Washington County became the first county in Utah to get congressional approval of their land use bill. County Land Bills are often referred to as “Wilderness Bills” but while they do create Wilderness they define other uses for land within a county’s borders as well. Washington Counties land bill created two new National Conservation Areas which offer protection to sensitive areas without all of the restrictions of a Wilderness designation.
A handful of counties, including Emery County have been working on their own land bills for eight years. Emery’s bill was ready to go to congress but an additional requirement by the state may have added six to eight months to an already lengthy process. The county is continuing to move forward with the hope that the state legislature won’t require any major changes to their bill.