-17 Studies conducted by Washington Department of Game revealed that hunters, as well as anglers, preferred those portions of the lower Snake River that were free-flowing to those portions of the river that were impounded. Considering preferences of recreationists, existing recreational use on the middle Snake River, and recent trends in recreation, it is anticipated that recreational benefits derived will be greater in future years if the remaining stretches of free-flowing Snake River are not developed for hydroelectric power. STATEMENT OF DONALD H. FREAS ON BEHALF OF INTERNATIONAL MINERALS AND CHEMICAL CORPORATION My name is Donald H. Freas; I submit this written testimony on behalf of International Minerals & Chemical Corporation for whom I am Manager of Exploration for the United States. Our Corporation is actively engaged in mineral exploration in the United States and we are interested in the areas affected by S. 717. This bill, if enacted, would withdraw from mineral entry and location over 700,000 acres of land. It is our belief that this area has the potential for containing a number of valuable mineral resources. The future ability of the United States mineral industries to meet the rapidly increasing demands for mineral raw materials is a matter of national concern. Our ability to meet these demands is seriously hampered by the withdrawal of large areas from mineral entery and location. In the three-state region of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington we have already set aside over 42 million acres of land as wilderness and primitive areas. There areas, along with the several National Parks, provide a substantial commitment to the preservation of wilderness and primitive environments. It is our feeling that withdrawal of additional large areas is unnecessary and is in fact detrimental to the long term interests of the American people. We respectfully suggest, therefore, that the provisions of S. 717 which prohibit mineral exploration and development be deleted and be replaced with provisions which would permit exploration and development. Most modern exploration techniques leave no permanent mark on the forest landscape. These techniques, to be effective, must be applied over broad areas but the exploration targets resulting from them involve only a very few acres. As our knowledge and abilities in surface restoration increase, it will be increasingly possible to conduct exploration and mining activities with a minimum of environmental disturbance. In conclusion, we believe that the lands involved in S. 717 are a valuable natural resource of the United States and that if the full value of this resource is to be realized, exploration access must be maintained. STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN FISHERIES SOCIETY The American Fisheries Society supports legislation which would prevent additional dams on the Middle Snake River. We favor such legislation to protect and enhance the fish, wildlife, scenic, and recreational values of the Snake, Salmon, and Imnaha Rivers and adjacent lands. The Middle Snake River, flowing through Hells Canyon, is truly one of North America's unique ecosystems. This awesome canyon is in one spot the deepest in the United States. The free-flowing river at its bottom is a magnificent stream consisting of alternate deep pools and white-water rapids. Its shoreline includes a series of sheer rock faces dropping almost vertically into the river with sections containing great boulders interspersed by occasional sandbags in back eddies. This reach of the Snake River is one of the last of America's great rivers that has been little changed by man. It is a scene of primitive ruggedness and complex ecological relationships which cannot be equaled in the United States today. Numerous species of fish inhabit the river. The area in question is certainly the most important remaining habitat and migration route for Snake River salmonids and sturgeon. It is the last remaining spawning ground for fall chinook salmon on the Snake River. Changing of the existing environment from a free-flowing river to a series of reservoirs would completely alter the fish fauna. The upstream reservoirs are now populated by rough fish, such as carp, chiselmouth, and suckers, and provide few salmonids or other game fish in the impounded areas. An estimated 67,000 adult salmon and steelhead migrate past the High Mountain Sheep damsite annually. The white sturgeon, a modern representative of an ancient group of fishes, is the largest fish found in fresh waters of North America. Some specimens up to 1,800 pounds have been recorded from the Snake River. Much of their essential habitat has already been eliminated in the Columbia River system through elimination of free-flowing waters by construction of dams. Widely acclaimed sport fisheries occur on resident rainbow trout, smallmouth bass, and channel catfish. Additional development would further threaten these fish populations with extinction by inundating