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WATERSHED PROTECTION Backcountry group to stump for wild steelhead sanctuary Comment By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Follow @@MTwriterFreeman MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Follow @@MTwriterFreeman Posted May. 28, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated May 28, 2016 at 10:35 AM By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Follow @@MTwriterFreeman Posted May. 28, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated May 28, 2016 at 10:35 AM » Social News STEAMBOAT — A backcountry advocacy group plans to jump-start a stalled campaign to protect a 104,000-acre chunk of the North Umpqua River Basin for wild steelhead and name it after one of the fish's most ardent and iconic defenders. The group Backcountry Hunters and Anglers plans to launch a statewide grassroots campaign to see the Frank Moore Wild Steelhead Sanctuary east of Roseburg become a reality. The sanctuary and the Congressional bill seeking to designate it are in the name of Moore, a storied North Umpqua fly-fisher and nationally recognized conservationist whose wild steelhead advocacy dates back to the early 1950s in the basin and continues today. The proposed sanctuary covers Umpqua National Forest and federal Bureau of Land Management lands now home to more than 80 miles of wild steelhead spawning habitat and the source of some of the best cold and clean water in the basin, advocates say. "It's about what we do and what we're about — protecting pristine landscapes," says Brian Jennings, BHA's Oregon coordinator. The legislation seeking to create the sanctuary states that the land would be protected, preserved and managed to enhance its flora, fauna and ecology, especially preserving it as a cold-water refuge for wild steelhead. The act calls for no new roads, prioritizes the decommissioning of roads and bans future mining and geothermal exploration but does not prohibit current mining there. Language in the draft bill does not address commercial logging but requires steps be made to improve riparian habitats for better water quality. "It's an amazing area that should be protected," Jennings says. "It's a no-brainer for us." But it's also something of a nonstarter since Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., submitted the bill, which was co-sponsored by fellow Oregon Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley in May 2015. It was sent to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, where it had an Oct. 8 hearing in the Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests and Mining. The subcommittee has not taken up the bill since, congressional records show. "The legislation is just lying there," Jennings says. "It needs a push. There's no momentum or traction getting it going." Jennings hopes to create that traction by speaking to fishing and other conservation clubs to garner their support and already is booked out to November in speaking engagements across Oregon. Wyden spokesman Hank Stern says the senator remains interested in seeing the bill passed and intends to "pull out all the stops" in doing so. Stern, however, declined to discuss legislative tactics. Moore, 93, who still lives with his wife, Jeanne, in the North Umpqua River-side house they built, says he's extremely vested in seeing this sanctuary, with its 80 miles of spawning tributaries, created by a federal act so future public-lands managers have clear marching orders for it. "It'll remain out of the hands of the individuals who don't think things need to be protected," Moore says. "It's the biggest steelhead producer, by far and away, of any stream on the North Umpqua." Moore first championed protection for Steamboat Creek and its tributaries during commercial logging operations in the early 1950s. It was an early endeavor for Moore, whose ensuing decades of protecting wild steelhead and their territory saw him serve a stint on the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission. The founder of Steamboat Inn, he is a former National Wildlife Federation Conservationist of the Year, earned the Wild Steelhead Coalition Conservation Award and in 2010 was inducted into the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame. Moore fought in the invasion of Normandy and a 2014 documentary followed his return to France to fish some of the streams he crossed as a soldier. He was awarded the Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor for bravery. Formed around an Oregon campfire in 2004, BHA has about 4,000 members in 19 states and Canadian provinces. Its total base support exceeds 150,000 when it includes social media fans and followers as well as YouTube subscribers and email sign-ups, BHA Communications Director Katie McKalip says. Reach Mail Tribune reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected] . Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman . By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Follow @@MTwriterFreeman MailTribune.com By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune Follow @@MTwriterFreeman Posted May. 28, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated May 28, 2016 at 10:35 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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