Looking west across the valley at the George Washington National Forest from Hogback Overlook, Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, Summer 2021: Glynn Wilson

By Glynn Wilson –

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It’s understandably difficult for the American public to get excited very often about legislation proposed in Congress, especially considering all the crazy crap coming out of the House since the extremist Republicans took over this year, like a new plan to cut Social Security that is dead on arrival in the Senate and the White House.

Congress is out on a summer recess at this time, but we just found out about an amazing piece of legislation that should be approved in the fall with overwhelming bipartisan support, in another effort to combat climate change due to global warming from the burning of fossil fuels for energy and transportation as well.

Virginia Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner have introduced a bill called the Shenandoah Mountain Act of 2023 that would create a new national scenic area to protect the region’s critical headwaters and add four new wild wilderness areas on 93,000 acres within the George Washington National Forest already under management by the U.S. Forest Service.

No new private land will be added, and no existing roads will be threatened, so the bill is already being endorsed by more than 400 local businesses, organizations, faith groups and the Friends of Shenandoah Mountain. Rockingham County and Augusta County have endorsed the proposal, along with the cities of Harrisonburg and Staunton.

“This bill is the product of 20 years of collaborative work from an incredibly diverse group of local conservationists, recreation groups, timber industry representatives, hunters, and anglers,” Friends of Shenandoah Mountain Co-Chair Thomas Jenkins has said about the plan. “Over that time, people with different outlooks on forest management came together and agreed that this exceptional place deserves the permanent protection that a National Scenic Area will provide.”

If the bill passes in the Senate and the House and is signed by President Joe Biden, the legislation would preserve more than 150 miles of trails on the western edge of the Shenandoah Valley and prohibit logging and industrial development like drilling for oil and gas, fracking and pipeline construction.

“The Shenandoah Mountain area is home to critical watersheds, flourishing wildlife and some of our commonwealth’s most beautiful landscapes,” Senator Kaine said when introducing the bill in late July. He’s a Democrat and was the party’s choice for Vice President in 2016. He hiked the Shenandoah Mountain trail in May 2022 to learn more about what protections are needed for the scenic area.

Senator Tim Kaine talking to local folks while hiking in Shenandoah, Virginia: NAJ screen shot

Virginia Senator Mark Warner, also a Democrat, co-sponsored the bill after a visit to the area last year.

“Last year, I was so excited to hike Ramsey’s Draft to see the beauty of the area firsthand,” he said.

Senator Mark Warner visiting Shenandoah in Virginia: NAJ screen shot

Kaine and Warner have also reintroduced the Virginia Wilderness Additions Act, legislation that would add a total of 5,600 acres to two existing wilderness areas within the George Washington National Forest in Bath County, Virginia. These additions were recommended by the U.S. Forest Service in 2014 and endorsed by members of the GW National Forest Stakeholder Collaborative, a group of forest users that has worked together for seven years to agree on acceptable locations in the GW for wilderness, timber harvest, trails, and other uses.

“These wilderness designations will preserve these beautiful wild areas of the George Washington National Forest in perpetuity,” the Senators said. “The good-faith work that went into this bill by local stakeholders shows that land-use decisions need not be adversarial and that we can provide for sustainable use of National Forest lands for many purposes while also preserving Virginia’s most treasured spaces. I’m thankful for all the local officials and conservationists who’ve worked together over the years to create this plan, and we’ll continue working to ensure this bill is signed into law.”

The Senate passed the bill in January 2020, but the legislation did not make it through the House, and was not signed into law.

Under the new Scenic Area proposal, the four new wilderness areas, the highest level of protection public lands can receive, would include 28,000 acres with 10 mountain peaks higher than 4,000 feet. It also includes 15 miles of trails for hikers and other recreational access. The area includes the headwaters of the Potomac and James rivers, which supply drinking water to millions of people throughout the region.

A map of the area

See larger map.

Scientists at James Madison University have estimated that the lands within the proposed scenic area are generating $13.7 million per year in local benefits, including the value of water and energy supplies. The tourism economy of the region generated nearly $729 million in 2021 alone.

A couple of local reports indicate that the Forest Service is for the plan, but when I contacted Wade Muehlhof with the USFS National Press Office, he said the Forest Service, by policy, does not issue positions on legislation.

“The United States Department of Agriculture may at times issue statements on legislation, and the Forest Service may be requested to testify on behalf of the Department of Agriculture,” he said. “However, that is at the request of Congress. As of today, the Forest Service has not issued testimony on this bill.”

Brook-Trout or Speckled Trout

The cold mountain waters are also critical habitat for native brook trout and other at-risk species, including the Cow Knob and the Shenandoah salamander.

Related

The Story of Wild, Native Brook Trout and Why They Are So Ecologically Important Like the Canary in the Coal Mine for Climate Change

Climate Change Comes to Shenandoah

More Photos from the Area

A college student fishing for brook trout in Owens Creek: Glynn Wilson

A view of the mountains from the Appalachian Trail by the Big Meadows Campground in Shenandoah National Park: Glynn Wilson

A newborn fawn hiding in the grass in the Big Meadows Campground at Shenandoah National Park: Glynn Wilson

A creek that runs into the Shenandoah River in the fall at the Elizabeth Furnace Campground in the George Washington National Forest: Glynn Wilson

A dam on private property near the free Little Fort Campground in the George Washington National Forest: Glynn Wilson

A red-bellied woodpecker at the Elizabeth Furnace Campground in the George Washington National Forest: Glynn Wilson

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