Bolting In Wilderness Areas

13 Pages 3209 Words

fixed anchors in designated wilderness areas. On August 14, 1998 Undersecretary of Agriculture, James Lyons issued a statement that his office overturned Michael Dombeck’s earlier statement. Lyons said a task force would be created to “clarify the issue” (wildwilderness-bolting). Big business also lobbied and enlisted Sen. Slade Gordon to the cause. Weeks before Lyons announcement, Gordon was at REI’s main store in Seattle holding a press conference with REI’s CEO Wally Smith. He expressed “outrage” that climbers were being treated so badly and announced his Interior appropriations bill that would prohibit the Forest service from enforcing it’s bolt ban (wildwilderness-wolper). This no doubt helped the human-interest side argument. Big recreation didn’t stop there. They also visited the offices of some of the largest wilderness defenders such as the Wilderness Society, The Sierra Club, and The National Parks and Conservation Association. These groups gave ground and agreed to abandon their earlier position and oppose or not take a position on the bolt ban (wildwilderness-wolper).
Big recreation is slated to take over as the leading money producer for public lands, rather than timber (wildwilderness-wolper). I think this has a lot to do with the way Mr. Lyons reacted to the ban on bolting. Money, as they say, is the root of all evil and unfortunately the biggest motivator of our government. Take Sen. Slade Gordon for example, the same man who at the REI store in Seattle told of how outraged he was at how climbers are being treated. Gordon also said continually that he is “outraged” at the poor treatment our government has given to the timber, mining and public lands grazing
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industries (wildwilderness-wolper). Sounds like Sen. Gordon gets “outraged” by who ever can give him t...