practices, and the productive potential of the lands
and waters of these areas has been reduced by devel-
opment activities.
(2) Recovery activities are required to reverse
severe damage to native fish and wildlife populations
and water quality in these areas.
(3) Recovery work associated with these areas
will create new job opportunities for local commu-
nities, assist in the economic transition ongoing in
the region, and contribute to the economic sustain-
ability of these rural areas by restoring the produc-
tive capability of the land.
SEC. 502. NATIONAL WILDLAND RESTORATION AND RECOV-
ERY SYSTEM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established
the National Wildland Restoration and Recovery System.
(b) COMPONENTS.—The following areas, as depicted
on the maps dated January 1, 1997, and entitled ‘‘Na-
tional Wildland Restoration and Recovery Area’’, shall be
components of the National Wildland Recovery and Res-
toration System and may be referred to as recovery areas:
Recovery areas
Acres
National Forest
Skyland ............................................
10,126
Flathead National Forest
Hungry 
Horse 
(except 
Hungry
Horse Dam and Reservoir).
204,981
Flathead National Forest
Lolo Creek .......................................
59,398
Lolo/Clearwater National Forests
Yellowstone West .............................
164,445
Targhee National Forest
Mt. Leidy .........................................
69,912
Bridger/Teton National Forests
Cabinet/Yaak ...................................
99,591
Kootenai National Forest
Lightning Creek ..............................
30,722
Panhandle National Forest
Recovery areas
Acres
National Forest
Coeur d’Alene River ........................
372,072
Panhandle National Forest
Magruder Corridor ..........................
11,522
Nez Perce/Bitterroot National For-
ests
Area Total ...............................
1,022,769
SEC. 503. MANAGEMENT OF RECOVERY SYSTEM.
(a) MANAGEMENT DURING RECOVERY.—
(1) RESTORATION.—All lands within the Recov-
ery System shall be managed so as to restore their
native vegetative cover and species diversity, stabilize
slopes and soils to prevent or reduce further erosion,
recontour slopes to their original contours, remove
barriers to natural fish spawning runs, and generally
restore, as much as possible, such lands to their nat-
ural condition as existed prior to their entry and de-
velopment.
(2) WATER
QUALITY
RESTORATION.—In the
management of Recovery System lands, special con-
sideration shall be given to restoration of water qual-
ity in the Recovery System.
(3) MANAGEMENT
METHODS.—Recovery Sys-
tem lands shall be managed using methods such as
road obliteration, planting of trees and other vegeta-
tion native to the lands, and removal by heavy
equipment of sediment from streambeds. Existing
methods developed by the Forest Service, the Na-
tional Park Service, and other persons shall be con-
sidered and, when appropriate, applied to the lands
within the Recovery System. To the extent prac-
ticable, the Secretary shall carry out this section
using existing, available equipment. When renting or
leasing heavy equipment necessary for recovery ef-
forts pursuant to this section, the Secretary shall
use local contractors to the extent practicable.
(b) POST RECOVERY MANAGEMENT.—When recovery
is achieved for a component of the Recovery System, the
Forest Service shall evaluate the suitability of such compo-
nent for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation
System or for other uses consistent with the purposes of
this Act. The Forest Service shall make a recommendation
concerning the future management status of the compo-
nent, and shall submit the recommendation and an evalua-
tion to the Congress. The evaluation shall be conducted
in the same manner as, and subject to the same require-
ments that apply to, the preparation of an environmental
impact statement under section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental 
Policy 
Act 
of 
1969 
(42 
U.S.C.
4332(2)(C)). The evaluation shall include documentation
of the component’s values as wilderness and as wildlife
habitat, its role in maintaining water quality and native
biodiversity, its role in the forest reserve system, a list of
alternative designations for the component consistent with
the purposes of this Act, and a roadless inventory for the
component. No provision of this subsection shall be con-
strued to diminish the responsibilities of the Secretary of
Agriculture with respect to land and resource management
plans under section 6 of the Forest and Rangeland Renew-
able Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1604).
