By Pete Klein

For the Express

The New York State Adirondack Park Agency (APA) and the Department of

Environmental Conserva-tion (DEC) heard from the public on their integrated management actions proposed for the Moose River Plains Wild Forest.

Three public hearings were scheduled, with the first taking place Monday afternoon, Aug. 16, in the cafeteria at Indian Lake Central School where about 55 citizens and elected officials were present to listen to the proposal and make comment. There was no question and answer component to the meeting and this brought some complaints.

A second meeting was held at 7 p.m. on Aug. 16 at the Inlet Town Hall and a third took place at DEC Headquarters in Albany on Aug. 18.

PROPOSALS

The management proposals included:

• Creating the Moose River Plains Intensive Camping Area along the Limekiln Lake-Cedar River Road;

• Expanding the West Canada Lake Wilderness, which borders the Moose River Plains;

• Closing certain trails and roads in the wild forest to snowmobiling, many of which are dead-ends or spurs, or receive little or no snowmobile use according to the DEC and APA;

• Creating a new community-connector snowmobile trail from Limekiln Lake-Cedar River Road to Lower Sargent Pond in Long Lake, which will provide connections to Indian Lake, Inlet, Raquette Lake and Long Lake, resulting overall snowmobile mileage would be approximately 59 miles;

• Creating the Beaver Lake Special Management Area, which includes areas south of the South Branch of the Moose River and west of the proposed intensive use area boundary along Otter Brook Road;

• Discontinuing public motor vehicle and snowmobile use on Indian Lake Road and the former Otter Brook truck trail.

The action would also include the APA’s separate but related proposals to amend the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan (SLMP), including the proposed reclassification of lands for the creation of a new Moose River Plains Intensive Use Camping Area, reclassification and expansion of the West Canada Lake Wilderness Area and related revisions to Master Plan Area Descriptions and Intensive Use Area Guidelines.

The Intensive Use proposal would allow drive-in camping sites to remain along the Limekiln Lake-Cedar River Road at levels not compatible with lands designated as “Wild Forest.” The wilderness proposal would change the classification of some 15,000 acres from Wild Forest to “Wilderness,” the state’s most protective land classification. In addition, the creation of the Beaver Lake Special Management Area will provide a unique opportunity for float plane access into Beaver, Squaw and Indian lakes in a remote corner of the Wild Forest.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Public comments were surprisingly uniform and most followed those of Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward who spoke first and said, “This is a big improvement over the 2006 draft but I do have some concerns.”

Concerns expressed by Sayward included the proposed closing of campgrounds and snowmobile trails before new campgrounds and are open to replace those proposed to be closed. Sayward also stated she is opposed to taking 15,000 acres from the Moose River Plains Wild Forest and adding those acres to the adjoining West Canada Lakes Wilderness.

Hamilton County Board of Supervisors Chairman William Farber echoed Sayward’s comments, as did Adirondack Park Local Government Review Board Executive Director Fred Monroe and Indian Lake Town Supervisor Barry Hutchins.

The common statement made by elected representatives was, “Congratulations. You did a much better job with this than you did with the 2006 draft UMP but don’t take anything away until you can replace it.”

Comments from the general public endorsed those made by elected officials and added some thoughts of their own.

One person observed that there is nothing written in the NYS Constitution about creating Wilderness while preserving Wild Forest is in the constitution.

Several people complained about roads and trails not being maintained by the DEC, who then closes the roads and trails by using the argument that they are not in good condition and no one uses them anymore.

A reason/excuse used by APA/DEC to expand Wilderness was mocked when a snowmobiler said, “If something is too close to the Wilderness, why not move the Wilderness back rather than shrink the Wild Forest?”

Only one well-known environmentalist spoke. This was Peter O’Shea, who sits on the board of directors at Protect the Adirondacks. O’Shea said he and the group support the plan in its entirety and added, “There is something for everyone in this plan.”

WRITTEN COMMENTS

Written comments on the management actions proposed in the two Draft Unit Management Plans (UMP) may be still sent to Josh Clague, Department of Environmental Conservation, 625 Broadway, 5th Floor, Albany, NY 12233 or e-mailed to lfadk@gw.dec.-state.ny.us.

Written comments on the proposed reclassification, proposed SLMP amendments and the DEC’s proposed management actions may be sent to Richard Weber, Adirondack Park Agency, P.O. Box 99, Ray Brook, NY, 12977 or e-mailed to apa_slmp@gw.dec.-state.ny.us. The deadline for comments is Aug. 30.