Authority and area designated:
The Upper White Salmon Wild and Scenic Rivers Act was signed into law August 2, 2005 (Public Law 109-44, 109th Congress) designating 20 miles of river segments of the main stem of the White Salmon River and Cascade Creek as a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The approximately 1.6 mile segment of the main stem of the White Salmon River from the headwaters on Mount Adams, downstream to the Mount Adams Wilderness boundary, was classified as a wild river; the approximately 5.1 mile segment of Cascade Creek from its headwaters on Mount Adams, downstream to the Mount Adams wilderness boundary was classified as a wild river; the approximately 1.5 mile segment of Cascade Creek from the Mount Adams Wilderness boundary downstream to its confluence with the White Salmon River was classified as a scenic river; and the approximately 11.8 mile segment of the main stem of the White Salmon River from the Mount Adams Wilderness boundary downstream to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest boundary was classified as scenic.
Interim management plan:
Management for these river segments is guided by the Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) for the Gifford Pinchot National Forest (1990) and the enabling legislation of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (Act) of 1968. The Act requires a detailed river corridor boundary to be established within one year from the date of designation, and a Comprehensive River Management Plan (CRMP) prepared within three full fiscal years after the date of designation. Until these are completed, the Act establishes an interim corridor boundary of “one-quarter mile from the ordinary high water mark on each side of the river” in conformance with Section 3(b) of the Act. Prior to completion of the CRMP, proposed projects and new decisions on federal lands must be evaluated to ensure they protect and, to the extent possible, enhance river values (free-flowing condition, water quality and outstandingly remarkable values).
Plans for developing a CRMP and establishing river corridor boundaries:
In August 2011, the GPNF and stakeholders met to discuss the development of the Upper White Salmon Comprehensive River Management Plan and corridor boundaries. Throughout 2012, an interdisciplinary team of forest service specialists will be working to update resource assessments, review the Forest Plan and Final Legislative Environmental Impact Statement to determine a need for change from current management, engage stakeholders, and establish river corridor boundaries. With these objectives accomplished, the Forest Service will be well on their way to developing a CRMP for the Upper White Salmon Wild and Scenic river. If you’d like to know more about the process or how to get involved, please contact Gabrielle Snider, gsnider@fs.fed.us or visit rivers.gov.
