Idaho
Carter's bold protection of 100 million acres of wild Alaska began with a float trip in Idaho • Idaho Capital Sun
This column was first published on Rocky Barker’s “Letters from the West” blog on Dec. 30, 2024.
The most significant land conservation act in American history started on a raft trip down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.
Jimmy Carter, who died Dec. 29, 2024, at the age of 100, protected more than 100 million acres of Alaska public lands as national parks and preserves, national wildlife refuges, designated wilderness areas, and wild and scenic rivers. The 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act passed because Carter boldly used presidential power to make it happen.
The wilderness and national park legislation had been on environmentalists’ agenda since the 1960s, after the passage of the Wilderness Act. Several attempts were made to push it through, but each was stopped by the powerful Alaska congressional delegation.
Carter invited newly reelected Idaho Gov. Cecil Andrus to Plains, Georgia, in 1976 to interview for Interior secretary. Andrus invited Carter, an avid angler, to raft down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho with their wives. Carter accepted, then picked Andrus to lead Interior.
Carter joined Andrus in Boise and flew into Indian Creek by helicopter in late August of 1978. Legendary outfitter Norm Guth guided them and their wives, Rosalynn and Carol, for four days through the heart of Idaho wilderness. Sitting around the campfire, Andrus told Carter he had the power to preserve the Alaska lands using the Antiquities Act, said the late Chris Carlson, Andrus’s longtime aide in his book, “Eye on the Caribou.”
“You have the authority sir,” Andrus responded.
“Let’s do it,” Carter said.
After Congress reached a deadlock on legislation that would protect the Alaska lands, Carter acted. He declared 56 million acres as a national monument. He set aside another 36 million acres he could add later.
Carter had forced the Alaska congressional delegations’ hand. They returned to the table and passed the bill with 106 million acres of protected lands. The law almost doubled the sizes of the national park and wildlife refuge systems and tripled the size of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
“Jimmy Carter was, with Theodore Roosevelt, one of the two most committed conservationists ever to occupy the Oval Office,” said Andrus, who died in 2017.
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The Idaho State Department of Agriculture instated additional state entry requirements for animals on Wednesday following detections of New World screwworm — a flesh eating parasite — in Texas and New Mexico.
The parasite, first confirmed in the U.S. on June 3, would pose a serious threat to Idaho’s livestock industry, should it spread to the state. The screwworm’s larvae burrow into, and feed on, the living tissue of warm-blooded animals, with the potential to cause severe wounds, pain and bleeding.
The agriculture department’s Wednesday administrative order requires a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection granted, at most, five days before arrival for all warm-blooded animals entering Idaho from states with New World screwworm infestations.
For animals arriving from a designated screwworm-infested zone, the state agriculture department has mandated that a copy of the movement permit from the state-of-origin allowing the animal to depart must be presented. As of Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has only declared screwworm-infested zones in southern Texas.
State officials are also encouraging Idahoans to refrain from taking their pets to states with New World screwworm cases to help mitigate the spread of the disease.
Idaho
50 mph wind gusts through Wednesday night; hard freeze looms across eastern Idaho – East Idaho News
IDAHO FALLS – As windy conditions continue across eastern Idaho on Wednesday, the National Weather Service in Pocatello has issued several major warnings.
A wind advisory went into effect at 11:28 a.m. and will remain in effect until 9 p.m.
Forecasters have also issued a freeze warning early Thursday morning from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. Temperatures between 28 and 32 degrees Fahrenheit are expected for most of the Snake River Plain. The purple areas on the map below will be affected.
“Frost and freeze conditions could kill crops, other sensitive vegetation, and possibly damage unprotected outdoor plumbing,” the NWS says in a Wednesday morning alert. “Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold.”
With the wind advisory, westerly winds of 25 to 35 mph will continue through Wednesday evening, with gusts up to 50 mph.
Meteorologists say the wind could make driving conditions difficult, especially for high-profile vehicles. They’re urging people to be safe.
“Use extra caution. Secure outdoor objects,” forecasters say.
It also poses a risk to boaters and outdoor recreators.
“Boaters on area lakes should use extra caution since strong winds and rough waves can overturn small craft,” the alert says.
For the latest road conditions and closures, click here. Live traffic cams and a complete seven-day forecast are available here.
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BOISE — The State of Idaho issued a record number of tax refunds this year, totaling more than half a billion dollars.
Tuesday, Governor Brad Little announced that the state issued 826,370 refunds to Idaho taxpayers this year, amounting to $579,108,938 in refunds since the tax season began. This is a 25% increase in the number of Idaho taxpayers receiving a refund, with a 17% increase in the amount of refunds issued over the last year, Gov. Little said in a press release.
“We have delivered record tax relief over the last eight years, and we continue to lower the tax burden on hardworking families, keeping more money in their pockets and helping make life more affordable,” Gov. Little said.
The Board of Examiners subcommittee is considering a request from the Idaho State Tax Commission to add funds to the state’s tax refund account in response to the record refunds.
The board will consider action during its regular meeting on June 16.
Gov. Little’s press release notes that the Idaho State Tax Commission’s request is required by law. The state’s refund fund is monitored with checks and balances to ensure that money is available to process refunds, but any remaining balance is transferred to the General Fund.
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