Wilderness in the Big City

I live outside Philadelphia, but for the beginning of this Thanksgiving break, my roommate from Kentucky and I are visiting Brooklyn and NYC. My roommate has never been to NY before. Today, we walked from Brooklyn to the Chelsea Markets. At the end of the day, we walked across the High Line - a public park built on the historic freight rail line above the streets on Manhattan's West side. Walking across it, you can see the old rail line tracks through the plants and shrubs that are planted throughout. It's such a creative and unique idea to preserve a decrepit railway by building a park around it. 

This idea reminded me of the talk on tourism and development in the Adirondack park that we've had in the last week or two. I found it interesting in that instead of developing the tracks more into a museum or or some kind of piece of art, or even completely ripping it out and building high rises, the city has decided to revert back to a sort of "wild" environment (I put wild in quotes because the greenery that occupies the rail line in NY would hardly be considered wild compared to the Adirondacks). In a way, its a reverse situation to what occurs in the Adirondacks - instead of developing wild forest land into tourism areas (in the Adirondacks), the developed city scape of NYC is being developed into a public park. Although the High Line park can't really be compared to 'outdoorsy' nature of the Adirondacks, I couldn't help but make this comparison. 

Wilderness or Economy?

After Phil Terrie's talk, specifically about the Adirondack Club and Resort, and after reading a little bit about the proposed development, it's easy to see that this debate is perfectly representative of the national debate between the environment and business. Over the last decade it seems that politicians from both sides of the isle refuse to stand in the middle of the debate over whether the United States should focus itself towards environmental sustainability or economic prowess. The health of the environment is pinned against the health of the economy much like how science is often viewed as the enemy of religion, but it doesn't have to be this way. In terms of the Adirondack Club and Resort, you can't help but feel for the economically staggering town of Tupper Lake but the environmental impact of this $500 million project(!) is undeniable and obvious. For this reason I find myself in the middle of the debate with a lean towards the environmental side. Because of the strict environmental language guarding Adirondack land, if the resort ends up being constructed I would really hope that there would be at the minimum very strict environmental codes and features for the buildings. I would require local wood and materials for construction, enough photovoltaic cells on the buildings to render them "off the grid", and possibly geothermal heating systems if the geography of the land allows for it. After almost completing this Adirondack course, I feel that this resort just seems to go against what the blue line represents and if it were to be built, I think the inclusion of the most advanced environmental technology should be required and could potentially be a nice compromise for the debate over this project.

NYCO Minerals land exchange and the Cuomo family

A journalist, Edward Zahniser for the New York Times published an opinion about the NYCO land exchange that Phil Terrie expressed strong opposition against in his talk last week. Zahniser opens with a quote from Governor Mario Cuomo from his speech in 1985 honoring the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Forest Preserve in the Adirondacks, "The wilderness areas of this state are not a disposable resource, to be consumed and discarded. They must be preserved. Forever." This expresses a strong commitment to upholding the ideals on which the Adirondack Park was founded. Also, Cuomo declared the land around Jay Mountain as wilderness.
Now, Cuomo's son, Governor Andrew Cuomo, is tainting his own father's words in his role in the NYCO land exchange. As Terrie discussed, Cuomo Jr. is allowing NYCO to explore on the 200 acre plot of the Jay Mountain Wilderness - the wilderness his own father set aside - before deciding whether or not to exchange land for it and activists claim that this is illegal. While that is up to the courts to decide, it still clearly shows that Cuomo Jr. is strongly in favor of economic growth over the ideals that his father expressed in a speech 29 years ago.

THEY ARE MAKING A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT COLVIN

AHHH!

Sorry for the all caps title, but this is exciting. I was perusing the Adirondacks Reddit forum just now and discovered that someone is making a documentary on Verplanck Colvin. Here's the link to the official trailer, featuring our favorite Adirondack author, Phil Terrie.

Also, a quick synopsis of the documentary, which I grabbed from the website:

"Nineteenth-century explorer, adventurer, surveyor and engineer Verplanck Colvin was ahead of his time in his advocacy to preserve upstate New York’s unusual round range of mountains known as the Adirondacks. Even more important than his epic survey, Colvin looms more than a century later as history’s singular visionary most responsible for laying the groundwork for today’s 6-million acre Adirondack Park.

