Public weighs in on proposed wilderness quotas

There may be a quota system coming to Central Oregon’s wilderness areas, but first the public gets to weigh in.

There were more than 100 people at a meeting about it Thursday night — standing room only.

U.S. Forest Service officials outlined five plans for preserving Central Oregon’s wilderness areas in the Deschutes and Willamette national forests amid a dramatic increase in visitors in recent years, and the resulting impacts.

The proposals are essentially a scale. The first proposal makes no changes to the current rules, which usually do not require a permit to enter a trailhead. The fifth proposal would establish a quota and require a permit for all trailheads across the five central Cascades wilderness areas.

The proposals in between call for quotas or permits in some locations, usually the most-visited ones. The final decision will likely be a mix of these alternatives.

“Ultimately when we reach a decision, our decision-maker can pull different pieces of all those alternatives,” Forest Service Information Officer Jean Nelson-Dean said.

The general mood in the room was favorable toward some type of quota and permit system.

“Access to the wilderness is really important for equestrians,” Oregon Equestrian Trails Vice President of Public Lands Kate McCarrel said. “We were the first people to access the wilderness, and we love being out there, so taking measures to protect the wilderness is really important to us.”

East Cascade Backcountry Horsemen member Lee Fischer said.

“If you go up to Green Lakes, you’ll see 100 to 200 people up there, and the parking down the road line is unbelievable,”

An online comment period is open until May 21. Nelson-Dean emphasized the best comments are those that are specific about why something works or does not work.

After that period, officials will review the comments and implement a plan, which will ideally take effect by the summer of 2019.

Find more details in the related story on this page, posted last week.