Yes, it might be an opening gambit in their proposeds negotiations. Sometimes, showing a little flexibility by party A will cause party B to be open to increasing demands by party A. Sounds a little like something from The Art of War, by Sun Tzu!
That's a bit cynical, Bob. Negotiations usually end up somewhere in the middle as long as people act like adults.
As for the science behind how effective these regs are, that's actually one of the points HSHA has been complaining about. They should get more data during the process to draft the Wilderness Stewardship Plan.
