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Did you know that the National Forest Service (NFS) is part of the Department of Agriculture? Please consider that most of the small amount of public land in the East is in National Forests. Think for a minute about the inherent conflict that exists between protecting this land as natural and undisturbed, and the purpose of the Department of Agriculture. What do you think they are growing here? For whom? Don't you think they might want to harvest the crop? Do you think that perhaps politics also intrudes into the management of these wild places? Any back country designation conferred by NFS, which does include some level of protection, can be reversed by an administrative action with NO public involvement. NFS managers can even completely ignore mandated and solicited public comments as we recently saw happen in the development of the current Mon manage-ment plan. The Endangered Species Act does provide some protection to some National Forest land. The Bush Administration's attempts to cripple the Endangered Species Act have not succeeded. But what will follow?
8West Virginia Wilderness Coalition 8West Virginia Highlands Conservancy 8The Wilderness Society 8The Sierra Club–WV Chapter 8Campaign for America’s Wildernesshttp://www.wvwild.org/http://www.wvhighlands.org/http://www.wilderness.org/http://westvirginia.sierraclub.org/index.htmlhttp://www.leaveitwild.org/psapp/shapeimage_3_link_0shapeimage_3_link_1shapeimage_3_link_2shapeimage_3_link_3shapeimage_3_link_4
As the trees of our Eastern forests reach harvestable maturity, slowly recovering from the turn of the century devastation that left our hills and mountains stripped bare, and as energy “needs” increase, commercial interests can be expected to put significantly more pressure on federal agencies and state governments for access to these public lands. Wilderness designation, which requires an act of congress, is the only permanent protection for public land from road building, logging, mineral extraction (including mountain-top removal, strip mining, and deep mining) and other forms of mechanized intrusion. Unmechanized recreational use—hunting, fish-ing, hiking, backpacking, birding, horseback riding, etc.—are permitted. Get up to date information. Get involved. Make a difference: Monongahela: New Wilderness
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