The Shawnee National Forest Conservation Act of 2025 would designate approximately 750 acres as the "Camp Hutchins Wilderness" and establish three Special Management Areas totaling about 12,708 acres within Illinois's Shawnee National Forest. The bill requires the Secretary of Agriculture to develop a management plan for these areas within 3 years and restricts their use to conservation purposes, allowing activities like prescribed fire, ecological restoration, and hunting while prohibiting commercial timber harvesting, trapping, and most motor vehicle access. The legislation also withdraws these federal lands from mining, mineral leasing, and other extractive activities to protect their natural character. The bill was introduced by Senators Durbin and Duckworth and has been reported out of the Agriculture Committee with amendments that appear to have significantly revised the original proposal.
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