Photos and story by Bill Loftus

Things were tense in the Big Wood Valley. Clusters of citizens privately caucused in advance of an all-important meeting with the Valley County Council. The representatives of Sno-Fun, Inc., want to develop a major ski resort in the valley. Big Topple Tree Co. wants a permit to clearcut 5,000 acres. The Big Wood Fly Fishers aren’t buying into either and plan to lobby the council. Other groups want their own piece of paradise, or are prepared to defend it as it now exists.

It could be real life, but it’s not. Not yet, at least, for these youthful players in the realm of public policy.

Above: Council members Jon Flucher of Heyburn, Brad Clark of Rupert, and Courtney Woodworth of Raft River determine the region's fate.

The 90 youths participating in the Natural Resources Workshop at the Central Idaho 4-H Camp north of Ketchum were role-playing. The issues raised in the Big Wood Valley Land Use Simulation Game are imaginary, after all. But the scenario is familiar to the youths and their elders who are gathered at the rustic camp of log cabins beneath the granite peaks that flank the headwaters of the real Big Wood River.

The five-day camp is about more than learning roles, of course. It is not a place where budding environmental activists or real estate developers come to hone their skills. The camp’s goal is to help the role players better understand how people develop their viewpoints, and to learn that even those who disagree can understand and respect others’ views.

The camp is sponsored by the UI Cooperative Extension System and the Idaho Association of Soil Conservation Districts in cooperation with the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Idaho Department of Lands, Idaho Soil Conservation Commission, and the U.S. Forest Service.

Above: David Barton, UI extension educator, watches as special interest groups plan their strategies.

Before the game’s concluding episode in civic and civil relations, the 12- to 14-year-olds mingled in activities ranging from lessons in wildlife identification to forest ecology. They learned to identify plants common to Idaho rangelands and studied soil with shovels and with microscopes. They earned an appreciation for water quality by studying a stream. They learned to trust others by rappelling down a steep chunk of granite.

The youth come from across Idaho to learn from wildlife biologists, range conservationists, foresters, and others who practice scientific management of natural resources and work with the public and its varied viewpoints routinely.

"I’m here just because of the fun of it and to be with some of my kids from the school," said Royce Young, teacher from St. Nicholas in Burley. "You learn so much it’s amazing."

Kristin Keith, an extension educator at Caldwell, leads the discussion of the Big Topple Tree Co. staff as it discusses its proposal to log 5,000 acres. As the young foresters debate the issues and develop their strategy among themselves, Keith raises other points to consider or guides her charges to other areas. As the group discusses its goals, she calls attention to one member’s position statement: "He just said something really good," she noted. "We will try our best."

When each group decides on its individual strategy, the attention shifts to the hearing before the Valley County Council. The council members have been preparing on their own, learning the skills they will need to navigate the sometimes treacherous terrain between emotion and reason, economy and environment, what is and what could be. And so the game begins as the youth break from their groups around tables in the rustic dining hall.

The Big Wood Homeowners Association is the first group to address the council. Its members supported the construction of Valley Flats Dam. The dam would provide flood control, hydropower, jobs, and recreation. They would stock fish, install bird nesting boxes, and protect water quality. The dam would prevent flooding but keep enough water in the river throughout the year to keep streambank trees and shrubs growing strong.

Right: Art by Diana Painter is part of the Big Wood Valley Land Use Simulation Game available from UI Ag Publications, (208) 885-7982.

The council, anticipating objections sure to be raised by the Big Wood Fly Fishers, ask how the trout would fare and how many jobs the dam might provide.

The Great Getaway, a proposed recreational development, is up next. It promises 200 jobs and an expansion of the valley’s tourism industry. Its concession to critics would be a paved riverside path that all could enjoy.

"How would the Great Getaway avoid the environmental threat so many additional visitors could present?" asks a council member. The team is ready. The development will protect the environment with a waste-treatment plant and other facilities. A ban on firearms will protect wildlife.

And so it goes.

The representative from Big Topple Tree Co. proposes spreading its logging plan over a decade to minimize its impact. The company will maintain a 500-foot buffer around the stream. He employs the company’s motto, "We Will Do the Best We Can," to assure the council, critics, and the public that the company’s heart is in the right place.

Extracto, Inc., promises 200 jobs, $100,000 in additional tax revenues to the county each year, and to be "grizzly bear friendly" with its gold mine that would rely on cyanide extraction to strip the precious metal from the ore.

A council member wants to know about road costs, an audience member asks about reclamation of the mining site once the gold is gone.

The Big Wood Fly Fishers step up to oppose any development of the flood plain because of potential contamination. The fly fishers also announce their alliance with the Friends of the Big Wood, an environmental lobbying group. While they oppose construction of the dam, the fly fishers do support selective cutting by Big Topple, adding more campsites, and a paved streamside trail.

The Friends of the Big Wood representative just says no to Big Topple and Extracto. Nix the dam, too, it tells the homeowners association. A councilman asks, how will the county grow?

The council members, Brad Clark of Rupert, Courtney Woodworth of Raft River, and Jon Flucher of Heyburn, declare the hearing closed. They retire to the bright, dusty dooryard where they sit on firewood rounds and review the testimony.

The council emerged with something for nearly everyone. Big Topple could log, but only 4,000 acres, a 20 percent reduction. Extracto’s mine request was rejected, but the council left the door open for a demonstration project.

In all, the council’s decision was probably not far removed from what might happen in an actual meeting. The game provided a view of the dynamics among public opinions, public officials, and public policy, said Kristin Keith. "These people in elected positions have to take into account the best interests of all the people."