The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing, Tuesday, on two bills out of Montana—both of which have been praised for bringing balance to the debate over conservation.
The first bill is Senator Max Baucus’ (D-Mont.) Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act. The bill protects access to public lands for hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts—designating 208,000 acres of Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front as a Conservation Management Area and adding 67,000 acres to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. Baucus’ legislation also ensures that Montana ranchers can continue their tradition of responsible grazing.
Senator Jon Tester’s Forest Jobs and Recreation Act impacts three national forests in western Montana, designating some 670,000 acres of wilderness, creating new recreation areas and—for the first time ever—mandating 100,000 acres of forest restoration over the course of 15 years. Tester’s bill is unique for being widely supported by conservationists, sportsmen and the logging industry.
These landmark bills are groundbreaking examples of how we can balance resource development with protection of America’s public lands. Working across party lines with local stakeholders, Baucus and Tester have shown us that balance is possible wherever folks are willing to put aside their differences and work together.
Both bills were written with collaborative input “from the ground” in Montana and enjoy broad bipartisan support. Both are hailed as job-creating pieces of legislation that evolved from the understanding that, as Tester puts it, “everyone gives a little and gets a lot.”
That same understanding applies to the concept of Equal Ground.
Baucus’ and Tester’s bills may not call for an acre-for-acre match of land protection to energy leasing. But, they certainly remind us that collaboration, protection and responsible use of the West’s natural resources can—and should—go hand-in-hand when it comes to policymaking.