January 25, 2007

Dear Friend and Supporter of the Yaak:

Year in and year out, we keep advocating for the protection of the last roadless areas in the Yaak Valley of extreme northwestern Montana. Many of you are new to the campaign, while many others are veterans of many years, and already possess in your files eloquent letters you have written to various leaders about the need to protect these unique lands.

In Montana, we have a new Senator–Jon Tester–who will benefit from hearing of your commitment to helping secure wilderness designation for key lands in the Yaak–the Land the Wilderness Act Forgot–as well as a new Forest Service Chief in Washington, Gail Kimbell, and a new supervisor of the Kootenai National Forest, Paul Bradford, who would also benefit from knowing that there are those of you out there who, as private citizens and stakeholders in these public lands, have a desire and a need to see certain areas managed and designated as wilderness. It’s critical that these three new leaders hear right from the very start that this is an important issue, one about which they should become educated–and motivated.

The remaining Montana delegation–Senator Max Baucus, and Representative Dennis Rehberg, need to hear from you. Governor Brian Schweitzer, as well, needs to hear from you.

Your letter need not be long or complicated–simply stating that you are ready (past ready) to see wilderness designated in the Yaak–will be very effective. If you have ever visited the Yaak, or have hopes of doing so, mention that. If you are interested in more details about where we are in our endless process, feel free to contact the Yaak Valley Forest Council, and view the web page at www.yaakvalley.org. We are currently finalizing an exciting new place-based community development plan that protects some land as wilderness, some as backcountry ski territory, others as primitive land for backcountry camping, while supporting the existing use of snowmobilers in one area, as long as the needs of wildlife are met. We are seeking to facilitate also the discussions of where ATVs should ride–in noncontroversial areas, and certainly not in roadless areas, are in dialogue with stakeholders in this discussion, and have secured commitments from these principals to seek only noncontroversial areas and to look at utilizing private lands where possible. We are also seeking to facilitate common-ground, consensus-based fuels reduction treatments–“no-brainers”–in certain overstocked stands right next to human communities. It’s an exciting piece of collaboration, one which turns its back on the historic Dark Ages of Lincoln County politics and seeks instead to identify those places we can all agree on, and places where we can support each other’s goals, rather than searching for places to disagree and fight. Again, it is not an all-inclusive solution, but is instead a small but valuable map of common ground, much-needed at this point in Lincoln County.

For those of you who have old letters on file, it is fine just to re-send those (and to keep sending them, until we are successful). For those interested in addressing this new opportunity, a simple talking point to add would be something along the lines of providing encouragement for the new Lincoln County Coalition proposal (www.lincolncountycoalition.com), which includes wilderness in the Yaak, and calling upon our leaders to reject the old “Dark Ages” of polarizing politics that has presided over Lincoln County for so long. Identifying this opportunity as a gold-standard in bridge building and common-ground collaboration would be useful also: just be sure, please, to reiterate our longstanding need for Yaak wilderness, especially in places like Roderick Mountain, Gold Hill West, and Northwest Peaks. The Yaak’s grizzlies, old growth forests, wild trout, elk, wolves, lynx, wolverines, and all the other components that make up the essence of this unique place–including the human communities at the edges of the wilderness–need protected wilderness in the Yaak. Thank you!!

If, like most of us, your time is extremely limited, just send a copy of your letter to us at info@yaakvalley.org, and we will get a copy made and sent to each of the various delegates, legislators, and leaders. Or if you are interested in maintaining your own personal correspondence with these folks (recommended!), their addresses are listed below; just please be sure to include a copy to us (info@yaakvalley.org) for tracking purposes. Thank you! Let’s hope that with your big push here the year 2007 will become the Year of the Yaak!

Gail Kimbell Chief US Forest Service PO Box 7669 Missoula, MT 59807 T. 406-329-3316 F. 406-329-3411 Email: akimbell@fs.fed.us Gail will move to Washington DC Feb 4. After that date her address will be: 1400 Independence Ave SW Washington DC 20250 T. 202-205-1661	Paul Bradford Kootenai National Forest Supervisor 1102 U.S. Highway 2 West Libby, MT 59923 T. 406-293-6211 F. 406-283-7709 Email: pbradford@fs.fed.us
Ranotta McNair Idaho Panhandle National Forest Supervisor 3815 Schreiber Way Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815 T. 208-765-7210 F. 208-765-7307 Email: rmcnair@fs.fed.us	Governor Brian Schweitzer PO Box 200801 Helena, MT 59620-0801 T. 406-444-3111 F. 406-444-5529 Email: governor@mt.gov
The Honorable Max Baucus United States Senate 511 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510-2602 T. 202-224-2651 F. 202-224-0515 Email: max@baucus.senate.gov	The Honorable Jon Tester United States Senate B-40E Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510-2603 T. 202-224-2644 F. 202-224-8594 Email: www.tester.senate.gov This website has contact site for Sen. Tester
The Honorable Dennis Rehberg U.S. House of Representatives 516 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515-2601 T. 202-225-3211 F. 202 225-5687 Email: denny.rehberg@mail.house.gov	Yaak Valley Forest Council 155 Riverview Drive Troy, MT 59935 T. 406-295-9736 F. 406-295-9736 Email: info@yaakvalley.org

Best regards,

Robyn A. King
Executive Director