Sierra Club

Protect America's Environment: For Our Families, For Our Future

Updated March 21, 2008

Eastern Idaho Group
Northern Rockies Chapter

The Eastern Idaho Group of the Sierra Club is one of the regional groups that comprise the Northern Rockies Chapter. It consists of Club members in the following counties in Eastern Idaho:

Upcoming Club events-

1. Due to Spring Break at ISU, and many people will be out of town, the March 25, 2008 Sierra Club meeting has been cancelled. Please help spread the word if you know of any Sierra Club members who don't have email, or who may not have shared their email address with us.

We may plan some local hikes or snowshoe outings soon.

2. Comments are due on Draft Environmental Impact Statement on Idaho state petition on national forest roadless areas (April 7, 2008)

On December 26, 2007, the Forest Service released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) that seeks to weaken protections for much of Idaho’s 9.3 million acres of roadless lands. Nearly 6 million acres of those lands would be opened to potential logging and mineral development. An additional 600,000 acres in Southeast Idaho and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem would be virtually unprotected, opening these backcountry lands to phosphate mining, logging and oil and gas development.

WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Comments due April 7, 2008

Send to: IDcomments@fsroadless.org
Roadless Area Conservation-Idaho
P.O. Box 162909
Sacramento, CA 95816-2909; Fax: 916-456-6724

Outings- Updated last on Jan. 13, 2008. None presently scheduled.

Example of one of our projects on the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. We paid for the creation of a new Slate Mountain trailhead which replaced a culvert that impeded fish passage on Mink Creek and a new parking lot uphill from the bridge. The short road spur that used to cross over on the culvert was obliterated, eliminating a source of sediment to Mink Creek. Photo taken November. 18, 2007.

The new parking lot. The old one was a mud hole across the creek, up against the hill.

The Eastern Idaho Group has existed from time-to-time since the early 1970s, but it was formally re-established in 1988. It presently has an executive committee of five persons.

We reorganized spring 2007, and our new officers are listed near the bottom of this web page. We are always looking for new activists. If you wish to participate, contact us at our PO Box 1173; Pocatello, Idaho  83204, or email marcusgallo@cableone.net.

Most of our activities have concerned the public lands of the United States -- your lands. We work on wilderness, endangered species, forestry, grazing, control of the destructive aspects of off-road vehicles, and to a lesser extent, mining. We are also joining with many others to keep your public lands in public hands. We fight efforts to sell off our national forests, national parks, national wildlife refuges to the highest bidder.

A more subtle danger comes from proposals to transfer the ownership or management of these lands to the states. If you ever want to see lands in a sorry condition, get out a land ownership map and head for the nearest parcel Idaho state land. We have been very active helping the Forest Service control ATV traffic with the location of gates and large boulders on the Westside Ranger District of the Caribou/Targhee National Forest.

Eastern Idaho Group Leadership-

Chair. Marcus Gallo
Vice Chair. Mike Settell
Secretary. Barbara Nichols
Treasurer. Jackie Maughan
Conservation chair. John Schmidt
Membership Chair. Sondra Dunkle
Outings Chair: Mel Nichols

Group bylaws-

Our mailing address for snail mail is: PO Box 1173; Pocatello, ID 83204.

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Sierra Club, 85 Second St., Second Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105-3441, USA. Telephone (415) 977-5500 (voice), (415) 977-5799 (FAX).

http://idaho.sierraclub.org/eastid/