​ Colvin, the man, has been obscured by time yet his footprint on the Adirondacks awaits the personal discovery of all who explore his legacy of protected mountains, valleys and waters that provide unmatched recreational wilderness experiences for people from around the state, the nation and the world..."

You can read more here!

The Spruce Grouse Controversy

Mike Lynch writes an article for the Adirondack Almanack about the reintroduction of the spruce grouse into the Adirondacks after their populations dwindled in the past decades. Today there may be fewer than seventy-five in the park. The Department of Environmental Conservation adopted the Spruce Grouse Recovery Plan in 2012. The DEC decided to boost dwindling populations by releasing twelve adult spruce grouse and eighteen young spruce grouse from out of state. The state monitors the birds that were released at three different sites in the park.  They hope to introduce more this coming summer. After first attempts failed, this second attempt seems more hopeful.

I did research specifically on this topic for my presentation on the decline of snowfall in this region. The spruce grouse relies on cold, snowy conditions and the diminishing intensity of winters in the Adirondacks hinders the spruce grouse’s habitat. The decline also began in the nineteenth century with the increase of logging and consequential destruction of their boreal habitats. Besides low populations, the reintroduction would help stimulate genetic diversity and the health of the overall population. 

There are some who argue, however, that this is just a fruitless attempt to stop the effects of global warming. No matter how many birds are reintroduced into the park, climate change will inevitably kill them off again. This brings up the question of what exactly is human’s role in stopping global warming, which we single handedly created. If there are no more spruce grouse in the Adirondacks, will there be a new, warmer climate species to take its place? I personally believe this is the most likely story. Based upon our class discussions, we know that climates will gradually move northward. In this case, what will the Adirondacks eventually look like in the coming decades?

Source: http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/11/spruce-grouse-help-for-a-rare-bird.html 

Baby Boomers Raise Demand for Houses in ADKS

There is no question that the popularity of second homes, especially in the Adirondacks, has increased. After our discussion in class, I came across an article in Strictly Business Magazine entitled “Retirement and Second Home Market Driving Adirondack Real Estate.” In this article, the author, Heather Sackett, argues that the Adirondacks have experienced the first hand the effects of the Baby Boomers’ contribution to the current second-home housing boom.

Although tourism has long been the economic driver of the region, the Adirondacks have recently experienced a rise in the number of people who want to live here. With a thriving real estate market that shows no signs of slowing, suddenly a house in Lake Placid has doubled its value in just a few years. As Onno mentioned in class, there was a dramatic increase in demand for houses in the Adirondacks following September 11^th. Jim McKenna of the Lake Placid Chamber of Commerce attests: “We saw an increase in visitors after September 11^th. The Adirondacks are perceived as a safe destination. People from metropolitan areas are looking for a safe place with natural appeal that is not crowded.”

Although this increase in demand for houses is great for the economy, towns and villages, such as Lake Placid, have become victims of their own success by forcing locals out of the community. Places such as, AuSable Acres, Wilmington and Bloomingdale, once thought of as backwoods, have become hot spots for young couples and families, mostly because they are affordable. According to Roby Politi, former mayor of Lake Placid and head of Merrill Thomas Real Estate, just a few decades ago about 50% of home purchases in Lake Placid were second homes. Politi now estimates that number is closer to 85%. “The buyers are people from outside the area,” he said. “The second home market is the primary market. It’s driven by people who are successful elsewhere and want a getaway.”

There is no question that development is necessary to meet the demand for second-homes. Moreover, development stimulates the economy by creating jobs and new infrastructure. However, Politi believes that “Overgrowth and development need to be replaced with smart development” in order to make it sustainable into the future. The area in the Adirondacks is finite, and at the current rate at which people are buying houses, development must shift its approach. After all, what are we supposed to do when there is no more room to develop in the Adirondacks? Will it be forever wild?

(http://www.sbmonthly.com/?p=1636)

Invasive Species to Increase as the Result of Climate Change

I stumbled across an article from The Leader Herald, written by Greg Hitchcock, about the effects of climate change in the Adirondacks. Dr. Ezra Schwartzberg, an entomologist, has been working from his Lake Placid consulting firm on researching invasive species biology and also climate change research. Schwartzberg relates that climate change will inevitably lead to an increase in invasive species in the Park. 


