We’re delighted Sen. Max Baucus has agreed to introduce in Congress the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act, which will add an additional set of protections to a swath of the landscape held near and dear to generations of Montanans and one of the wildest places remaining in the Lower 48. The loud ovation Baucus received Friday afternoon at Montana Outdoor Sports when he announced he would carry the bill is an ovation to which all Montanans should lend their voices.

The three-pronged bill creates a 207,000-acre Conservation Management Area, along with 67,000 new acres of wilderness in the Bob Marshall and Scapegoat wilderness areas. Half of each of those new designations are in the far northern reaches of Lewis and Clark County. The third leg is a funding mechanism to fight noxious weeds along the Front.

As Choteau rancher Dusty Crary said in thanking Baucus for agreeing to carry the bill: “This is our homeland security.” And to those who oppose the measure, Perry noted that supporters are just as passionate about preserving their lifestyles as they are about protecting their own for future generations.

More than anything, the act would protect the uses as they’ve been. This isn’t a land grab; it’s a chance to preserve the grazing, hunting and recreation that have gone on along the Rocky Mountain Front for generations. Not all of those uses go straight to the bottom line like oil and/or gas leasing might, but the economic impact is significant nonetheless — the 90,000 hunter/days along the Rocky Mountain Front last year generated $10 million in spending.

Yes, there’s 67,000 acres of newly designated wilderness — but supporters say the Forest Service has managed those parcels as wilderness for years anyway, and the practical effect of the formal designation is little change from the status quo. Grazing rights will be maintained. And in the CMA, any uses that are allowed now will be allowed in the future. In fact, two of the main roads into the CMA, Sun Canyon Road and Benchmark Road, are in the midst of multi-million dollar improvements that will make access much better, thanks to grants to the county from the Forest Federal Highway Program.

The act is a result of dozens of meetings over five years or more, between interest groups, landowners, local politicians and finally, this summer, a handful of meetings up and down the Front with Baucus in attendance. The size and shape of the proposed wilderness areas have changed as groups weighed in, and other elements of the proposal were added, dropped or adjusted as supporters reacted to what they heard. The bill won’t please everyone — what bill does? — but as Baucus said Friday, the bill was drafted with a “bottom up” approach, which he hopes will be appreciated when it’s up for a vote in Congress.

Turf wars over turf in Congress can be as contentious as any discussions lawmakers have, but for the sake of protecting some of the most beautiful parts of our landscape, the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act deserves a thorough hearing and passage into law.