Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Draft plan released for 2 central Idaho wilderness areas

Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A draft management plan for two recently created central Idaho wilderness areas prohibits campfires at high elevations to protect whitebark pine and eliminates horses and other recreational stock in some areas to protect alpine soils. The U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced Monday the availability of the 67-page document intended to guide management of the 138-square-mile Hemingway-Boulders Wilderness and the 142-square-mile White Clouds Wilderness. The agencies say the goal is to manage the areas for recreation and other activities while preserving wilderness character. Public comments are being taken through Jan. 5. President Barack Obama signed the wilderness bill protecting the areas in August 2015 after Republican Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho got ranchers, recreationists and environmental groups to back the plan.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

Follow Betsy online: