Petticoat Peak WSA
General Location
One mile northeast of Lava Hot Springs, Idaho (Bannock and Caribou counties)
Total Acres
11,298
Natural Features
In the Fish Creek Mountain Range; steep and mountainous terrain. Many canyons and ridges radiate from 8,000+-foot Petticoat Peak. Junipers, mountain shrubs and sagebrush dominate the western slopes. Suitable habitat for eer, elk and a variety of birds and small mammals.
What is a wilderness study area? A WSA is an area that has been inventoried (but not designated by Congress) and found to have wilderness characteristics as described in Section 603 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) of 1976 and Section 2(c) of the Wilderness Act of 1964.
The BLM manages WSAs under the National Landscape Conservation System so as not to impair the suitability of such areas as wilderness until Congress decides whether or not to designate them as wilderness. WSAs often have special qualities such as geological, ecological, educational, historical, scientific and scenic values. Petticoat Peak is one of 545 WSAs on BLM-managed lands throughout the country.
What can I do in this WSA? People can participate in activities like hunting, snow shoeing, camping, backpacking, cross-country skiing, photography, and horseback riding within this WSA. There are also “grandfathered” uses that can occur such as mining and livestock grazing, both of which predate the FLPMA and the Wilderness Act. Mining activities would include collecting minerals, prospecting, staking mining claims, and conduct mining operations with an approved mining plan of operations.
Natural and prescribed fires may be allowed to burn under certain conditions. In all cases, the equipment and tactics used to manage fires is designed to minimize the impact to wilderness values. When fire threatens human life or property, motorized equipment may be used to eliminate or minimize the threat.
What can’t I do in this WSA? Because this WSA is being managed to meet the non-impairment mandate, activities such as motorized travel (unless authorized for an emergency) and the use of chains saws are not allowed.
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ARRA