JACKSON HOLE CONSERVATION ALLIANCE
P.O. Box 2728
Jackson, WY 83001
(307) 733-9417
www.jhalliance.org
3/14/07
By Franz Camenzind, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance and Tim Preso, Earthjustice
In their recent ÒGuest ShotÓ article (ÒUnfair heli-ski ruling must be appealedÓ), Jon Schick and Lud Kroner of High Mountain Heli-Skiing raised a number of false issues in an apparent effort to justify continuing to channel 98 percent of their heli-ski activity into the Palisades Wilderness Study Area (ÒWSAÓ) in violation of the Wyoming Wilderness Act and a federal judgeÕs ruling.
Mr. Schick and Mr. Kroner raise the specter that a gate could be installed at Teton Pass to prevent backcountry skiers from entering the WSA. Their argument ignores the fact that backcountry skiing is precisely the type of non-motorized recreation activity that Congress meant to allow in the WSA, and even in designated wilderness areas. In this respect, backcountry skiing is unlike helicopter skiing, which requires numerous helicopter trips into wilderness-quality lands to ferry skiers back and forth to ridge tops, and therefore violates a statutory direction to preserve the wilderness character of the WSA.
They also repeatedly claim that a recent lawsuit won by conservation groups and local citizens was really just an effort to put High Mountain Heli-Skiing out of business. In fact, the lawsuit was a last-ditch response that was made necessary only because the U.S. Forest Service repeatedly ignored public objections that it was degrading wilderness character in the WSA by permitting a steady escalation of heli-skiing. Congress in 1984 passed the Wyoming Wilderness Act to preserve the wilderness character of the Palisades area as it existed at that time, when heli-skiing in the WSA amounted to only about 65 skier-days each winter. With important habitat for bighorn sheep, mountain goats and even the rare wolverine at stake, the Wyoming Wilderness Act provides an important protection for this areaÕs natural values. Nevertheless, the Forest Service over the ensuing years continued to authorize more and more heli-skiing in the WSA, culminating in the agencyÕs authorization of a 2005 permit that allowed 1,200 skier-days -- a 20-fold increase over 1984 levels.
At each step, conservation groups, wildlife enthusiasts and members of the public pointed out the inconsistency between the Forest ServiceÕs actions and the Wyoming Wilderness ActÕs mandate to protect the 1984 wilderness character of the Palisades. Unfortunately, the Forest Service dismissed all such objections until the matter came before a federal judge. Last November, federal District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill made clear that Ò[t]he Palisades WSA has been carved out by Congress for special protection. Public demand for heli-skiing, the balancing of competing interests, and Ômanaged growthÕ are not the governing standards under the Wyoming Wilderness Act. Instead, Congress has directed the Forest Service to maintain the 1984 wilderness character of the area. That is the primary duty of the Forest Service, and it must guide all decisions as the first and foremost standard of review for any proposed action.Ó High Mountain Heli-Skiing participated in this lawsuit and had every opportunity to make its arguments about what uses should be permitted in the Palisades.
Once the judge issued his ruling, the law required an order enforcing the Wyoming Wilderness Act by reducing heli-ski activity in the WSA back to 1984 levels. If conservation groups were trying to put High Mountain Heli-Skiing out of business, that would have been the opportunity to do it. However, rather than seeking an immediate cutback to 1984 levels, the conservation groups asked the judge to allow time for the parties to negotiate a solution that would honor the law while still allowing sufficient time for High Mountain to transition the bulk of its heli-skiing operations to lands outside the WSA. At the end of the negotiations, all of the parties to the lawsuit jointly recommended that the judge order a five-year transition period. High Mountain Heli-Skiing participated in those negotiations and jointly sponsored the transition plan to the judge.
In their ÒGuest Shot,Ó Mr. Schick and Mr. Kroner ask what we know about running a commercial heli-ski business. We have never claimed such knowledge. But what we do know is that Mr. Schick and Mr. Kroner are sophisticated businessmen who agreed on a plan to resolve this issue, and we assume they factored their business knowledge into that decision.
For our part, the conservation groups remain willing to participate in the transition by considering and evaluating alternative helicopter skiing sites that High Mountain Heli-Skiing and the Forest Service may propose. Based on its recent ÒGuest Shot,Ó however, High Mountain Heli-Skiing seems more inclined to rehash a legal fight it has already lost than to focus on a transition to new terrain. Mr. Schick and Mr. Kroner even go so far as to criticize the judge for adopting the transition plan that High Mountain itself co-sponsored.
That is unfortunate, because the Palisades WSA deserves better treatment than to become a motorized playground. Congress in 1984 stopped short of designating the Palisades as a true wilderness only because of the unproven potential of some portions of the area for oil and gas development. In the ensuing 23 years, there has been no oil and gas development in the Palisades, so that obstacle to wilderness designation no longer exists. It would be a shame if wilderness protection for this outstanding piece of the greatest wildland complex in the lower 48 states is denied because the Forest Service allowed motorized use to escalate in the WSA in plain violation of the law. The Palisades WSA deserves protection.
The Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance is a non-profit
organization dedicated to responsible land stewardship to ensure that human
activities are in harmony with the areaÕs irreplaceable wildlife, scenic and
other natural resources. The organization has 2,000 members from Jackson Hole
and across the nation.