Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act of 2025

Sponsor: Madeleine Dean (Democratic-PA)March 27, 2025

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Introduced

In Committee

Passed One Chamber

Passed Both Chambers

Signed into Law

Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.

Protects millions of acres of wild lands and rivers in the Northern Rockies.

This bill would protect about 9 million acres of federal land in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. It would designate these areas as wilderness, wild and scenic rivers, and wildlife corridors, aiming to preserve natural ecosystems and restore damaged lands. These protections would limit new development, logging, and mining in these areas.

What Would Change

Today, many undeveloped federal lands in the Northern Rockies are managed under various rules, some allowing for resource extraction and development. After this bill, vast portions of these lands would be permanently designated as wilderness, wild and scenic rivers, or biological corridors, with strict prohibitions on new roads, logging, and mining. Additionally, about 1 million acres of damaged land would be actively restored to a natural state.

Key Provisions

Designates about 9 million acres of federal land in five states as wilderness, protecting it from most development.
Adds specific river segments in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
Creates about 2.9 million acres of "biological connecting corridors" to link major ecosystems for wildlife movement.
Bans new roads, timber harvesting (except firewood), mining, and oil and gas exploration in newly designated wilderness and biological corridors, subject to existing rights.
Sets aside about 1 million acres for "wildland recovery areas" to restore damaged ecosystems to a natural state.
Allows ranchers to voluntarily donate grazing permits in protected areas, leading to a permanent end to grazing on those lands.

View on Congress.gov

HR 2420 · 119th Congress · March 27, 2025 · AI Summary by gemini-2.5-flash · 5/10

Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act of 2025

What Would Change

Key Provisions

Lobbying Activity