1.   But Hatch still favors a small wilderness bill, saying there are oil, coal and mineral deposits on public land that are too rich to be go undeveloped.

2.   Hatch, a close Dole ally, had insisted on attaching his Utah wilderness bill as a way to get it past the vehement opposition of environmental groups.

3.   Montana and Idaho lawmakers have not been able to pass wilderness bills, Maloney said.

4.   The wilderness bill is still pending before the House and the Senate.