Mary-  you can thank the federal "Wild and Scenic Rivers Act" for that one.  Then add on Oregon SB 838 from a couple of years ago that put in the 5 year motorized mining moratorium.  For a bit of irony, the state senator that pushed that bill died while fishing on the river, catching the fish he was supposedly protecting with the moratorium.............

As for reversal or minimazation of existing monuments, I have not read enough of the Antiquites Act to even know if it is possible, but just thinking out loud.   We are facing a possble monument up here that in no way would qualify as one, just another "lock up".

I need to add this very important point;

If GPAA files a Lawsuit against the GOVT it is one entity and one Lawsuit, so it does us no good to file as a whole. Instead each individual needs to file a complaint, and you had better act quickly, the Obama admin plans on shutting down over 8 million acres before he walks out of office.

Go to our Chapter's Facebook page and join us in our fight, we keep up with many organizations out West with similar interests in saving our lands and have info on who to call and email complaints to. The land we are fighting for is as much my land as it somebody living in New York City, IT IS YOUR LAND TOO.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/WCGPAA/1824493481129516/?notif_t=group_activity&notif_id=1479058738281953

Shane and Leo have valid points here as well.  Virtually everything worthy of being "saved" is already protected by either Monument or Wilderness status. Except in extrodinary conditions we don't need any more.   I in no way want to see the return of the "rape and run" tactics of the 1800 and early 1900's by the timber barons and mining forces, and others.  There have been many laws/regulations placed to ensure, for instance, the reforestation after harvest, recontouring and revegetation of mining operations such as the big leach operations.  That I see as a good thing, not only for the enviornment, but for the population and their enjoyment and use of the land and resources.

The enviros have gotten rulings from the courts that the federal agencies must look at "wilderness characteristics" when revising management plans, and to do nothing to impair those.  What it means in the long run, for instance, if a two track falls into disuse and is overgrown and can't be readily discered, that could end up being "untrammeled by man" and be a future wilderness area desiginated by Congress.

I would really like to see a "sunset provision" enacted for all current wilderness study areas (WSA).  If not acted on in a certain time frame they would be taken out of WSA status and retuned to multiple use.  As it stands now, the agencies can do no management activites that would impair the characteristics of that area.  The enviros don't want to see the the WSA's come to a vote of Congress as they might be rejected and returned to multiple use.  As it stands they are "defacto wilderness areas", under no real management.

We got dealt a pair of "pocket rockets" by surprise, and an even bigger surprise, the flop had the other two.  At least the next two years, and maybe the next four may be our best chance to get some changes form the recent past.

A lot will depend on who is selected and confirmed as Sec. Interior and Agriculture, and who will end up heading BLM and USFS.  You can count on changes coming in those areas.  It remains to be seen if those changes are benefical to multiple use advocates or the enviros.

In another vein, the old mining districts are being reactivated (most were never disbanded/disolved, they just fell into disuse), and they appear to have some pretty heavy clout at the table.  We just last night took the first steps to reactivate one here in Oregon that was established in 1867.  Others in the state are also being restarted.  There have been sucesses on mining already with the agencies.

The Electric company that services Temecula, CA has been doing some kind of upgrades to the Electric service grid in the business park and surrounding area. That being said they have had our power shut down at GPAA office in mornings and then when power is shut down our servers will not come back up on their own. So someone has to go through the sequences to reactivate the system. Sometimes more than once. When power is down not even the phones work, when power goes on part of the phone system comes up usually, the rest has to be manually started.

sorry for the inconvenience.

I am a little confuesed about the hole mess that goes on in the gppa camp ,i was in alaska gold camp and i saw tom mass ride up the beach ,and he wouldn,t even stop and stop and ask how your doing ,he jest drove wright on by all week .so that was my last trip , to gppa camp in nome.

I am a little confuesed about the hole mess that goes on in the gppa camp ,i was in alaska gold camp and i saw tom mass ride up the beach ,and he wouldn,t even stop and stop and ask how your doing ,he jest drove wright on by all week .so that was my last trip , to gppa camp in nome.

Tom and family still own property up there, but he sold his interest in the GPAA.  I suspect he didn't want to get into an all day talkfest with everyone who would want face time with him.  Has other irons in the fire and probably wanted to get things done.

So don't hold it against him or the organization.