SEC. 504. NATIONAL WILDLAND RECOVERY CORPS.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established a
special unit of the Forest Service, to be known as the Na-
tional Wildland Recovery Corps. The National Wildland
Recovery Corps shall hire the necessary personnel and
purchase the necessary equipment to carry out its land
recovery responsibilities under this title.
(b) RECOVERY PLANS.—The National Wildland Re-
covery Corps shall be responsible for the development of
a wildland recovery plan for each area of the Recovery
System. Each recovery plan shall detail necessary work
and funding requirements needed to implement the man-
agement direction established under section 503. Each re-
covery plan shall take into account the specific conditions
of an area in the Recovery System, including soil type,
slope, native species composition, road densities, forest
cover, the number of road crossings and culverts, and
when possible, predevelopment conditions. Each recovery
plan shall set forth definite timelines for expected recovery
of the area to which the plan applies, including a list of
management activities planned each year, with projected
dates for recovery. Each recovery plan shall map out the
portion, within the area of the Recovery System to which
the plan applies, which will be recovered using active man-
agement efforts, as well as the portion of such area in
which natural recovery will occur.
(c) EVALUATION.—The National Wildland Recovery
Corps shall use measurable criteria to judge the success
of recovery efforts taken pursuant to this section. Such
criteria shall include the results of sediment monitoring,
reductions in open and total road densities, percent forest
cover, increase in stream mileage available to native fish
migrations, the results of hydrological measurements to
determine water flow rates for key watersheds, and the
abundance of management indicator species that are indic-
ative of ecosystem health.
(d) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be
necessary to carry out this section.
TITLE VI—IMPLEMENTATION
AND MONITORING
SEC. 601. IMPLEMENTATION REPORT.
(a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Within 3 years after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretaries of Inte-
rior and Agriculture shall jointly submit to the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives
a report that details the implementation of this Act. The
report shall also detail any additional work and funding
requirements necessary to achieve the purposes of this
Act.
(b) PREPARATION.—The report shall be produced by
a panel of independent scientists appointed by the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences, in consultation with the Soci-
ety for Conservation Biology.
SEC. 602. INTERAGENCY TEAM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Agriculture
and Secretary of the Interior shall jointly establish an
interagency team, containing equal numbers of partici-
pants from the public and private sectors, to monitor,
evaluate, and make recommendations to ensure long-term
results required by this Act.
(b) GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM.—
(1) DEVELOPMENT.—The interagency team
shall develop a geographic information system for
monitoring the Northern Rockies Bioregion. The ge-
ographic information system shall be based on sat-
ellite-gathered data and shall include comprehensive
maps and databases to assist in the detection of
changes in the Northern Rockies Bioregion.
(2) TYPES OF INFORMATION.—The maps and
databases included in the geographic information
system shall be updated periodically to record the
following:
(A) Vegetation cover (with species occur-
rence and densities).
(B) Human impacts.
(C) Water and air quality.
(D) Activities that bear on forest hus-
bandry and restoration.
(3) STATUS REPORTS.—The geographic infor-
mation system shall include status reports on the
progress of ecosystem protection, corridor consolida-
tion, and forest recovery efforts and reports on the
status of threatened and endangered species which
are primary indicators of ecosystem health.
(c) WILDLIFE MOVEMENTS.—The interagency team
shall assess the potential for facilitating wildlife move-
ments across or under major highways and rail lines with-
in the biological corridors established in title II. This as-
sessment shall identify major crossing points and identify
possible management actions to enhance the suitability of
such crossing points as movement corridors, including
underpasses, overpasses, and other methods for reducing
the danger to native wildlife while facilitating movements
within the Northern Rockies Bioregion.
SEC. 603. ROADLESS LANDS EVALUATION.
