Smith River Expansion Adds 60+ Miles of 'Wild' River Protection, Mandates Roadless Management in Oregon

The Smith River National Recreation Area Expansion Act is a big update to how a critical slice of Northern California and Southern Oregon gets managed. Essentially, this bill redraws the boundaries of the Smith River National Recreation Area (SRNRA) to include new areas, mainly on the Oregon side, and significantly ramps up environmental protections for the river system’s headwaters.

The New Map: What’s Being Added

Think of this as a major land management update. The bill formally expands the SRNRA by referencing a new map dated January 23, 2023 (Sec. 2). This expansion is a big deal for Oregon, because the bill explicitly states that any part of the expanded recreation area falling into Oregon must be managed as “roadless” land. For the average person, this means that the newly included areas in Oregon are going to stay wild—no new logging roads or other vehicle access infrastructure will be built there. This is a win for anyone who loves backpacking, fishing, or just wants to know that some places will remain untouched by development.

On the administrative side, the Secretary of Agriculture now has five years to conduct a detailed study of the newly added lands (Sec. 2). This isn't just a quick look; they need to inventory everything from streams and wetlands to plants and unstable habitat areas. Once that study is done, the management plans for the entire recreation area must be updated to fully protect what they found. This adds a layer of required long-term planning and protection that wasn't there before.

Wild and Scenic: Protecting the Headwaters

The biggest conservation punch this bill packs is in Section 3, which dramatically increases the protection status for the North Fork Smith River’s source tributaries in Oregon. The bill designates over 60 miles of these streams—like Baldface Creek, Chrome Creek, and Cedar Creek—as “wild rivers” under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

What does a “wild river” designation mean in real life? It locks in the highest level of protection, prohibiting dams, restricting development, and ensuring the river corridor remains free-flowing and essentially primitive. If you're a fly fisher, a kayaker, or just someone who relies on clean water, this is a huge insurance policy for the water quality and ecosystem health of the entire Smith River system. For example, the 13.26-mile stretch of Baldface Creek, from its headwaters to the North Fork Smith River, is now permanently protected as a wild river.

Tribal Access and Land Acquisition

This legislation makes sure that the expansion doesn’t step on existing rights. It requires the Secretary to work out an agreement (a memorandum of understanding) with applicable Tribes to ensure they maintain access to the Oregon portions of the recreation area for cultural activities, including gathering noncommercial forest products for traditional use (Sec. 2). This is a crucial step in respecting and formalizing traditional land use practices.

There’s also a specific land acquisition directive. The Secretary is instructed to try and acquire the approximately 555-acre Cedar Creek Parcel in Oregon, provided the State Land Board of Oregon passes a resolution supporting it and funding is available (Sec. 2). This is one of those provisions that sounds definitive but has a few conditions attached—meaning the acquisition isn't guaranteed but is now a stated federal goal.

The Trade-Offs and Challenges

While this is a clear win for conservation, it does come with real-world implications for certain groups. By expanding the roadless area and increasing Wild and Scenic River designations, the bill tightens the regulatory screws on potential extractive industries like logging and mining in the newly protected zones. If you’re in a resource-dependent business, this bill means certain parts of the forest are permanently off-limits for development.

One area to watch is the management flexibility. The bill clarifies that these changes don't stop the Secretary from doing wildfire management or vegetation management projects, provided those activities “fit the overall purpose of the recreation area” (Sec. 2). That phrase—