Move Made to Designate South Dakota Wilderness.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
CUSTER, S.D. - Nearly 50,000 acres of land in the Buffalo Gap National Grassland in south west South Dakota would be designated as wilderness by a bill introduced in Congress by South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson. Cheryl Warren, coordinator of the South Dakota Wild Grassland Coalition, says this is a unique area that deserves special protections.
"The prairie grasslands ecosystem is the most-threatened, fastest-dwindling and least-protected ecosystem on the continent. There is not much left of the Great Plains as they used to be."
Warren says the designation will move only about 10 percent of the grasslands to wilderness.
"I think we owe it to our kids, our grand kids, the people who make their living depending on that land and take good care of it. We owe it the highest form of protection it can receive."
Terry Mayes, Coalition volunteer and landowner, said the move to protect the land as wilderness will ensure future generations will see the land stay undisturbed.
"The pristineness of that area, the beautiful grasslands and the other habitat there will be protected as it has been for the last hundreds of years."
While protecting the area, the designation is also designed to allow public access for recreation, ranching and grazing.
get more stories like this via email
United Nations experts are raising concerns about chemical giants DuPont and Chemours, saying they've violated human rights in North Carolina…
Social Issues
The long-delayed Farm Bill could benefit Virginia farmers by renewing funding for climate-smart investments, but it's been held up for months in …
Environment
Conservation groups say the Hawaiian Islands are on the leading edge of the fight to preserve endangered birds, since climate change and habitat loss …
Environment
April has been "Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month," but the pests don't know that. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says it's the …
Health and Wellness
The 2024 Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Public Conference kicks off Saturday, where industry experts and researchers will share the latest scientific …
Environment
Environmental groups say more should be done to protect people's health from what they call toxic, radioactive sludge. A court granted a temporary …