Findings

Congress finds that— (1) many areas of undeveloped National Forest System land, National Park System land, and public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management in the States of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming (referred to in this section as public land)— (A) possess outstanding natural characteristics that give the areas value as wildernesses, parks, or wild and scenic rivers; and (B) if properly preserved, will be an enduring resource as wildernesses and wildland areas and of biodiversity for the benefit of the people of the United States; (2) the Northern Rockies Bioregion— (A) contains the most diverse array of wildland that remains in the United States south of Canada; (B) provides a sanctuary for species listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); (C) is national interest public land that is among the most popular wildland in the United States; and (D) embraces greater ecosystems and national treasures such as the Greater Yellowstone, Greater Glacier/Northern Continental Divide, Greater Hells Canyon/Wallowa, Greater Salmon/Selway, and Greater Cabinet-Yaak-Selkirk ecosystems; (3) the natural ecosystems in the Northern Rockies Bioregion are largely dependent on— (A) public land; and (B) the ecological productivity and diversity of resources on public land; (4) conservation of roadless areas on public land— (A) produces clean water; (B) protects native fisheries and native flora and fauna; (C) provides scenic and recreational qualities; and (D) preserves options for sustainable economics through activities such as hunting, fishing, and wilderness-based recreation; (5) the headwaters of several major river systems, including the Columbia, Snake, Green, Missouri, and Saskatchewan Rivers, are in the Northern Rockies Bioregion and the water of those rivers— (A) flows to 3 oceans; (B) is of economic importance to farming and ranching operations, municipal water supplies, and water-based recreation, including fishing and boating; and (C) if protected, will enhance the uses described in subparagraph (B), reduce costs for water treatment and irrigation, and increase native fish populations; (6) the wildlife treasures of the Northern Rockies Bioregion are of international significance and contain intact, large mammalian fauna and rare and unique plant life; (7) wildlife habitat fragmentation due to road building, timber harvesting, mining, oil and gas exploration, lack of interagency cooperation, and other activities has severe effects on— (A) the wildlife populations of the Northern Rockies Bioregion (including populations of species listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)) and the habitats of the wildlife; and (B) the water quality, ancient forests, and greater ecosystems of the Northern Rockies Bioregion; (8) the overemphasis on resource extraction from public land has— (A) compromised ecosystem integrity and detracted from economic diversification opportunities; and (B) resulted in economic instability and high unemployment in rural, resource-dependent communities; (9) the fragmentation and development of the remaining roadless and essentially roadless ecosystems and biological connectors of the Northern Rockies Bioregion would cause a loss to the United States of— (A) an entire wildland region; and (B) the only remaining area in the United States south of Canada that can support populations of gray wolves, grizzly bears, anadromous fish, and other rare or endangered plant or animal life in 1 intact bioregion; (10) since the completion of the 1936 roadless area inventory by Bob Marshall, millions of acres of roadless wildland have been developed in the Northern Rockies Bioregion; (11) extensive fragmentation of wildland and wildlife habitat has— (A) resulted in the listing of several species as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and (B) reduced the number and range of other species, including anadromous fish; (12) the natural ecosystems of the Northern Rockies Bioregion serve as educational and research centers for onsite studies in biology, geology, astronomy, and other sciences; (13) the pristine nature of public land helps local communities attract new residents and businesses based on local quality of life; (14) a review of the situation in the Northern Rockies Bioregion as of the date of enactment of this Act has revealed the urgent need for an ecological reserve system for the Northern Rockies Bioregion that includes core ecosystem reserve areas and biological connecting corridors necessary— (A) to ensure wildlife movements and genetic interchange between the core reserve areas; and (B) to act as carbon reserves in a warming world; (15) wildlife freedom of movement is essential to the survival of wildlife species, and a number of scientific studies have identified movement corridors as necessary for wildlife conservation in a changing climate; (16) several foreign governments, including the governments of Australia and Scotland, have announced plans for corridors that would make wildlife movement possible as climate pressures increase; (17) the concept of connective corridors for wildlife movement— (A) has been endorsed by the Governors of States in the western United States; and (B) is recognized by conservation and scientific organizations, such as the National Academy of Sciences, which, in 2008, described freedom of movement for wildlife as basic to the emerging new science of movement ecology; (18) freedom of wildlife movement— (A) was a fundamental reason for the development and introduction of this Act; and (B) has become an increasingly high-profile issue in the climate and biological sciences; (19) the economic value to the United States of most of the public land, left in its natural state, exceeds any potential return to the Treasury of the United States from timber harvest and development; (20) if Federal land management in the Northern Rockies Bioregion continues to result in development in roadless areas, the Federal Government will be using tax revenues to fund permanent reductions in wilderness, water quality, fish and wildlife habitat, species, and biological diversity; (21) this Act— (A) provides opportunities for employment in outdoor trades by establishing rehabilitation zones on specific tracts of damaged Federal land where active restoration work will occur; (B) will provide contracts for local businesses; and (C) will renew the intrinsic economic, social, and cultural benefits that result from productive land; (22) Federal land rehabilitation projects— (A) have direct benefits to local economies; and (B) reduce the loss to taxpayers in the United States caused by below-cost timber sales and other subsidized resource extraction; (23) a congressional review of roadless areas within public land identifies— (A) areas that, on the basis of the land form, ecosystem, associated fish and wildlife, economic value, and location of the areas, will help to fulfill the role of the Forest Service, National Park Service, and Bureau of Land Management to ensure a quality National Wilderness Preservation System; (B) areas that may have value as wild and scenic rivers; and (C) areas that— (i) may not possess wilderness attributes and should not now be designated as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System; and (ii) should be studied to determine the role of the areas in maintaining biological diversity in the Northern Rockies Bioregion; (24) many areas of public land— (A) have been damaged and experienced a reduction in productivity due to unwise development practices, which have also impaired ecosystem function and biological diversity, such as the Island Park area adjacent to Yellowstone National Park, which contains large clear-cut areas that border the park boundary; and (B) should be returned to the former ecological health and native diversity of the areas through efforts— (i) to ensure that vital ecosystem components are restored, especially in areas in which wildlife travel corridors and native fish and wildlife populations have been damaged or eliminated; and (ii) to ensure and maintain genetic interchange, biological diversity, and restoration of native species diversity throughout the Northern Rockies Bioregion; (25) backcountry areas of the National Park System have been damaged by inappropriate management, despite policies that require that recommended wilderness be administered as wilderness; (26) an emphasis on structures and motorized equipment, and in some instances developed backcountry campsites, in backcountry areas of the National Park System has detracted from and degraded the wilderness character of those backcountry areas; (27) Federal agencies entrusted with managing the natural resources of the Northern Rockies Bioregion— (A) operate under contradictory congressional mandates; and (B) are in dissension over management policies that involve common resources and greater ecosystems; (28) Federal agency structures and regulatory mechanisms as of the date of enactment of this Act have proven unsatisfactory for the responsible management of nationally important ecosystems on public land; (29) Federal laws and regulations as of the date of enactment of this Act have not been sufficient to establish and maintain the accountability of Federal agencies for public resources; and (30) this Act does not affect private existing rights.