North Cascades Focus Areas
North Cascades Focus Areas
North Cascades Focus Areas
North Cascades Focus Areas
The pristine forests, rivers, lakes and mountains of the North Cascades clean our air and water and provide outstanding outdoor recreation opportunities.
The Wilderness Society’s work in the North Cascades focuses on three key wild areas that are critical to the health of the landscape and nearby communities. We are working in the following focus areas to:
- Protect wild lands for people and wildlife to use and enjoy
- Support recreation access and opportunities
- Garner broad-based support for long-term conservation
U.S. Highway 2
Three wilderness areas totaling 600,000 acres form the backbone of wild lands along this corridor: Henry M. Jackson and Wild Sky to the north and Alpine Lakes to the south. These areas offer important natural resources and unique opportunities to experience the beauty and wild lands of the North Cascades. Our work along the Highway Two corridor aims to meet the recreational needs of the region and demonstrate the benefit of wilderness to local communities.
Methow Valley
While many think of the eastern half of Washington state as a dry and dusty place, the Methow Valley is home to impressive rivers like the Methow, Twisp and Chewuch, all of which drain into the region’s largest river, the Columbia. We’re building on the Methow’s rich conservation legacy to further protect the wild lands and waters of the region and enhance recreation access and opportunities on these public lands.
Yakima Basin
The Yakima Basin is one of the most diverse watersheds in Washington state, from the wet, alpine forests of the Cascades to the arid, sagebrush-studded Yakima Valley. The basin is home to the Yakima River, which sustains fish, families and farms as it makes its way to the Columbia River. We are working to protect the headwaters of the basin, restore critical fish and wildlife habitat and enhance recreation access and management.
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Why Wilderness
Wilderness is a precious resource with many human, natural and economic benefits that we need to protect.
mywilderness
Hear artists, activists and adventurers share what the ownership and legacy of these American wildlands means to them.
Friday, May 24, 2013The U.S. Coast Guard began multi-day investigatory hearings on May 20 into Royal Dutch Shell's drilling rig the Kulluk, which went aground near Kodiak Island, Alaska, last New Year’s Eve.
Thursday, May 23, 2013Which is why this week legislation that would protect these lands was introduced yet again, granting these lands another opportunity for well-deserved recognition and conservation.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013Yet, here we are, with people and the government unable to stop furloughs, job losses, and lower revenue to keep the government functioning. Our public lands have certainly not been spared from this indiscriminate budget ax.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013But Alaska’s Sen. Lisa Murkowski refused to accept that decision. She and residents of the tiny community of King Cove are fighting to have the decision overturned.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013Birdwatchers travel from far and wide to northwest Colorado to see male sage-grouse strut their stuff in hopes of attracting a mate. Early spring is prime season to catch these timid grouse dancing on the lek and shaking their tail feathers through organized tours.
Members of the Western Clean Energy Advocates (WCEA), signed a letter encouraging Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper to to sign SB 252, to increase the renewable energy portfolio standard for rural electric providers
. WCEA is a diverse and growing coalition working to transform the way we produce, use, and distribute energy across the West. WCEA aims to create jobs, protect the West’s water, wildlife, and ecosystems, address climate change, and enhance energy security.
Smart Steps to Establish a Responsible Program for Renewable Energy on Public Lands
Since its first day in office, the Obama Administration has made rapid and responsible expansion of renewable energy a top priority. The public lands have played a major role in achieving early goals, but only because of focused effort to correct decades of inattention and inactivity toward developing renewable energy as a major component of the nation’s energy mix.
Expanding energy development to meet the growing needs of America must be balanced with protecting vital wild places.
The Wilderness Society has launched a new quarterly report "By The Numbers" to track how many acres of American land have been protected by Congress and the Executive branch, and how many acres have been leased out to energy development.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013Witness testimony today by Noble’s Offshore Installation Manager Todd Case as he was questioned by the National Transportation Safety Board revealed that the Kulluk drill rig -- which Shell attempted to tow across the Gulf of Alaska with a single tow vessel before it broke loose and ran aground last New Year’s Eve -- should have had multiple tow vessels for safe transport.
Case was aboard the Kulluk when it went adrift and ran aground on a small island south of Kodiak.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013U.S. Representatives Don Young and Doc Hastings have introduced H.R. 1964 in an effort to scrap the Department of the Interior’s recently finalized, comprehensive plan for the western Arctic’s National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, the nation’s largest tract of public land. The bill is scheduled for a hearing tomorrow on Capitol Hill.
Monday, May 20, 2013Identifying smart steps the Obama Administration, including the Department of the Interior and Bureau of Land Management, can take to continue building a responsible program for renewable energy are part of a “blueprint for action” released by The Wilderness Society today.