Biologist Larry Master confirmed Schwartzberg's research by stating that specifically the pathogen, the woolly adelgid, will increase and move north as the result of climate change.  The hemlock woolly adelgid is known for killing Eastern hemlock trees. And are progressively moving north as the temperatures rise. Master stated that, “A lot of things are already moving north that weren’t here historically. We don’t know what the changes in forest composition will be because we cannot predict those very well. But there will certainly be changes."

Hemlock Woolly Adelgid

Read the full article here: http://www.leaderherald.com/page/blogs.detail/display/1052/Adirondacks-prepare-for-climate-change.html

Thoughts on Phil Terrie

I personally found Phil Terrie's talk to be very interesting, informative, and beneficial. I could have listened to him lecture for another hour. In class yesterday, we criticized him a bit for being biased, but I didn't feel that detracted from the value of the presentation. First of all, he visited us not as a professor but as a public speaker, so I expected him to present his opinion on the APA and current legal disputes in the park. Also, his concern for the environment certainly trumped his concern for the economic vitality of Tupper Lake, but I didn't feel that he disregarded the people of Tupper Lake. He didn't advocated barring all development on the plot in Tupper Lake but instead proposed a compromise: He said that he would accept the plan as long as the homes were clustered. He also suggested that the development was a bad business plan, so perhaps he felt that the economic benefits would not make up for the damage to the environment. 

On the other hand, I have always believed that the park stifles economic development in the park, that residents of the park made a sacrifice by living within the blue line. However, Phil Terrie argued that the rest of central and upstate New York is equally, if not more, economically depressed. As we read earlier in the semester, all agricultural or industrial initiatives in the Adirondacks failed. Farms, mines, and lumber companies all tried and failed to make a go in the Adirondacks, and they failed before the creation of the park. Thus, it seems to me that, by the time the park was created, residents didn't have anything to turn to but tourism. And the park (as frustrating as its regulations might be) has promoted tourism in Adirondack towns over other rural New York towns. Here is a map of economically distressed counties in New York State. It shows that economic issues also afflict many counties outside of the Adirondack Park and that two counties in the Adirondack Park are not classified as economically distressed. 

https://www.dot.ny.gov/recovery/goals/distressed

Adirondack Club and Resort

The proposed Adirondack Club and Resort in Tupper Lake, which was formally approved by the APA last summer, continues to be one of the most contentious land-use debates in the Park. The development, which was proposed in 2004 by Preserve Associates, a real estate development firm managed by Michael Foxman and Tom Lawson, includes the reopening of Big Tupper ski area with modern snowmaking equipment as well as the construction of a large resort complex with a hotel, expensive vacation homes, shops and restaurants. Advocates of the project argue that it will benefit the severely depressed economy of Tupper Lake by creating temporary construction jobs as well as permanent service jobs, which will lead to an expanded tax base (adkworks.com). Opponents of the project argue that the environmental cost of the development has been understated because ecological studies performed on the site only meet the minimum guidelines set by the Adirondack Park Agency.

In class today we discussed whether million dollar homes within a subdivision in one of the most economically depressed areas in the Adirondacks would be appealing to potential buyers and whether second homes are inherently detrimental to the local economy. In my research for my project on the 1932 Olympics in Lake Placid it will be interesting to see what the economic state of Lake Placid was before the development for the games. I wonder if Tupper Lake has the potential to become an expensive resort town similar to Lake Placid with the addition of the ACR.

Sources: adkworks.com, my brother's senior thesis

Regulations hindering conservation

One issue that the DEC deals with on a daily basis is its own restrictions, imparted on them by the APA, restrict their ability to maintain trails and accomplish tasks on schedule in the High Peaks Wilderness. Also, there is not nearly sufficient funding to have a professional trail crew. The The DEC cannot use vehicles, power tools, or the help of large volunteer groups. This severely incapacitates the DEC's ability to maintain trails and backcountry facilities. With increased traffic to the Adirondacks in recent decades, the DEC is falling farther and farther behind in their maintenance schedule of certain areas of the Park. While the Adirondack Mountain Club has volunteer trail groups, these groups cannot enter the High Peaks Wilderness due to a ban on large groups in the Park. Also, volunteer groups cannot accomplish nearly as much work as a professional trail crew could. In 1999, the DEC formulated a plan to fix the 40% of trails in the High Peaks Wilderness that were reported to be in poor shape, but have accomplished fewer than half of the original 53 projects planned in 1999. More projects have arisen too because of the increased foot traffic and frequency of damaging storms, such as Hurricane Irene.

