NEW YORK, NY - On July 7th, the New York Times printed an editorial, entitled "For a Wilder Rockies", which discusses the progress of the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA) in Congress, since its inception in 1991. It calls for local support from legislators of the areas involved (Idaho, Montana, parts of eastern Washington, eastern Oregon and western Wyoming) in order to designate these federal public lands as wilderness, protecting the needs of the ecosystem as well as the regions' economic interests. All too often, however, momentum in legislation is lost in the back-and-forth of negotiations.

The Northern Rockies ecosystem overlaps five states - Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming - but all Americans own the affected land. Many Americans don't know that their federal tax dollars are being spent to subsidize activities that are harmful to the land, water, and wildlife in the Northern Rockies ecosystem.

If you live in one of the five NREPA states, please contact your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative and urge them to vote for H.R. 980, the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA). If you know someone who lives in these states, please ask them to do the same.

Below are links for U.S. Senators and a link to write to your U.S House Representative. Please review their contact page carefully as some prefer phone calls, faxes or regular mail as opposed to email and vice versa, depending upon the urgency of the matter.

Idaho: Senator Mike Crapo
Idaho :Senator Jim Risch

Montana: Senator Max Baucus
Montana: Senator Jon Tester

Oregon: Senator Ron Wyden
Oregon: Senator Jeff Merkley

Washington: Senator Maria Cantwell
Washington: Senator Patty Murray

Wyoming: Senator John Barrasso
Wyoming: Senator Michael Enzi

To write your U.S. House representative go to: Write your Representative

Your voice will help overcome the cacophony of fear. You are one of the smart people who care enough to make the world a better place. Let your voice restore harmony by taking action to save the Northern Rockies!