(a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—Roadless lands that
are located within the National Forest System in the State
of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, or Wyoming and
that are not designated as components of the National
Wilderness Preservation System (under this or any other
Act) shall be identified and evaluated by the panel of inde-
pendent scientists appointed under section 601. In identi-
fying and evaluating these lands, the panel shall make use
of existing satellite information and Geographic Informa-
tion System data developed by the Forest Service, the Bu-
reau of Land Management, and the United States Fish
and Wildlife Service, in addition to other information
sources. The panel shall study the role of such lands in
maintaining biological diversity in the Northern Rockies
and as part of the overall forest reserve system. The panel
shall make recommendations regarding the management
of the lands, and shall include the recommendations in the
report required by section 601.
(b) PROHIBITION.—Until the Congress enacts a law
stating otherwise, no new road construction or reconstruc-
tion, or timber harvest (except firewood gathering) shall
be allowed in the lands described in subsection (a). Addi-
tionally, no oil or gas leasing, mining, or other develop-
ment which impairs the natural and roadless qualities of
these lands shall be allowed on the lands.
SEC. 604. REVIEW OF GOALS AND MANDATES OF FEDERAL
NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT AND REVIEW.—The Secretary
of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior shall joint-
ly establish a governmental review board, containing equal
numbers of participants from the public and private sec-
tors, to review the goals and mandates of all Federal agen-
cies that are responsible for natural resource management.
(b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—On the basis of the review
conducted under subsection (a), the governmental review
board shall prepare and submit to the Congress a report
containing recommendations to legally restate and unify
the resource management mandates of Federal agencies.
These recommendations shall be guided by holistic and sci-
entific methods of resource management, and shall seek
to ensure the long-term health of the Northern Rockies
Bioregion’s ecology for this and future generations. The
report shall be submitted to the Congress at the same time
that the report required by section 601 is submitted.
SEC. 605. NATIVE AMERICAN USES.
(a) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section and
section 606, the term ‘‘protected areas’’ means the Wilder-
ness areas, National Park and Preserve Study areas,
Wildland Recovery areas, Wild and Scenic Rivers, and bio-
logical corridors designated by this Act.
(b) NONEXCLUSIVE ACCESS.—In recognition of the
past use of portions of the protected areas by Native
Americans for traditional cultural and religious purposes,
the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Inte-
rior shall ensure nonexclusive access to these protected
areas by native people for such traditional cultural and
religious purposes. Such access shall be consistent with the
purpose and intent of Public Law 95–341 (42 U.S.C.
1996; commonly known as the American Indian Religious
Freedom Act). The Secretaries, in accordance with such
Act, upon request of an Indian tribe, may from time-to-
time temporarily close to the general public use of one or
more specific portions of these protected areas in order
to protect the privacy of religious activities and cultural
uses in such portions by an Indian people. As part of the
preparation of general management plans for the pro-
tected areas, the Secretaries shall request that the chief
executive officers of appropriate Indian tribes make rec-
ommendations with respect to assuring access to impor-
tant sites, enhancing the privacy of traditional cultural
and religious activities, and protecting cultural and reli-
gious sites.
(c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT.—The Forest Service
and Bureau of Land Management shall enter into coopera-
tive management agreements with the appropriate Indian
tribes to assure protection of religious, burial, and gather-
ing sites in the protected areas, and shall work coopera-
tively on the management of all uses in the protected areas
that impact Indian lands and people.
SEC. 606. CULTURAL RESOURCES.
In managing the protected areas described in section
605 in accordance with the provisions of this Act, the Sec-
retary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior
shall give particular emphasis to the preservation and pro-
tection of cultural resources located within these areas, in
accordance with the Archaeological Resources Protection
Act of 1979 (16 U.S.C. 470aa et seq.) and the National
Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.). Cul-
tural resources within the protected areas shall be man-
aged in consultation with State Historic Preservation Offi-
cers, Indian tribes, and other appropriate parties in the
States affected, with emphasis on the preservation of re-
sources in the areas and the interpretive, educational, and
long-term scientific uses of these resources.