The Dominion Post - Forest not out of
the woods, yet; Public comment period set to start on revised
plan for Monongahela
- Editorial
Sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees in West
Virginia. There’s a good reason for that — nearly
75 percent of the state’s acreage is forest. That’s
about 18,000 of the 24,000 square miles covering the state.
Amid those thousands of square miles of trees are 1,436 of them
that comprise the Monongahela National Forest — stretching
almost from White Sulphur Springs into Preston County.
The U.S. Forest Service has proposed a revised management plan,
featuring four different management alternatives, that would increase
the amount of timbering while protecting more of the 910,000-acre
forest as wilderness.
It’s safe to assume environmentalists won’t like
more logging, while the timber industry is not going to like further
wilderness protection. And that’s what the USFS expects
to hear during the comment period from Friday to Nov. 14.
It’s essential for anyone who wants to have a role in how
this land is used to submit a substantive comment about these
plans. This process and your comments are important because the
USFS is evaluating all potential uses, including wilderness.
The forest, which covers parts of 10 counties, is the fourth-largest
national forest in the Northeast. Its remoteness and its accessibility
is a comfort to all of us who look to the outdoors for recreation
and resources.
A recent study by the state Department of Tourism reported an
11.4 percent rate in this industry each year since 2000. The travel
industry accounted for $3.4 billion in 2004 alone.
In addition to recreational dollars, visitors support related
industries, like hotels, restaurants and transportation.
The value of timbering is also key to our economy amid a thriving
market for hardwood products. Leasing gas wells, range allotments
for grazing cattle and road easements are essential, too.
Finally, the importance of untouched wilderness may appear to
some as a lowly consideration, but we beg to differ. West Virginia’s
natural treasures, like Dolly Sods and the Cranberry area, are
primary to the heritage of our state.
Permanently protected wilderness not only provides some of the
state’s prime hunting and fishing locales, but offers the
solace of a remote getaway to us all for camping and hiking.
But more importantly it ensures the last habitats for rare and
endangered animals and plants will not be diminished further.
Protecting a forest while fostering a dynamic economy may never
rival growing a tree, but it’s a wild and wonderful idea.
