Goodbye to the Adirondacks (and other forests)

October 27th, 2006

If you look at a satellite map of New York, the only significantly dark green area left is the Adirondacks. But perhaps not for long:

“Forest slopes would be clear-cut to make room for new roads, driveways, parking areas, houses, lawns and accessory buildings,” John F. Sheehan, a spokesman for the Adirondack Council, an environmental group, said in an Op-Ed piece earlier this year in The Albany Times Union. “The resulting fragmentation would devastate native plants and wildlife that depend on undisturbed habitat.”

[…]

Such enormous parcels are available for development because of the global competition facing big paper companies. Some have sold off forests that they had harvested for a century or more, while others sought to reduce their taxes by giving up development rights.

I’ve already touched on how the massive transfer of private forestland to developers is one of the major environmental crises of this generation. Forest land is auctioned off month after month after month after month. Just take a look:

This 5,342± acre portfolio of timber and recreational property is one of the largest blocks of private ownership within the Smith River National Recreation Area […] The Smith River National Recreation Area is 450± square miles and part of the Six Rivers National Forest. It was established in 1990 to help preserve its incredible scenic and wildlife resources.

And who is selling it?

These lands have been owned and managed by the Seller for commercial timber production for almost 50 years and the Gasquet timberlands contain an estimated 18 million board feet of primarily Douglas fir timber with both near-term cash flow and long-term growth potential.

Related posts: Damascus voters ruin Damascus, Christianity versus land use planning, Land use planning under orchestrated attack via initiative system