Trail damage by foot traffic does not only affect hikers; it can cause serious environmental harm. When people hike, they trample plants and roots that hold the soil together, so the soil becomes loose. When it rains, this soil gets washed away and over time, a trail becomes a gully. In the event of a large storm or massive runoff from snow, the gully can become a stream and erode away further at the soil on the sides of trails and in severe cases, cause small mudslides. In the Adirondacks, many trails are bare rock slab due to this runoff effect and the fact that there are only 2-5 inches of soil in some places. The exposure of the bare rock allows water to undercut the vegetation alongside the trails and accelerate erosion. Unfortunately, the DEC is seriously limited in its ability to prevent such damage. The rules that are designed to protect the wilderness are the same rules that are inhibiting its conservation.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2002-09-30/news/0209300219_1_peaks-wilderness-wilderness-area-high-peaks

Conflict can be good!

A lot of our discussions lately have been centered on conflict in the Adirondacks, and it’s becoming increasingly apparent that the park itself is a product of all this conflict. Having intense debates and fighting about issues that we’re passionate about leads to results that reflect how we want to best use the park.

The Adirondacks are by no means static, and require constant feedback from the citizens and governing bodies that oversee the land. To be content with the state of the park would mean that there isn’t enough passion for the issues that define the Adirondacks. The state of the Adirondacks is constantly changing with environmental fluctuations, a moving economy, and shifting cultural values. To keep the Adirondacks the best that it can be, our passions and discussions need to match the pace of these changes. We need to adapt and continually question whether the current regulations meet the needs of the park and meet our desires of how to use the park.

There are countless cases of how conflict has produced what we see in the Adirondacks today. Examples can be historic – Elias’ presentation on forest fires comes to mind, where the increasing prevalence and threat of forest fires was conflict enough to bring about changes in regulations and how much we depend on logging and railroads. A more recent example (one of many) would be the conflict with Phil Brown, which is highlighting our need to better define what constitutes private and public lands.

My point is that conflict is necessary to reach a compromise that best suits the Adirondack Park and the citizens at that point in time. And a struggle where both parties feel at least a little unhappy with the outcome is usually a sign that a fair compromise has been reached. After all, the Adirondack Park represents a conglomerate of mixed intentions for land use and individual passions that will never be fully aligned. But this type of conflict ideally paves the way towards some middle ground that addresses all of the combating interests.

Wollastonite is fun!

After the lecture by Phil Terrie on Friday I was interested in the geology and uses of wollastonite, because I had never before heard of this elusive mineral. Wollastonite is formed by two processes, first through the heating of silica and limestone through regional metamorphism at ~400 C or by being baked because of their proximity to an igneous intrusion. The second way wollastonite is formed is through direct crystallization of molten rock that has a high carbon content, the rocks that are formed through this process are called carbonatites and are scattered throughout the U.S. New York is the only place in the U.S. where wollastonite deposits are exploited for commercial use. That is partially because these two deposits in New York State have slightly different basic mineralogy than the other deposits in the country, in the Adirondacks they were formed by the recrystallization of Precambrian carbonate rocks.
Wollastonite is mined for many different reasons, it has several useful physical properties for an industrial mineral. It is generally inert, and does not react with other components of most manufacturing processes. Wollastonite breaks when crushed into needle-shaped particles due to its interesting cleavage. Wollastonite is also incredibly bright and white colored which is used in different industrial applications.

