The American Wilderness system is a unique American heritage that strives to preserve some of the landscape that made us a nation.  In Oregon, the Kalmiopsis Wilderness has one remaining in-holding and 3 mining claims, all owned by Dave Rutan.  This petition is to encourage the acquisition of these properties for the perminent protection of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness.  The Kalmiopsis Wilderness, an ancient landscape, is home to and the only place on earth where the Kalmiopsis Leachiana, a rare flowering plant​ endemic to the Siskiyou Mountains of southwest Oregon, grows where it is specially protected in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness reserve.

Dave Rutan opened a gold mining retreat (see www.oregongoldtrip.com/goldopportunity5.htm ) at the last private inholding inside the Kalmiopsis Wilderness in Oregon, bringing in helicopters, gas-powered dredges and paying customers.  He did so without the permission from county authorities.  Now he wants to commercially dredge miles of the Chetco on additional mining claims, these being the only remaining mining claims also in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness.  He plans to helicopter in four-man crews to seek gold from the equivalent of nearly 50 truckloads of river gravel each season. His actions are destroying the essence of the wilderness and damaging a public resource.

Mr. Rutan has total disregard for the wilderness and the American people.  The United State Forest Service needs to decisively halt this plan by doing what the Wilderness Act instructs the USFS to do and buy the property before its too late.