LANSING — State Sen. Ed McBroom joined several residents and groups from the Upper Peninsula in opposing a Senate resolution urging Congress to designate four more national wilderness areas in the Ottawa National Forest.

“We strongly oppose designating over 51,000 acres of Upper Peninsula forestland as federally protected wilderness areas. This is yet another attempt by downstate interests to tell U.P. families how to live their lives and use their land — we are not a national park,” said McBroom, R-Waucedah Township. “No one has expressed what problem this action seeks to solve. While there is little evidence this federal takeover would improve the forest ecosystem, it certainly would have a negative impact on our economy and severely hurt tourism by limiting certain forms of outdoor recreation.

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