Reference: http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-0002-01/fs-0002-01textonly.pdf

The Natural vs. The Free

Our discussion today about zoning restrictions and the changes we would make to them was interesting to me, not because of what the laws are but because of how people thought changing them would help. Some people were interested in restricting home size, regulating square footage based on yearly use, or encouraging (forcing) second home owners to rent out their homes during the off season. These suggestions prompted Onno to remark, "Oh my god you guys are practically Marxists!" We laughed but he was pretty on point. The biggest problem with "preserving" the wilderness of the Adirondacks is that there are people there who have rights and needs that involve using the land and the resources it provides. Kicking those people out would be ludicrous – many have had family there for generations – but how is a state supposed to govern a people who have true need for land that the state has sworn to protect at every turn? There is no democratic or republican answer to this because there is no democracy or republic that can answer all the questions. Each resident – permanent or migratory – of the park has an opinion on how it should be used, who should be allowed to do what... and there is no answer that will ever make everyone happy. So the choice is boiled down to WHO to make happy and who to ignore and let down. "How many people are affected by this choice?" "Will this help the economy or just bring in 'outsiders' to take much-needed job?" "Do you follow the voice of the people who live here, or the companies that will spend money?" These are questions that the state can't answer, let alone a class of college students.

Open Season! (Skiing that is...)

            Governor Cuomo announced this past Friday that this year's skiing season has begun, and opened up Gore and Whiteface Mountains to the first of the eagerly-ski-ready public. The two mountains officially began running yesterday. “New York is the proud home of some of the best skiing and snowboarding trails and facilities in the entire Northeast,” Cuomo said. “Whether you’re an expert skier or snowboarder, or someone who’s always wanted to try, there is no time like the present to get out and experience more of what New York has to offer. As Gore and Whiteface mountains officially kick off the 2014-15 season, I encourage all New Yorkers to plan a trip to one of our state’s world-class mountains.” Gore Mountain has been producing snow since Wednesday and with over two miles of trails and runs covered to start, seems to be well ahead of their expected timeline. Snowmaking at Whiteface has been underway since the 7th, and in combination with natural snowfall, has allowed for three runs to be open already at that resort. In addition to their great start with snow, Whiteface is off to a great start from an environmental standpoint as well. They have purchased more than 100 high efficiency snow guns that they will be utilizing this season. The guns cut back on energy consumption by running more efficiently and producing snow at a higher relative capacity. Both mountains are open temporarily for the time being and will close this coming Saturday, but will re-open full time on the 28th! Overall, getting everyone into the spirit of winter with new

                                                                       Whiteface Mountain

http://www.herkimertelegram.com/article/20141114/News/141119671#ixzz3JNi3AqTu

http://www.whiteface.com/files/styles/images/public/Whiteface_The_Olympic_Mountain.jpg?itok=6gGuQfiS

Northville-Placid Trail

Last Friday at dinner, Phil Terrie talked about running into an Adirondack Adventure trip on the Northville-Placid Trail. Part of that trail goes right on the border of his property (which, he pointed out, does not have "No Trespassing" signs). He mentioned hiking parts of the trail for short periods at a time, and meeting other hikers who have passed through his property. The Northville-Placid Trail itself is actually 133 miles long, stretching from Northville on the Southeastern border of the park all the way to Lake Placid.

This trail is the longest continuous "trail" in the Adirondacks (although it includes a bit of road walking and bushwacking), and every year, hikers attempt to hike the entire stretch in one go. Most people plan to take 8 to 10 days, but because of the difficulty of the terrain almost all take closer to two weeks. Many hikers that begin the thru-hike end up stopping part of the way through because they are unprepared for the difficulty of the terrain and the distance from any post office or food supply.

I think the idea of a thru-hike across the Adirondacks is very interesting, mainly due to the complexity of regulations on the Forest Preserve that we have been discussing in class. The trail intersects private property, wilderness, wild forest, and other types of zones designated by the APA, but the entire trail is managed by the DEC. I think that the trail is a good example of something cohesive in a park that is such a patchwork of wildly different environments.

Species Diversity of Wild Fish

I took particular interest in today's reading about protecting the Adirondack's populations of wild fish - both the brook trout and the round whitefish. A particular passage in Schneider stood out to me:

"It's interesting to contrast that with the sort of pop ecology of the moment that says we want to increase or maintain the diversity, which on the surface is usually interpreted to mean a lot of species. However, that is not the natural situation here. Naturally, there were very few species here." (p. 323)

This passage stood out to me because I am in an ecology class right now and could relate to the topic of species diversity. Often, the understanding behind this concept is that the higher the species diversity, the better. We have learned that as ecologists, it is our job to do our part in order to maintain or increase (like Schneider said) the diversity of a specific area. However, increasing the diversity may not always be the best, or most natural, option. This is the case in the Adirondacks. The issue is that non-native species of fish are being introduced in Adirondack water bodies and are outcompeting the native species, like the brook trout and the round whitefish. Some even have argued that the presence of non-native species can be more harmful to the native populations of wild fish than the effects of acid rain.

