Omnibus land act includes wilderness designations Republican Mike Beagle of Eagle Point and Independent Dave Willis of Lincoln are excited about the coming vote. But they are looking beyond Tuesday's general election, albeit an event in which both voted and will follow closely. They are anticipating a potential Senate lame-duck session beginning Nov. 17 in which the Senate is expected to vote on the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2008, which contains two proposed wilderness areas in southwest Oregon among its more than 150 public lands, water and resources bills. If the bill passes in the Senate, the House may also act on it before the year is out. Beagle, field coordinator for Trout Unlimited in Oregon and Washington, supports creation of the roughly 13,700-acre Copper Salmon Wilderness in the Elk River drainage near Port Orford. Willis chairs the Soda Mountain Wilderness Council, which is pushing for creation of the roughly 23,000-acre Soda Mountain Wilderness in the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument in the mountains east of Ashland. Willis spearheaded the creation of the monument in 2000. Bills calling for the creation of both wilderness areas are contained in the omnibus package. In the case of the monument, the bill also would retire grazing leases in and around the monument through a buyout of willing ranchers. The buyout would be paid for through private sources....