Does Adirondack ‘balance’ shut people out?
To the editor:
Re: “The importance of Adirondack wilderness” by Peter Bauer:
Peter Bauer talks about “balance” in his guest essay of Jan. 6 but expands the context far beyond the Adirondack Park and the clearly defined Adirondack Park Agency classification process for the newly acquired Boreas Ponds parcel. Evidently Mr. Bauer’s vision of “balance” is for most New York open space recreationists (except wilderness hikers, of course) to be kept away from the Boreas Ponds. This expanded context is erroneous and misleading as the comments about “balance” made by many during the Boreas Ponds classification hearings were specific to the parcels to be classified.
Members of the Access the Adirondacks Alliance — a group made up of local elected officials, hikers, bicyclers, snowmobilers, fishermen, hunters and nature lovers of all types — were among many who requested the APA use classification alternative 1, which would classify 50 percent of the Boreas parcel wilderness and 50 percent as wild forest. “Balance.”
When he announced the Boreas Ponds purchase at Elk Lake, Gov. Cuomo stated, “This will provide even more unparalleled settings for outdoor tourism and recreation, and I encourage New Yorkers to visit the region to see what they’ve been missing.” The governor’s vision can’t happen if only an elite few, capable of long-distance hikes, are allowed access to the Boreas Ponds. We all paid for the Boreas Ponds parcel, and we all should be able to see it and enjoy it. This, too, is “balance.”
Roger Dziengeleski
Steering Committee chair
Access the Adirondacks Alliance
Gansevoort