I liked how Schneider presented both sides of the argument on the introduction of native species. I had realized the harm that non-native species could cause to these wild fish species, but I was mostly unaware of the benefits they could offer. Often, we don't think about how non-native species could be advantageous in certain aspects. Introduced fish species often can often become very large, boosting fisheries and providing a great amount of food and recreation for tourists. Although it may not seem ecologically right on the surface, these non-native species could promote tourism and enhance the economy in the Adirondacks. Now, I'm not saying that boosting tourism and the economy should be valued over the ecological rights of the park itself - but it is one side of the argument that we can sometimes overlook quite quickly.

The Adirondack Cure

Numerous times in class the subject of the healing powers of wilderness, especially in the Adirondacks, has arisen. In browsing through the Adirondack Explorer, I came across an interesting article relevant to some of these class discussions. It talks about President Benjamin Harrison’s wife, Caroline Scott Harrison, and her struggle against tuberculosis in the summer of 1892. Since the medical treatment of T.B. at the time was usually just rest, the First Lady thought the Adirondacks would be most beneficial in restoring her health. In early July, Caroline Scott Harrison journeyed from Washington D.C. to Loon Lake by brand new train tracks constructed especially for her arrival. Many relatives journeyed with the President and his wife, ending their journey by being pulled several miles by a coach and four horses. The President, however, returned to Washington D.C. the following week.

Although reports that Caroline Harrison was “fully recovered” circulated, we now know that her condition did not really improve. On September 13, the papers reported that the President had to cancel a speaking tour for re-election due to the severity of his wife’s illness. It was clear the Caroline Harrison had not recovered from the Adirondack wilderness and wished to journey back home to Washington D.C. Once again a special train was arranged to bring her most comfortably back. Citizens waited at the train stations she passed through to give her their well wishes. She died on October 25, 1892 followed by President Harrison’s defeat for the presidency.

History reveals that although the wilderness seems like a cure from city diseases, sometimes it is not enough. It is interesting though that we still seem to hold the same conceptions. I am sure that fresh air can help us breath easier. It is ironic, however, that the outdoors can sometimes even make us sicker, like when it is too cold and wet and our immune systems are more susceptible to succumb to illnesses. I question when and why this socially constructed notion of wilderness arose in the first place. 

Sketch of President Harrison's cottage from the New York Press, September 18, 1892
 http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/09/loon-lake-a-first-ladys-failed-adirondack-cure.html#sthash.Tf659qvz.dpuf

Source: http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/09/loon-lake-a-first-ladys-failed-adirondack-cure.html

Changing definition of nature

 This semester, we have discussed the different ways in which nature is defined in the Adirondack park and how this definition has changed our perception of the Park over time. The purpose of the Adirondack Park, in the eyes of mankind, is never stagnant; As our understanding of nature changes, so do our attitudes towards the Park. Throughout its history the Adirondack wilderness has been viewed as something to conquer, a resource to be cultivated, a recreation spot to be conserved, and a separate area to be preserved. Based on our class discussions, it appears that we are on the edge between the latter two definitions of the national Park in regards to state owned land. This is an important moment in history for the Adirondack park because we are in the process of again changing how we define nature.

The definition of nature in the Adirondacks has evolved since humans first inhabited the area. In the earliest history of the Adirondacks that we have discussed, Adirondack settlers set the first definition of nature as something to be conquered. The wild and infertile landscape created one of the first perceptions of nature as an obstacle to mankind's survival. In the late 1800's/early 1900's during the age of Industry, the ADK wilderness became a valuable resource for logging and paper industries. As the demand for timber grew exponentially, we changed our definition of nature to something that could be cultivated for industry. The industry boom desecrated vast amounts of Adirondack wilderness, destroying ecosystems and causing disastrous forest fires that threatened homes and valuable vacation spots for wealthy New Yorkers; the definition of nature gained a new facet as something to be conserved for recreational use. Today, excessive recreation and degradation of park land has prompted a new definition of nature as something to be preserved and kept largely separate from humans.

