FEDERATION OF WESTERN OUTDOOR CLUBS

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SUPPORT WILDERNESS DESIGNATION FOR THE ZION-MOJAVE AREA, UTAH

The Zion-Mojave area of Washington county in southern Utah has spectacular landscapes that qualify for wilderness designation.  This 300,000 acre block of BLM land is one of the last remaining places of refuge and solitude in a region quickly losing its open space to suburban sprawl and industrial expansion.  Studies by the Utah Wilderness Coalition confirm that this area meets the strict wilderness qualification criteria laid out in the Wilderness Act of 1964.

Visitors to this area can still find a landscape rich in opportunities for primitive recreation, ranging from easily accessible nature walks to adventures in the rugged Colorado Plateau and Basin and Range backcountry.  The area boasts soaring sand- stone towers, deep canyons, and ponderosa-studded mesas that attract tourists, hikers, climbers, and canyoneers.

It also has an array of unique plants and animals.  Many of the species found there exist nowhere else in the state and are rare across the country, such as the desert tortoise and various rare fish species, such as the Virgin River chub.

Now the area is increasingly threatened by off-road vehicles use and by growing consumption of water.

This area would be protected as part of the America's Redrock Wilderness bill and is an integral part of that package of comprehensive wilderness legislation for Utah.

The Federation of Western Outdoor Clubs supports the preservation of Utah's Zion-Mojave area as wilderness under the Wilderness Act of 1964 and urges Congress to enact legislation to protect the spectacular and deserving landscapes that collectively make up the Zion-Mojave proposed wilderness.

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