The Conservation Biology Alternative for Grizzly Bear Population Restoration
in the Greater Salmon-Selway Region Central Idaho and Western Montana

APPENDIX A

Cost-effective

The Conservation Biology Alternative Grizzly Bear Recovery is a cost-effective way to restore grizzly bears to central Idaho. This proposal examines the ecosystem as a whole, not by individual timber sales or species. The most cost-effective way to restore grizzly bears to central Idaho is the Conservation Biology Alternative which protects virtually all the remaining roadless lands in the central Idaho Rockies from development and commodity production. Protecting grizzly bear habitat also helps other endangered species, thereby saving the government money.

The Conservation Biology Alternative is a jobs creating proposal. People live and work in the Northern Rockies because of its natural beauty. The question of jobs versus the environment is a false one. These states would actually end up with more jobs if these lands were left in their natural state. The Conservation Biology Alternative directly creates 1501 jobs by obliterating environmentally destructive roads and indirectly creates thousands of jobs by preserving a pristine environment that attracts and holds businesses. This natural landscape is the economic base of central Idaho and western Montana. These lands are vital to the region when they are left in their natural state (Power, 1992). The economic future of this area relates to its unique natural landscape and its ability to attract people.

Central Idahoßs and western Montanaßs current economic vitality is dependent on its high quality natural environment, not its declining extractive industries. Further damage to these pristine areas will threaten the economic future of the region. This is not a jobs versus the environment scenario. The Conservation Biology Alternative protects the environment, creates jobs, and saves the taxpayers money. The other choices permanently damage the environment for the sake of profit and a few hundred temporary jobs in the timber industry at the expense of destroying the Northern Rockies economic base, its natural landscape, destroying thousands of permanent jobs, and reducing the areaßs capability to support a sustainable grizzly bear population.

The Conservation Biology Alternative offers a better means of putting people to work. 3,482 miles of roads would be closed and restored and fish and wildlife returned. These activities would employ people. Obliterating 3,482 miles of roads creates approximately 1501 jobs for heavy equipment operators, biologists and technicians, good jobs which could be spread out well into the 21st century. Heavy equipment operators earn approximately $20 per hour. The employment thus created will greatly ease the transition from a timber based economy. The money to pay for this could come from ending roadless area logging. Projected losses from proposed logging in roadless areas covered by the Conservation Biology Alternative for the period 1997 - 2006 are over $137 million dollars. Logging in these roadless areas would stop, thereby saving taxpayers over $137 million. The Conservation Biology Alternative produces more quality jobs without destroying Idahoßs major resource.

Based on U.S. Forest Service estimates, Power (1992) found that foregoing timber sales within roadless areas on the national forests affected by this alternative would result in a loss of 572 direct short- term timber jobs. However, the Forest Service incorrectly overestimates the number of jobs created per million board feet of timber cut (Garrity 1991). Using current capital-labor ratios, less than 300 timber jobs would be affected. Loggers are losing their jobs because of technological improvement. One person can cut in an hour what it took two people to cut in a day ten years ago. These jobs are temporary. The forests are not being cut at a sustainable rate (Wolf 1995). These logging jobs are not sustainable.

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