In today's age of global warming, declining resources and vanishing wilderness, preservation of nature has become a priority in the Adirondack Park. Recreation is becoming unsustainable and detrimental to the environment in many parts of the park. ATV's have carved up Adirondack trails and land has been overused by theme parks and mansions. Nature is more rare and valuable than it has ever been in history, and we are realizing that preservation may be our only way to ensure its survival. As this new definition of nature becomes more predominant in park land, we can expect significant changes in regards to humans' role in the Adirondack Park. Perhaps human use of ADK land will be increasingly restricted in State owned land. Whether this change is for the better is up to debate. Like the people before us, we are in the process of changing our definition of nature in the Adirondack Park.

Solar FREAKIN' Roadways

As the first of the snow begins to accumulate, I know that soon enough plows scraping the ground outside my window will be waking me up early in the morning. As I think of this I revisit one of my greatest new obsessions- solar roadways.

If you havent seen this video yet,  you should!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlTA3rnpgzU

They are roadways that promise to produce energy, melt snow, allow for changes in road markings (without using paint), lower the cost of energy, pay for themselves, and create jobs. This (somewhat obnoxious) video convinced me that solar roadways were the answer to life.
Obviously, they probably arent and I doubt my initial reaction to and obsession with them as I read more reviews about all their problems:
http://www.equities.com/editors-desk/stocks/technology/solar-bike-path-netherlands-solar-roadways-think-again
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/Department-of-Transportation-Official-Discusses-Solar-Roadways

Despite all the negative vibes about solar roadways, I still believe, that like all other successful technology, the kinks will get worked out and the cost will lower.
So what does this have to do with the ADKs?
As upstate New Yorkers we take great pride in how well our roadways are taken care of in the winter. But a lot of this comes from the use of heavy duty plow trucks (that run on diesel) and thousands of pounds of salt being dumped on the roads. Maybe solar roadways are part of the answer to the bigger picture in the Adirondacks and around the world because they help reduce salt runoff and carbon emissions by melting the snow for us. This is just one perk these roadways promise us and our environmet. And they are SO COOL.

Terrie lecture

Reading all of the posts about the lecture has been very interesting. Perhaps more interesting to read the responses before watching the film of the lecture to kind of prep myself for some of his comments and have a bit more critical of a lens when it comes to analyzing what he is saying. I think having this lecture is particularly interesting because it feels so interconnected with the course. Its so incredible to be so close to the Adirondacks but to also have all of these resources so available to us. Not many other classes let you visit the places you speak about and also ask authors of the books we read questions. While I am disappointed I didn't have the opportunity to see him first hand or be involved in the question and answer session, it is still so great that we have such access to all of these resources. Can't wait to watch the talk!

Para'dacks

Phil Terrie brought up another good, yet unanswerable question in his talk on Friday in regards to exchanging wilderness areas. When he was talking about trading one area of the Forest Preserve for another area somewhere else, he brought to mind the idea that this exchange is based on an evaluation of the land's worth. Someone has to figure out how much and what land should be traded in order to justify the exchange of preserved lands. My question is how do they make that evaluation? Is it by subjective beauty? Accessibility? Acreage? Proximity to existing manmade structures? Usefulness (to humans) in terms of resources? I'm not sure how (or who) decides these things, but I think that the fact that someone is assigning differential values of worth to the land is indicative of perhaps another anthropocentric aspect of our relationship with the park: we continuously take on the role of the land's "proxy," making decisions for this thing that can't communicate what is best for itself. This observation takes on other iterations in that it occurs in the conflict of locals versus outsider control, but at least in that example the "insiders" can still make themselves heard. I think to some extent people are playing God by determining the fate of Forest Preserve land, but it's also pretty obvious that there's no other way to do it--as long as humans are involved with this land, then they will have to make decisions for and about it. What's interesting is the way that this intersects with ideologies like that of environmental stewardship and the belief that people should be stewards to their land and do their best by it. Unfortunately, people often have different opinions on what is best for the land (or the people who use it, ie. the Phil Brown Mud Pond case) and it's not always easy (read as: it's never easy) to determine what is best. We can talk all day long about what wilderness is and how best to protect and use it (like the conservation design approach that Terrie brought up), but ultimately, someone/something somewhere is always going to be getting the short end of the stick. Whether its the ATV-ers, the local inhabitants nervous about a failing economy, or the land itself, not everyone can be happy with ultimate land use decisions (and now I'm anthropomorphizing!). I guess that's just the paradox of coexistence, but its one that seems particularly salient within the blue line.