spawning beds and altering water quality including the increase of nitrogen supersaturation of downstream waters. Present trends clearly indicate that existing recreational resources associated with remaining free-flowing portions of the Middle Snake River are of much greater value than the recreational potential of large reservoirs. A study completed in 1969 by the Idaho Fish and Game Department, Oregon Game Commission, and the U.S. Forest Service showed a minimum of 44,240 man-days of recreation spent on the Middle Snake River that year. This study indicated that per linear mile of water, the river provided 322 angler hours compared with only 30 angler hours per mile on the reservoirs above Hells Canyon Dam. The American Fisheries Society recommends serious consideration of the diminishing anadromous fish and sturgeon habitat, unparalleled scenic beauty of the canyon, and the complex and unique ecosystem which provides for the variety of fish and wildlife that inhabits the Middle Snake River area. It urges that legislation guarantee that these irreplaceable values receive permanent protection for the future enjoyment of this nation's people. STATEMENT OF FRED W. KARL, SAN DIEGO, CALIF. HELLS CANYON-SNAKE NATIONAL RIVER As a concerned citizen, member of many conservation organizations, I want to join the governors of Idaho, Washington, and Oregon and their aroused constituencies in opposing the power dams on the Snake River. A professional engineer, I can evaluate the technical arguments and see no urgency or overwhelming benefits in the power proposals. But a more persuading argument is the motivation of the adversaries; the spoilers on one side, the concerned residents, political leaders, and conservationists on the other. The spoilers; the miners, loggers, dam-builders, have little interest beyond the quick returns to be gained, at low costs by exploiting the public lands. The environmentalists can hope for no monetary rewards. Actually some of them might have shared in the profits that attend construction of such projects. But they are looking down a longer road, to the hard-to-quantify benefits available to all people in enjoying wild rivers and unspoiled wilderness, our American heritage. May I urge the Committee to approve Senator Packwood's measure, S. 717, creating the Hells Canyon-Snake River National Reservation. Thank you. Submitted for the record of the public hearing of the Sub- The Pacific Logging Congress is a 62-year old association of individuals engaged in, or interested in, the harvesting and tree growing phases of the forest industry. Its membership includes representatives of the majority of logging and tree farming firms from Alaska to the Mexico border and east to the Rocky Mountains, including British Columbia. It is vitally concerned with all aspects of forest land management to the end that the greatest possible benefits of all forest resources may be realized. It has long supported, and worked for, the multiple use concept of land management. It recognizes the difficulties inherent in meeting seemingly unlimited demands for specific uses from an extremely limited and continually shrinking acreage of forest land. It urged enactment of the Wilderness Act of 1964 and strongly supports the concept of wilderness preservation for those areas that meet the specifications of the Wilderness Act and when such classification represents the best use of the land involved for all the people of our nation. The Pacific Logging Congress vigorously opposes enactment of S.717 even though it supports the principle contained therein that recreation should be a primary use of much of the land affected by this proposed legislation. We do not agree that recreation should be the primary use on every acre of the area. In very general terms, we believe that S.717 was drafted without adequate knowledge of the area involved, without understanding of its potential for supplying a variety of goods and services without adverse affect on its recreational opportunities, and, above all, without concern for the meaning and intent of the Multiple Use Act of 1960 and the Wilderness Act of 1964, or the property rights of citizens whose lands would be subject to confiscation under S.717. It is contemptuous of the basic principles of conscientious land use planning, namely, inventory of resources, evaluation of data, and consideration of alter natives. The area affected by S.717 has never been intensively studied by any federal or state agency for complete data on which to base recommendations for the best use, or combinations of uses, of the lands involved. S.717 seems to be saying, in effect, "Let's lock this land up quick before anyone has time to do an orderly job of land use planning for it." We very strongly believe that no legislation affecting this area should be enacted until the various federal agencies involved have had time to inventory its resources, evaluate the data collected in the inventory, and consider the various land use alternatives. |