Not far to fall
By Andrew EganNo, despite the title, this isn't another high-sucrose attempt to bombard unsuspecting readers with yet another "unique" or "creative" way of describing the impending onset of autumn. However, it is a reminder about life in the Adirondack Park as experienced by many of its full-time inhabitants. While much has been made of the Park's scenic beauty, abundant natural resources, and its preservationist land-use model, too little is mentioned of the harsher realities associated with life in the Park: heightened levels of poverty and unemployment, and comparatively little economic opportunity among its some 130,000 permanent residents. In a recent study of the logging community in New York state (Egan, in press), for example, we and those whom we cited observed the following:
"The Adirondack region continues to contend with persistent patterns of seasonal unemployment (Gore and Lapping 1976), high rates of under- and unemployment, and low per capita income (Vrooman 1975) reported over a quarter century ago, characteristic of a regional economy that is heavily dependent on outdoor recreation, second home owners and a weakened manufacturing sector. More recently, Erickson (2001) observed that most of the growth in employment in the Adirondacks was in lower-wage service and trade industries, at the expense of significant losses in higher-wage construction and manufacturing jobs, and that due to the area's dependence on tourism and outdoor sports, sharp seasonal swings in unemployment are commonplace (p. 272). In January 2009, all but one of the counties in the Adirondack region exceeded the average unemployment rate for the state (NYS Department of Labor 2009). Erickson (2001) observed that "despite success in the preservation arena the description of today's Adirondacks includes government subsidy dependence, low incomes, high unemployment, low-wage jobs, and a declining manufacturing base." (p. 276)
Compared to logging business owners in the rest of the state, those in the Adirondack region are significantly older, appear to have fewer employment options and are less likely to encourage offspring to become loggers, raising questions about the future of the region's logging work force and the overall health of the Adirondack region's forestry sector. Reporting less non-logging income than those who log outside of the Park, Adirondack region logging business owners also appear to be more reliant on their logging businesses as their only source of income. Significantly, reported barriers to maintaining logging businesses in the Park included the effects of uncertainty about forestland ownership in the Blue Line.
Future attention should focus on understanding the effects, if any, of the acquisition of private lands for preservation in the Adirondack Park on forestry sector manufacturing and other employment in and proximate to the Park. Echoing Gore and Lapping's (1976) caution issued over a quarter-century ago, if environmental protection means jeopardizing opportunities for economic development for permanent Park residents, the trade-offs between preservation and economic development must be closely scrutinized. A half-century later, Erickson (2001) observed that "despite success in the preservation arena the description of today's Adirondacks includes government subsidy dependence, low incomes, high unemployment, low-wage jobs, and a declining manufacturing base." Sound familiar?
While there are those who have wondered whether the current interest in sustainability, for example, will remain relevant in the future, there is, unfortunately, little question about the persistence of social and economic indispositions, such as poverty and unemployment. Some months ago, I spoke to a friend who is paid hourly for construction work - one of the many hard-working Park residents who appears to be chronically living on the edge. Asking him how the recent economic downturn was affecting him and his work, he shrugged his shoulders and replied, somewhat philosophically, "When you live in the Adirondacks, you don't have far to fall."
That's not good enough.
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Andrew Egan, Ph.D., is a professor at Paul Smith's College and dean of its School of Forestry and Natural Resources.
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Literature cited:
Egan, A. (in press) "Characteristics of New York's logging businesses and logging business owners." Northern Journal of Applied Forestry.
Erickson, J. (2001) "In search of sustainable development: Lessons in application from the Adirondack Park." In Sustainability in Action, J. Kohn, J. Gowdy and J. van der Straaten (eds). Edward Elger Publishing Limited. Northampton, MA. Pp. 261-280.
Gore, P. and M. Lapping (1976) "Environmental quality and social equality: Wilderness preservation in a depressed region, New York State's Adirondacks." American Journal of Economics and Sociology. 35(4):349-359.
NYS Department of Labor (2009) Retrieved on March 17 at www.labor.state.ny.us/workforceindustry data/Pressrelease.
Vrooman, D (1975) "Regional land use controls in the Adirondack Park." American Journal of Economics and Sociology. 34(1):95-102.
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grizzlyadam
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08-15-09 10:08 AM
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Sad and true. The only important thing he didn't Dr. Egan didn't mention is how far behind the region is when it comes to higher education. Which is surprising given his profession. My wife and I moved here, we are both college educated and had no problems making a living. I estimate half of the folks I know here who are college educated are transplants. Granted, not everyone can afford $30k a year education at Paul Smith, and when it comes to getting a forestry degree for $120k, it would take a while to pay that back. Regarding making a living as a logger, it is a hard profession where most loggers chronically live on the edge. Even in places without forest preserve, loggers are below the poverty level and only the owners make a decent living. Finally, regarding being a government subsidized region, we better be. If the rest of the state wants a park here, they need to pay for it. I have lived in several rural places throughout the country and the Adirondacks is the best.
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northcountrynell
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08-15-09 7:49 AM
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Bottom post, last sentence. As long as it suits their needs for the 2 weeks while they are here, all is well. The other 50 weeks and survival of locals does not concern them.
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northcountrynell
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08-15-09 7:46 AM
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The thing is... the tourists with the "good Jobs" and money to spend on 2 week Adk vacations, come here to get away from the environment they "have " to live in...in order to afford to get here in the first place.Along with these educated tourists come people who want to be in charge and believe they know whats best for the Adk. Park, whether they live here or not. Selective cutting of forests for healthy growth does not register to these people...so the more forever wild forest the better. Unfortunately...until the "I have more money than brains" crowd steps aside and allows the Adk. region to use its resources to produce jobs and better its own economy...you would make more money selling snow cones in the Arctic circle than you would as a logger in the Adk. Park. People "tourists" now think of this place as their playground, instead of a region where people need to survive and provide for their families. As long as it suits their needs for the
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twinrivers
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08-14-09 8:29 PM
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The facts and documentation of the long struggle in the Adirondacks for economic vitality are interesting and helpful, of course. Most rural places face similar economic challenges. It would be great to hear from some of the experts in the economic development field to hear what economic pathways are most viable. Forestry has been so important, making it a likely pathway for new economic models.
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concerned
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08-14-09 8:26 PM
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how true............it still hurts when you hit even tho the fall is not far
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