By Kiko Sweeney
Every spring in Washington DC, as the daffodils start to emerge and the cherry blossoms begin to show signs of life, activists gather in our nation’s Capitol to lobby for legislation to protect Utah’s Wilderness. About thirty volunteers and staff from Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA), Utah Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), under the umbrella of the Utah Wilderness Coalition (UWC), gathered in support of America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act (ARRWA), a bill circulated annually in Congress since 1989. This annual “citizens migration,” known as Wilderness Week, draws people from Utah and across the country. ARRWA seeks to designate 8.4 million acres of Federal Land as Wilderness, the most protective designation of government land under United States law. This cornerstone legislation put forth every two years exemplifies the dedication to wild land in our organizing community. For thirty years, UWC advocates have worked diligently to wrangle up co-sponsors, meaning senators and representatives, who sign on in support of the bill.
30 devoted public lands passionistas gather in the shadow of the United States Capitol Building to celebrate Wilderness Week 2020.
Photo Credit: Kiko Sweeney
Because of persistent support for ARRWA from members of congress such as Senator Dick Durbin from Illinois, the Emery County Land Management Act passed last year, designating 663,000 acres of wilderness in the county. When Utah Senator Orrin Hatch first introduced the bill, Durbin leaned on him to greatly increase the land protected in Emery County. Durbin referenced the robust national support for Utah Wilderness, as evidenced by ARRWA, to bolster the acreage of Wilderness, National Wild and Scenic River and Recreation Area. The UWC got a hard-earned win when the Emery County Land Management Act passed in the 116th Congress, doubling the acreage of wilderness originally proposed by Hatch. Senator Mitt Romney supported the bill after Hatch’s retirement.
This year, Andie Madsen and I gathered in DC as Utah Chapter representatives within the UWC. We joined friendly faces from SUWA and NRDC, along with folks from many organizations such as the Sierra Club Chapter in New Jersey, the Escalante and Boulder Chamber of Commerce, Women Who Hike and many others. Paired with volunteers from other states, we collectively set up hundreds of meetings to advocate for Utah’s public land. As partners, we worked within our pair to form a onetwo punch of constituents and Utah perspectives. I had the great pleasure of meeting with the office of Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois. As the sponsor of the Bill, we thanked his team for persistent support of Utah’s wild places.
All of us activists flocked to DC to lobby for America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act with powerful motivations in mind: we want continued access to our public land, to help solve the inextricable issue of the climate crisis, to vocalize the power of the Outdoor Recreation Industry and the business it brings to Utah, and more. One reason clearly resonated with everyone: Utah’s wilderness is a treasure and deserves preservation as such.
Help us gain a wilderness designation for 8.4 million acres of land in Utah by getting in touch with your representative in regard to America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act! Check www.house.gov/representatives/find-yourrepresentative to freshen up on your Delegation and give them a call to express your support. You can also send a message to your Congressperson by going to suwa.org/ Amerca’s Red Rock Wilderness Act.