Zoar
Friends,
June 7, 2007 was a monumentally important day for Zoar Valley
and its old growth forests and gorge ecosystems.
The New York State Assembly and Senate both passed a bill
authorizing the dedication of Zoar Valley's Protection Area
(gorges and old growth forests - 1,492 acres of the total 2,927
acres of public land) as a "Unique Area" under New
York's Environmental Conservation Law to be made part of New
York's State Nature and Historical Preserve Trust (the state
forest preserve). This means the protected land in Zoar Valley,
the Zoar Valley Unique Area, will receive New York's highest
level of public land protection and will remain forever wild.
The bill awaits Governor Spitzer's signature to become a part of
New York's Environmental Conservation Law.
You can read the text of the bill (Assembly Bill A07542) at http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=a07542.
The Senate version of the bill is S05141. The state's website
shows the vote results in the Assembly, which were unanimously
in favor.
Some info. on Unique Areas in NY (Zoar qualifies in each
category of criteria!):
Unique Areas: [ ECL 51-0703 (4)]: "A state project to
acquire lands of special natural beauty, wilderness character,
geological, ecological or historical significance for the state
nature and historical preserve and similar lands within a forest
preserve county outside the Adirondack and Catskill parks"
This result comes after years of work by so many groups and
individuals - citizens, scientists, activists, lawyers,
professors, students, and more. We all owe a debt of gratitude
to Neil Woodworth and Marisa Tedesco of the Adirondack Mountain
Club for their efforts in getting this legislation submitted and
passed, efforts which began years ago and laid the groundwork
for this current success. Professor Tom Diggins of Youngstown
State University and the Eastern Native Tree Society is the
undisputed authority on Zoar's old growth forests and riverine
ecosystems, and has done more than anyone over the years to
educate us all on why Zoar is ecologically important and should
be protected. Also contributing - The Nature Conservancy, New
York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation and its New York
Natural Heritage Program, New York Old Growth Forest Association
and its Western NY Old Growth Forest Survey Team, Citizens
Campaign for the Environment, Niagara Group of the
Sierra Club, Buffalo Audubon Society, Buffalo Ornithological
Society, Zoar Valley Paddling Club, Zoar Valley Nature Society,
and more -- and each and every person who participated in the
public input process that led to this great result.
Watch for more details on the month-long Art of Zoar Valley
exhibit this summer at the Springville Center for the Arts.
Paintings, photography and multimedia artworks will be on
display, and a slate of guided hikes and nature walks in Zoar
Valley are planned. A great way to celebrate this victory.
Julie Broyles, Director
Zoar Valley Nature Society
P.O. Box 55
Gowanda, NY 14070
(716) 380-1430
http://www.zoarvalley.org
|