At one end of the western USA population bell curve, the Sierras are a massive pain in the ass. Ask the truckers, railroaders & the Donner party (who invented autojerky).
At the other extreme, we have the members of this & other boards who revel in the wilderness experience.
But for all of us, the greatest significance of the "Range of Light" is that it is a massive watershed. A source of pure water to power the most fertile valley on earth, and on the East side, to allow the pullulating growth of the Southern California Space Station.
Eastern states are buying watershed to protect their water supplies.
So, if we could automagically create a number of new National Parks to protect all the Sierra Nevada lands above the normal snow line, how long would it take before the water becomes pure?.
Also, if Giardia is a native species, would we be obliged to protect it?.
