Wilderness Watch and other organizations are opposing a Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) plan to use helicopters to capture and collar non-native mountain goats in three Wildernesses along the Wasatch Front in Utah—Twin Peaks, Lone Peak, and Mt. Timpanogos. UDWR is trying to learn why the non-native goat population is declining, so it can try to reverse the decline and provide more goats for hunters. UDWR is seeking Forest Service (FS) approval to land helicopters this fall and next, in what could be an ongoing, long-term project.

The Forest Service’s first responsibility is to protect the wilderness character of the Twin Peaks, Lone Peak, and Mt. Timpanogos Wildernesses. The UDWR proposal fails to show how landing helicopters and placing radio telemetry collars on non-native mountain goats is necessary to protect these Wildernesses.

• Read the sign-on letter from the groups aligned against the project.

Photo: Lone Peak Wilderness by Michael T. Walterman