WILD PLAN SPARKS DEBATE PROPOSAL WOULD LIMIT REC USE OF 2.5 MILLION ACRES.

Byline: Bill Becher Special to the Daily News

Millions of acres of public land in California would be designated as protected wilderness under a bill introduced in Congress on Tuesday. But mountain bikers, horseback riders and others who enjoy the backcountry are afraid the new rules will shut them out.

Senator Barbara Boxer's California Wild Heritage Wilderness Act of 2002 would extend the federal wilderness designation to 2.5 million acres of public lands in 77 different areas in California and protect portions of 22 rivers as ``wild, scenic or recreational.''

``It is crucial that we protect these precious places before it is too late,'' said Boxer in a prepared statement. ``During the last 20 years, 675,000 acres of unprotected wilderness - approximately the size of Yosemite National Park - have lost their wilderness character due to all sorts of activities such as logging and mining.''

But some backcountry users say there are better ways to protect against development and still allow recreational uses.

``Some wilderness advocates think that mountain bikers should be willing to sacrifice their riding opportunities for the greater good of protecting the land,'' said Jim Hasnauer of the International Mountain Bicycling Association. ``We think we can protect the land and preserve the riding opportunities.''

The bill is supported by the California Wild Heritage Campaign, a group of outdoor businesses and conservation and environmental organizations including Patagonia, the Sierra Club, the Green Party of California, the National Wildlife Federation and the Center for Biological Diversity.

``Wilderness designation is the best way to be sure land is protected in its natural state in perpetuity,'' said Paul Spitler, executive director of the California Wilderness Coalition. He cited a proposal by the Bush administration to open more than 100,000 acres of the Los Padres National Forest to drilling for natural gas and oil as an example of why Southern California areas need the wilderness designation. The drilling plan included areas where biologists recently found wild condor eggs, said Spitler.

But wilderness designation prohibits off-highway motor vehicles, snowmobiles, mountain bikes and hang gliders. Also, the installation of rock climbers' protective anchor bolts is restricted. Although horses and mules are allowed in wilderness areas, recreational riders and commercial packer groups think hikers are pushing to have them excluded, as well.

Some of the affected groups have been lobbying for ``cherry stem'' exclusion of trails they use from the wilderness designation, but others have said that these carefully crafted compromises have a way of disappearing when the final version of legislation is passed.

Jim Hasnauer of the IMBA said mountain cyclists want to protect wild places and keep trails open to human-powered bikes. The original 1964 Wilderness Act banned only transport ``powered by a nonliving power source.'' But in 1984, the regulations were changed and bicycles were specifically excluded, Hasnauer said. IMBA has been working with Senator Boxer's staff to identify trails used by mountain bikers.

``If the regulations were changed back to the original language and spirit of the Wilderness Act, I'd personally be completely pro-wilderness,'' Hasnauer said.

Not just mountain bikers disagree about the impact on recreational opportunities. Barbara Ferguson of the Backcountry Horsemen of California said her group opposes the bill in its present form even though horses and mules are allowed in wilderness areas.

``We could not support any new wilderness unless recreational pack and saddle stock is recognized as a legitimate use in wilderness areas,'' Ferguson said. ``Some people out there have other values and don't feel horses and mules belong in the wilderness.''

She said the BCHC wants guarantees that current levels of use by saddle and pack animals, including grazing while on backcountry trips, will not be reduced if new areas are classified as wilderness.

Ferguson cited another issue created by the wilderness designation. Trails in wilderness areas can only be maintained using hand tools, which she fears will result in less effective upkeep.

Senator Boxer's bill will also designate portions of rivers and streams in California as wild, scenic or recreational, which will prohibit the building of new dams or diversions.

``The Act will ensure the preservation of what remains of California's once-vast heritage of wild lands, free-flowing rivers, rare ecosystems and critical habitat for fish, wildlife and plants,'' said Betsy Reifsnider, executive director of Friends of the River.

Supporters of the bill also cite the need to protect sources of drinking water, as well as rare and endangered plant and animal species.

Tim Alpers, who raises trophy trout in the Eastern Sierra, said the headwaters area of the Owens River is under consideration for a 21,000-acre addition to the Ansel Adams Wilderness. This area is designated for ski-area development, although nearby Mammoth Mountain does not have plans to expand in this area, according to a spokesperson for the ski area.

Alpers fears that ski-area expansion could result in more water being pumped for snow making and silting of rivers. Portions of the Upper Owens River and its tributaries, Glass and Deadman creeks, would also be designated as wild and scenic rivers under the Boxer bill.

Proposed wilderness land in Southern California's Angeles National Forest includes areas in the Castaic Mountains, Condor Peak, Magic Mountain, Santa Clarita Canyons, Pleasant View and West Fork and Silver Mountain.

Southern California rivers to be protected in the act include Matilija Creek, Upper Sespe Creek and Piru Creeks in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, and Deep Creek in the San Bernardino National Forest.

The wilderness act will be introduced in the House as two bills covering Northern and Southern California. Representative Hilda Solis, whose district includes the lower San Gabriel Valley and parts of East Los Angeles, will sponsor the Southern California bill.

CAPTION(S):

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Map:

Discussion Draft

WILDERNESS AND WILD SCENIC RIVERS Bill

For a color version of this map, go to www.calwild.org/campaigns/cwhwc-act/cwhwc-map.html.