WILDLIFE NEWS January 28, 2024
A history review shows that in most cases, there is “local opposition” to park and wilderness proposals. Timid conservationists often cite local opposition to scale down or even avoid promoting ambitious land protections like the Alliance for Wild Rockies Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance’s original 9 milllion acre wilderness proposal (now somewhat reduced due to success in getting wilderness designation), RESTORE‘s 3.2 million acre Maine Woods National Park proposal, or my own proposal for a Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem National Park. In all these and other instances, the naysayers suggest that without local support, you should not promote visionary concepts. But what history shows is that after these areas are designated and protected, there is usually greater support, even from local people, for these land designations.