A Surprising Twist

       It was such a treat to have the author of one of our course's central textbooks come in and talk to us about his personal Adirondack experience. Happily, Phil Terrie was as interesting in person as his narrative persona suggests. While his bias is detectable in Contested Territory's narration, it was refreshing to hear him speak openly about his activism in the park. I had no idea how closely involved he was in the issues we'd been discussing in class, such as the Tupper Lake resort, and hearing him talk about his experience added a more personal dimension to how I'd been thinking about such topics.
      Something I found particularly interesting about the presentation was Terrie's mention of the DEC (New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation). Up until that point, my experience with the DEC had been limited to the friendly rangers I'd met on trips in the Adirondacks, particularly the ranger manning the station at the end of the Raquette River portage, who had proved particularly helpful in my encounters with him. This friendly ranger is equated with the DEC in my mind, and I hadn't given the organization much thought beyond that. As such, I was surprised to learn from Terrie that the DEC has a history of pushing the envelope in the Adirondack Park, in terms of encouraging logging and expanding access. Naively, I have supposed that a department with 'conservation' in its title would be concerned primarily with that. That one of the reasons for the Adirondack Park Agency's (APA) creation was to keep the DEC in check was news to me! This is an issue I would love to talk more about. Has the DEC's stance changed since the APA's creation? Are they pushing the envelope in similar ways in other parts of the state?

A Complex Patchwork

It was a pleasure to hear Phil Terrie speak about the complexity of land use in the park this past Friday. I had heard about many of these debates at a surface level but I felt it was valuable to hear him clarify the details despite a clear bias against NYCO and the Tupper Lake Resort. He was clearly very passionate about and involved in the issues he was discussing and has seen the development of the park for fifty or so years. The ongoing discussion and legal action in response to the Tupper Lake Resort was quite interesting considering the amount of support coming from the local community. Though the resort does meet density requirements, Terrie was arguing that the development will fragment backcountry forest. Terrie claimed that many people were afraid to voice their dissent due to the recent economic struggles in the area and the perspective development seems to have created a rift in the community. It took a quick search on google to find this article (http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20141116/NEWS05/141118912) detailing the seven drug arrests made last thursday in Tupper Lake. Officials say that the increase in heroin and opiate trafficking in the region is apparent. The unemployment rate in Tupper (7.5%) is significantly higher than the national average (6.3%) and the same disparity exists in the median household income, which is about 39,000$. This resort, if successful, could provide the economic stimulus and jobs needed for the region to bounce back, but there is no guarantee that the plan will work effectively. It is difficult to say whether the environmental risk is worth the possibility of renewing Tupper. The development would also be about 3 miles away from the Follesby Pond tract, famous for being the local for Emerson's Philosophers' camp. The complicated patchwork and unavoidable human drama make this an unfortunately complicated and moral discussion. I am eager to see how the argument concludes and to see if a balance can be struck.

Nevermind

A few of Philip Terrie’s topics in Friday’s lecture crushed some pre-conceived notions that I had. For one, his description of the zones of the Forever Wild land caught me by surprise. Terrie referred to some of these zones as “more” or “less” wild than other zones. I had naively been under the impression that land was either wild or it wasn’t. The chapter of the atlas on the Adirondack governments discussed the master land plans, which clarified some of these details for me. However, I find that using a gradient or scale for ‘wildness’ is hard to grasp when the word is so difficult to define in it of itself. What makes an area wilder than another? Density of development seems to be The unit of measurement favored by the governing bodies of the Adirondacks seems to be density of development, but that definition becomes a slippery slope once past human activities (logging, for example) have been taken into account.  

I was also disappointed to hear about the corruption that went on within the Department of Environmental Conservation. According to Terrie, it sounds as though the corruption that arguably inspired the foundation of the park is still a force to be reckoned with. As much as I would like to believe that these motives don’t exist, I have learned if nothing else that environmental policy always involves a multitude of conflicting interests. The worst part is that it is hard to tell which of these is/are the best - and the best for whom.