In February 2004, the Oregon Natural Desert Association submitted its wilderness inventory findings for the Oregon portions of the Owyhee Canyonlands to the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Vale District office. In a letter to the Vale District Manager, ONDA notes that with staff and volunteers they inventoried approximately 2.2 million acres of land in the Vale District and found more than 1.3 million acres qualifying for wilderness or other protective designation.
In their letter the group writes, "ONDA offers this new wilderness information despite the fact that the BLM has asserted in conjunction with the April 11, 2003 State of Utah v. BLM settlement, that the agency is without authority to establish new WSAs… Recognizing that the Department of the Interior has instructed the BLM that it can no longer establish new WSAs, ONDA request these proposed WSAs be reviewed as wilderness ACECs."
Background
The Owyhee Canyonlands region straddles the Oregon, Idaho, and Nevada borders and is home to rare fish, wildlife, and plant species. In total, the region contains more than 700,000 acres of potential Wilderness and 288 miles of wild and scenic rivers. The world's largest herd of California bighorn sheep, pronghorn, seven species of bats, sage grouse and songbirds, redband trout, longnose snakes, and pygmy rabbits are all found in the region. There are unique geologic features and innumerable archeological and historical sites.
In Oregon, citizen volunteers let by the Oregon Natural Desert Association spent thousands of hours documenting wilderness values and characteristics on lands throughout southeast Oregon in the Bureau of Land Management's Vale District. This BLM district largely encompasses the Oregon portion of the vast Owyhee Canyonlands.
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