Subject: Air Force Threatens Owyhee Canyonla

From: "Marcus L. Endicott" <[email-masked]>
Date: 22 Jan 1994 06:03:06 GMT

Owyhee Canyonlands: NO BOMBING RANGE!

THE US AIR FORCE wants to steal your land, water and wildlife and the
State of Idaho is holding open your pocket to get at it.  Strong words?
Not strong enough for this remarkable twisting of public policy that
comes at such great environmental cost.

The Owyhee Canyonlands is a mostly unroaded, biologically diverse region
in southwestern Idaho and adjacent parts of Oregon and Nevada.  It
contains beautiful undammed rivers and wild country; a quarter of the
nation's California desert bighorn sheep and the highest density and
productivity of pronghorn antelope habitat in all of Idaho are here.  It
is also home to the Shoshone-Paiute on the Duck Valley reservation and
to their ancestors as shown by extraordinarily rich archaeological sites
throughout the region. The rivers and canyons are popular for
recreationists exploring this desert environment.

The Air Force wants a bombing range, and Idaho is falling over itself to
give them one in the Owyhee.  If they believed they had a credible case,
they would go to Congress and request a military withdrawal of these BLM
lands. That's what they are supposed to do.  But Congress would never
approve this pork-barrel scheme.  So the Air Force and Idaho have cooked
up a little deal: BLM trades Idaho the proposed bombing range area for
someplace else, then Idaho lends it to the Air Force.  No need to tell
Congress; no need to fully justify the need for the range.  Just do it.

The Owyhee Canyonlands of southwestern Idaho and Oregon and Nevada are
one of the nation's premier desert jewels.  This little-known area will
require great effort to save; let's not let it become another place no
one knew before it was too late.  Write a letter today! A bombing range
in the Owyhee Canyonlands means jet fighters, heavy bombers, tankers and
radar planes converging over the bombing range for massive training
exercises at least once a month.  Day-to-day pilot training, training
with laser systems, and low-altitude training at night will also occur.
In the approximately 25,000 acres of impact zones the public will locked
out and around these areas 6,812 flights per year will take place.
Thundering noise from fighter jets flying at 100 feet above the ground
will shatter the desert solitude.  Supersonic (boom producing) flights
will be allowed at 10,000 feet above the ground.

Throughout the rest of Owyhee County and portions of Oregon and Nevada,
flights can be as low as 100 feet and 9,209 are planned per year by the
Air Force.  More than 30 mobile threat emitter sites will be scattered
in the region requiring road construction and bringing the impacted area
to about 3 million acres.

Fires will be more frequent as a result of the bombing activities. The
bombs include incendiary charges for spotting.  Burning flares will be
dropped as well as radar jamming aluminum chaff.

Imagine just the noise--the sheer thundering sonic power--of this
proposal.   Add the other impacts, and the end of the Owyhee is obvious.

  The Native American history here is rich--and continues to this day.
The proposed bombing range includes a National Register Archaeologic
District which contains hundreds of ancient petroglyphs.

The bombing range would severely impact 15 Wilderness Study Areas and
candidate Wild and Scenic Rivers.  There is an extraordinary sense of
solitude to this land.  It is a place that should be protected forever.
A bombing range?  Absolutely not.  The diversity of plants and animals
in the Owyhee Canyonlands is magnificent.  YOUR RIGHT to write your
government is one of the greatest gifts we have as US citizens.  Too few
use it.  The following points should be helpful in preparing your
response to JUST SAY NO!  The environmental costs are too high:

WILDLIFE:  The Owyhee is home for one quarter of the nation's rare
California bighorn sheep.  In fact, it is the sole interstate source of
transplant stock for nine western states.  It is also critical habitat
for pronghorn antelope (the highest density and productivity in Idaho),
redband trout and peregrine falcons.

SOLITUDE:  The entire Owyhee region will face dramatic disruption from
the sheer sonic power of the aircraft in use around the bombing range.
As many as 9,209  600 mph low-level flights per year with supersonic
(boom producing) flights 10,000 feet above the ground will significantly
alter the rural environment of this three-state area.

The social costs of the bombing range are also too high:

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE:  The proposed bombing range will have an adverse
impact on lands of the Shoshone-Paiute people at the Duck Valley
Reservation.  The impact site at the range includes native burial
grounds.  Small ranching communities will also be faced with major
disturbances under the busy airspace.

RECREATION:  There are greater and greater numbers of people using the
Owyhee country for recreation including whitewater floaters exploring
the wild canyons and hunters and hikers enjoying the challenging
country.

Finally, the Idaho Training Range is not needed:

Some argue the bombing range is needed to keep Idaho's Mt. Home Air
Force base open.  That is not true.  This base is not on any current
base closure list and a recent GAO report includes a Defense Department
statement that the Air Force does not need this range.  Furthermore, an
existing range in Utah is only 20 minutes flying time from the Mt. Home
base.  Who decides?  You decide! But only by acting.  Please write
today.  Thank You!  THE AIR FORCE: An Air Force draft environmental
impact statement (DEIS) is now out for public comment.  Using the points
from this alert, please write to the following addresses today
expressing opposition to the bombing range!  The deadline is Feb. 9,
1994. Send to:  Ms. Brenda Cook HQ ACC/CEVA 29 Andrews St., Ste 102
Langley AFB, VA  23996-3328

SEC. BABBITT:  In order for the Air Force and Idaho scheme of bypassing
Congress to work, Interior Sec. Bruce Babbitt must allow the land swap.
Write Babbitt and oppose the bombing range and the BLM/Idaho land
transfer.  Sec. Bruce Babbitt,  Department of Interior, 1849 C St. NW,
Washington, DC 20240

CONGRESS:  Rep. Larry LaRocco has the Owyhee Canyonlands in his
district.  He has not yet decided whether to support protecting this
region.  Write or call LaRocco and ask him to oppose the range and
demand full Congressional oversite.  Rep. Larry LaRocco, House Office
Building, Washington, DC 20515 - 202-225-6611 or 208-343-4211.

It's very important that lots of comments come in on the DEIS, so if you
only have time for only one thing, send that letter.  If you can't get
to a letter to Babbitt and LaRocco, just send them a copy of the DEIS
letter.  If we don't act together we will lose! Early Notice!  Join your
friends and fellow supporters of the Owyhee Canyonlands at a special
morning event on January 29 in Boise.  For more information call
208-384-1023 or 343-8153.  We need your help!

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* IDAHO RIVERS UNITED   Internet: [email-masked]  *
* P.O. Box 633             Phone: 1-800-574-7481   *
* Boise, ID 83701            Fax: 1-208-343-8184   *
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