wild lands have been developed in the Northern
Rockies. Extensive fragmentation of wild lands and
wildlife habitat has resulted in the listing of several
species as threatened or endangered and reduced the
numbers and range of many others, including anad-
romous fish.
(6) A review of the current situation in the
Northern Rockies has revealed the urgent need for
an ecological reserve system for the Northern Rock-
ies Bioregion, which includes core ecosystem reserve
areas and biological connecting corridors necessary
to ensure wildlife movements and genetic inter-
change between the core reserve areas.
(7) The economic value to the Nation of most
of these undeveloped areas, left in their natural
state, greatly exceeds any potential return to the
Treasury of the United States from timber harvest
and development. If current Federal land manage-
ment in the Northern Rockies continues to result in
the development of roadless areas, the American
public will be using its tax dollars to fund perma-
nent reductions in wilderness, water quality, fish and
wildlife habitat, and species and biological diversity.
(8) The congressional review of roadless areas
within National Forest System lands in the States
of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyo-
ming has identified areas which, on the basis of
their land form, ecosystem, associated fish and wild-
life, economic value, and location will help to fulfill
the role of the United States Forest Service to en-
sure a quality National Wilderness Preservation Sys-
tem. The review has identified other areas which
may have outstanding values as national parks and
preserves and wild and scenic rivers. The review has
also identified areas which may not possess out-
standing wilderness attributes and should not now
be designated as components of the National Wilder-
ness Preservation System, but which should be stud-
ied to determine their role in maintaining biological
diversity in the Northern Rockies.
(9) Many areas of National Forest System
lands have been damaged and their productivity re-
duced by unwise development practices which have
also impaired ecosystem function and biological di-
versity. The Island Park area adjacent to Yellow-
stone National Park contains large clear-cut areas
right up to the park boundary. Efforts should be
made to return these areas to their former ecological
health and native diversity by designating them as
National Wildland Restoration and Recovery areas.
These efforts should seek to ensure that vital eco-
system components are restored, especially in areas
where wildlife travel corridors and native fish and
wildlife populations have been damaged or elimi-
nated. Restoration efforts should seek to ensure and
maintain genetic interchange, biological diversity,
and restoration of native species diversity through-
out the Northern Rockies Bioregion.
(10) Federal agencies entrusted with managing
the bioregion’s natural resources operate under con-
tradictory congressional mandates, and thus are in
dissension over management policies which involve
common resources and major ecosystems. Existing
agency structures and regulatory mechanisms have
proven unsatisfactory for responsible management of
nationally important ecosystems on public lands. Ex-
isting laws and regulations have not been sufficient
to establish and maintain agency accountability for
public resources.
(b) PURPOSE.—
(1) DESIGNATIONS.—The purposes of this Act
are—
(A) to designate certain National Forest
System lands in the States of Idaho, Montana,
Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming as compo-
nents of the National Wilderness Preservation
System;
(B) to designate certain National Forest
System lands in the States of Montana, Oregon,
and Idaho as national park and preserve study
areas;
(C) to designate certain National Forest
System lands and watercourses in the States of
Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Washington as
components of the National Wild and Scenic
Rivers System;
(D) to establish a pilot system of National
Wildland Restoration and Recovery Areas and a
Wildlands Recovery Corps to help restore bio-
logical diversity and native species; and
(E) to establish a system of biological con-
necting corridors between the core ecosystems
in the Northern Rockies Bioregion.
(2) GENERAL
PURPOSES.—The designations
made by this Act are made in order to—
(A) promote, perpetuate, and preserve the
wilderness character of the land;
(B) protect water quality, watersheds, and
wildlife habitat, including that of species listed
as threatened or endangered under section 4(c)