We applaud Senator Wyden and the Oregon Natural Desert Association today for putting together such a wildly popular Badlands wilderness bill. The outpouring of bipartisan business community backing for the proposal is impressive. Add in ranchers, mountain bikers and others, and this bill enjoys an incredibly broad base of support. A 2005 poll of Deschutes County, Oregon voters found that 69 percent supported wilderness protection for the Badlands. The area's fantastic rock formations, just 15 miles east of Bend, is a 30,000-acre area filled with fascinating lava flows and ancient junipers.
Spring Basin; © Bruce Jackson
Spring Basin is also a wilderness proposal whose time has come, and Oregonians have Senator Wyden to thank for that. Spring Basin is a botanist’s dream with its profusion of desert wildflowers in the spring. The bill will also go a long way toward resolving many private property and access issues, so that the public can better enjoy hunting, horseback-riding, and other outdoor pursuits in the new Spring Basin wilderness. We urge Congress to take these conservation bills up as quickly as possible so that future generations can forever use and enjoy these Oregon treasures.