‘Rattlesnake

7 National Education and Recreation Area and Wilderness’’.

8 (b) Those lands comprising approximately twenty

9 four thousand acres, as generally depicted on a map enti10 tled ‘‘Gibson Reservoir Withdrawal Area—Proposed’’,

11 dated November 1991, are hereby withdrawn from all

12 forms of entry, appropriation and disposal under the min13 ing and public land laws, and disposition under the geo14 thermal and mineral leasing laws.

15 (c) All acreages cited in this Act are approximate and

16 in the event of discrepancies between cited acreage and

17 the lands depicted on referenced maps, the maps shall

18 control.

19 (d) It is the policy of Congress that the Forest Serv20 ice acquire and maintain reasonable public access to Na21 tional Forest System lands in the State of Montana.

22 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

23 There are authorized to be appropriated—

24 (1) such sums as are necessary for the develop25 ment of a wilderness education and ranger training
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1 complex at the Ninemile Ranger Station, Lolo Na2 tional Forest, Montana; and

3 (2) such sums as are necessary to carry out this

4 Act.

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Calendar No. 455

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2137

A BILL

To designate certain National Forest lands in the

poses.for multiple use management, and for other purNational Forest lands in the State of MontanaState of Montana as wilderness, to release other

JUNE 7, 1994

Read the second time and placed on the calendar