A wilderness designation is the right way to protect the Owyhee River corridor, writes guest columnist Zachary Collier. (Courtesy of Zachary Collier)
As President Joe Biden leaves office, a flurry of conservation groups are convincing him to invoke the Antiquities Act to designate national monuments. The original intent of the Antiquities Act was to add protection to federal lands in order to keep people from looting Native American artifacts. This act was signed into law in 1906, and today, it is a tool conservationists use to protect public lands.
When President Barack Obama left office, a similar effort was made to convince him to use the Antiquities Act to designate an Owyhee Canyonlands National Monument. While in office, although he designated 29 national monuments, including Bears Ears, Gold Butte, Basin and Range, and Berryessa National Monuments, he did not protect the Owyhee Canyonlands.
At the end of President Obama’s term, I traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for the Owyhee Canyonlands since we run five-day rafting trips there, and I liked the idea of protecting this place I work at and love. After talking to congressional staffers and members of President Obama’s administration, I learned that there was not enough support from Oregon’s congressional delegation. This surprised me, and after I looked into it further, I learned that Oregonians who lived around the Owyhee River at the time were adamantly opposed to a national monument.
As I thought about this over the next few years, I realized that not designating the Owyhee River Canyonlands as a national monument was the right decision. We were asking President Obama to set aside public lands against the will of the people who lived near those lands. I feel that U.S. Rep. Greg Walden and U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, who represented Oregonians, were in touch with the will of those people.
It’s not that the people of Southeast Oregon are against protecting the Owyhee River Canyonlands. The Owyhee is in their backyard, and it is a place they love, cherish and respect. They want it protected by the Wilderness Act with legislation, which requires vigorous debate and taking all parties’ interests into account.
What occurred at the end of President Obama’s presidency is happening now. People who don’t live in Southeast Oregon are pushing hard for a national monument against the will of those who live there. In 2016, the push for a national monument drove a wedge between conservationists and those who lived and worked in Southeast Oregon. Conservationists lost the trust and respect of those who lived near the Owyhee, making it much more challenging to work on a wilderness designation in the following years.
In my opinion, a wilderness designation is the right way to protect the Owyhee River corridor. I work as an outfitter on four other rivers that are similar to the Owyhee River. Each of them flows through the wilderness, and I can attest that the Owyhee River has similar characteristics. Wilderness designations require an act of Congress that is much more difficult to obtain than simply the signature of the president required for a national monument. I firmly believe that although it is more difficult to achieve a wilderness designation, it is the right thing to do.
There is reason to be more hopeful than ever for wilderness legislation. Sen. Wyden’s Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee Act includes the Mary Gautreaux Owyhee River Canyon Wilderness in honor of a woman deeply committed to protecting the Owyhee River. This bill was written with input from locals, business owners, and the conservation community. U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz represents Eastern Oregon and is also advocating for the Owyhee River with a similar bill in the House. We now have bicameral and bipartisan support for wilderness legislation for the Owyhee River.
I fear that by pushing for a national monument, the conservation community is once again losing the trust of those who live in Southeast Oregon. We made this mistake in 2016, and I don’t want to make it again. Sen. Wyden has been dedicated to protecting the Owyhee River, and I humbly ask the conservation community to follow his lead and put our time and energy behind his efforts toward permanent legislative protection for the Owyhee River Canyonlands.
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