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About 2 percent of the basin's work force is involved directly and indirectly with the timber industry. Those working in the sawmills and treating plants, and logging contractors are considered directly employed, while some of the people in the construction sector would be employed indirectly. Nearly all timber industry employees work year-around with only a short lay-off period in the winter. Similarly one can show that approximately 1,030 people are employed year-around in the livestock industry. An additional 515 are employed seasonally, predominately in late summer. D. Present Environmental Situation To date, two wilderness areas have been declared--La Garita with 22,458 acres (9,089 ha) and the Weminuche with some 127,151 acres, (51,458 ha) the latter encompassing the former upper Rio Grande primitive area. Additionally, by 1973 four roadless areas were under study for Inclusion in the wilderness system. These defacto wilderness areas total some 230,191 acres (93,158 ha). Similarly, nine inventoried roadless areas, totalling some 233,729 acres (94,590 ha), have not yet been selected for further wilderness study. Because of planning procedures and admlnis- tr:ative dictates, some, all, or parts of thes,e may be selected for further study in the future, recommended for wilderness designation or returned to multiple-use, non-wilderness uses. Interference with big game migration routes and loss of winter range in the basin is of environmental concern. The basin is the home of some 8,000 mule deer and 8,500 elk in addition to several other big game species. Available winter forage to feed these herds Is critical. Of about 770,000 acres (311,619 ha) of deer and elk winter range in the basin, 40 percent is on non-public lands. Approved and proposed sub- division development has already paved the way for the eventual removal of over 85,000 acres (34,400 ha) of winter range in the private sector through human influence or permanent loss by construction. Linear subdivision development is likely to occur along the Rio Grande from Alamosa to Creede unless stringent regulation of development is imposed. Without regulation the western portion of the Rio Grande Basin would be effectively bisected with a band of human populace running generally east-west following the river and highways. This problem is particularly important in the Del Norte-South Fork-Creede strip, where major big game migration routes cross the Rio Grande in a north-south pattern. In essence winter forage would be present, but If the migra- tory routes are intercepted, it would be inaccessible to the migrating herds. Cutting off these migration routes Is not entirely possible since private land forms practically a solid strip along the Rio Grande. (i(;'::." 16 ,.' ""~.J '-.t V-26