Proposed federal land sale fuels fears, debate in West
Acreage near Zion may be developed
ST. GEORGE, Utah -- Its mild climate, stunning scenery, and proximity to several national parks have helped make Washington County one of the five fastest-growing in the United States. But like many rural Western counties, it has little room to expand: The federal government owns 87 percent of its land.
Now, Utah's congressional delegation has a plan to remedy the problem, one that is being watched closely by nearly a dozen Western counties with similar growing pains.
The proposed Washington County Growth and Conservation Act would sell as much as 40 square miles of federal land and use the proceeds to finance a multimillion-dollar water pipeline and other local projects. Senator Robert F. Bennett, a Utah Republican, and Representative Jim Matheson, a Democrat, are expected to introduce the bill soon.
Waiting in the wings are nearly a dozen similar bills for counties in Utah, Idaho, Nevada, and New Mexico, where population pressure is fueling the demand for more developable land.
The Washington County plan is being scrutinized by conservationists, who warn that it would set a dangerous precedent, making thousands of acres of public land available for development and offering a windfall for local agencies and deals for the politically influential and property owners.
The plan and others like it highlight the growing tension between growth advocates and others who fear that the West's unique legacy of protected public land is in jeopardy along with the wildlife, clean air, and water that go with it.
The Washington County bill tries to address conservation concerns by expanding a preserve for the threatened desert tortoise and designating 219,000 acres as wilderness. Environmental groups argue that more than half of that acreage is already protected as part of Zion National Park. Most of the remaining acreage is already managed as wilderness.
``As far as wilderness is concerned, this is a miserable piece of legislation," said Scott Groene, executive director of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.
The reaction to the proposal from neighboring counties has been enthusiastic.
``This is, in my own opinion, a great model for how to deal with public lands," said Mark Whitney, chairman of the Beaver County Commission. ``I think it puts a lot of these federal land issues to bed. This is landmark."
Washington County's population has grown more than 40 percent since 2000. Retirees, in particular, have been drawn to southern Utah with its red rock palisades and deep, lush canyons. St. George, moreover, is an easy drive from both Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. But the same scenery that attracts growth can impede it when so much of the countryside is off limits .
``One of the problems in the West is that the federal government owns most of the land," said James Eardley, who chairs the Washington County Commission. ``I say, `He who owns the land, holds the power.' "
The bill is coming at a time when the Bush administration is advocating the sale of hundreds of thousands of acres of federal land in the region. The president's most recent budget requires the US Forest Service to sell 300,000 acres and the Bureau of Land Management to raise $350 million from auctioning some of its holdings.
For conservationists, the bill is seen as part of a dangerous trend.
``People hoorah these projects on the local level, saying, `We are going to do this for our people,' " said Janine Blaeloch, director of the Western Lands Project, a group based in Seattle that monitors the sale of federal lands. ``But small groups benefit, and those are developers, paving companies, and golf course developers." 