The following letter to the editor appeard in the Casper Star Tribune 1-25-08. We think the sentiment is spot on. (photo: Ralph Maughan)

Editor:

In a landslide vote, the U.S. Senate last week passed a bill sponsored by Wyoming’s John Barrasso and co-sponsored by our senior senator, Mike Enzi, to withdraw 1.2 million acres of the Wyoming Range from additional oil and gas leasing.

As supporters of the group, Sportsmen for the Wyoming Range, we believe this bill, the Wyoming Range Legacy Act, is good for outfitters, good for our economy, and good for Wyoming. It also ensures that our namesake Range remains a multi-use outdoor resource for everyone.

Anyone who has been to the Wyoming Range knows that there are areas of it that have been producing oil and gas for years. There are also areas in the Range right now that have been leased properly for development that currently sit idle. These companies have rights to their leases and to the ensuing development. We mention this because Sen. Barrasso’s legislation does nothing to these developments or idle leases. This legislation is all about future leasing and preserving our outdoor heritage.

All that being said, we make our living in these mountains, hosting thousands of visitors who come to Wyoming year after year for an authentic hunting and fishing experience and leave with a better understanding of what makes our state so unique and so special. Residents from all over Wyoming trek to the Range because it is the only place in the state that boasts three of Wyoming’s native cutthroat trout species, the largest moose herd in the West, and some of the finest mule deer and elk habitat anywhere in the state. Families come to the Range to recreate, relax and spend time together.

This is multi-use at its best. And the Wyoming Range Legacy Act keeps it this way.

The Senate passed the legislation. We thank Sen. Barrasso for
his leadership. When it moves to the House for consideration, we
urge our new representative, Cynthia Lummis, to start her
Capitol Hill career off on the right foot by sending this bill
to the president for his signature. A vote for the Wyoming Range
Legacy Act is a vote for local outfitting businesses, a vote for
sportsmen, a vote for Wyoming citizens, and a vote for
multiple-use on public land in Wyoming.

GARY AMERINE, Daniel