left out of hearing

www.wilderness-sportsman.com

"We are disappointed that quiet trail users (hikers, wildlife viewers, horseback riders, bicyclists) were not invited to speak at the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee Field Hearing, Dec. 2, in Missoula. Sen. Conrad Burns chairs this subcommittee and has invited representatives of the Forest Service, wilderness advocates, timber industry and motorized users to present testimony. Unfortunately, quiet trail users, the vast majority of recreational users of Montana's national forests, may only submit written comments.

Bozeman Women's Activity Groups (BWAGs), about 100 women who hike and cross-country ski in Montana's forest lands, would like our voices to be heard. BWAGs appreciate Sen. Burns' concern for multiple-use in national forests. The Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act states that while national forests resources are to be used to meet the needs of Americans, "some land will be used for less than all of the resources." Thus, limiting motorized travel, as proposed in the Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan's preferred alternative, conforms to this legislation."

and for the most part only let in folks who agreed with him.