Press Release of May 24, 1999 by the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy

WASHINGTON DC - Representatives of West Virginia and regional conservation organizations will hand deliver over 18,000 "Save Blackwater Canyon" petitions to West Virginia’s US Senators and Representatives Tuesday. The same groups will meet with Governor Underwood on Wednesday. The organizations are calling for the establishment of the Blackwater Canyon National Park.

"We will personally ask Senators Byrd and Rockefeller, and Representatives Mollohan, Rahall, and Wise, and Governor Underwood to listen to the will of the people," said Judy Rodd, chair of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy’s Blackwater Canyon Committee. "So far, over 2,000 people have sent letters to DC asking that the Blackwater Canyon become a national park. The sheer number of letters and petitions make it obvious that the Blackwater Canyon is one of the most treasured natural areas in our state. This resource should belong to the public -- now and always."

To date, 18 state, regional and national conservation groups have joined together in calling for the Blackwater Canyon National Park and an associated Blackwater Ecotourism Enterprise Training Center. During Tuesday’s meeting the groups’ representatives will ask the congressional delegation to authorize a Special Resources Study by the Department of Interior on the establishment of the Blackwater Canyon National Park. Such a study is the first step in a process needed to form a national park.

"We must get the study done now, and get on with saving the Canyon," Rodd said. "Allegheny Wood Products has shut down access to the Canyon’s scenic overlooks and has timbered 1,600 acres in the Canyon, even in endangered species habitat.

"The company's owner, John Crites, has hired engineers to plot out a dense condominium subdivision in particularly scenic portions of the Canyon. Crites has applied for four wastewater permits that could turn the spectacular Blackwater River into a sewer for the wealthy owners of Crites’ condominiums. In order to avert the tragic destruction of the Blackwater Canyon, our leaders need to act now."

At 7 PM. on Tuesday, the Appalachian Restoration Campaign, the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the West Virginia Rivers Coalition will hold a "Blackwater Canyon National Park" reception in the Patagonia store in DC’s Georgetown. Those invited to the event include the groups’ members, West Virginia’s congressional delegation and their staffs, leaders of national conservation organizations and the media.

"Blackwater Canyon National Park is an idea whose time has come," said Jason Halbert, coordinator of the Appalachian Restoration Campaign. "At the reception we will present our national park proposal which will protect this extremely special landscape. Our maps and slide show will help everyone understand how vital the protection of the Blackwater Canyon is to the ecological and economic well being of the entire area."

On Wednesday, the same groups will travel to Charleston to discuss the Blackwater Canyon national Park with Governor Underwood. The groups will hold a 2 PM press conference on the state capitol grounds.

"We know Governor Underwood has received hundreds and hundreds of phone calls asking him to act to save Blackwater Canyon," said Janet Fout of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition. "We know that timbering and condominium development spell disaster for the unique wildlife of the Canyon. We know that in the long run, a national park will provide far greater positive economic impact to the area than will timbering and construction. The petitions we will deliver will reinforce the message: "Blackwater Canyon must be saved for the benefit of everyone, not just for the rich."

The Blackwater Canyon lies in Tucker County. Up until 1997, the electric utility Allegheny Power Systems owned 3,000 acres of the 6,000-acre Canyon. The public had free access to enjoy the Canyon’s world famous scenic vistas, its premier white-water kayaking, and its trails for hunting, hiking, mountain biking, cross country skiing and bird watching. Sandwiched in between the Monongahela National Forest and abutted by the Blackwater Falls State Park, the Canyon is home to the endangered Virginia northern flying squirrel and the threatened Cheat Mountain Salamander. The endangered Indiana bat and Virginia big-eared bat probably depend on the Canyon for their critical nesting and feeding habitat.

Recognizing the Canyon’s biological importance, and its importance to tourism, the United States Forest Service and the Conservation Fund had spent two years negotiating to purchase the Canyon from Allegheny Power. In February of 1997, without asking for a counteroffer, the electric utility sold the Canyon to a developer who immediately resold the Canyon to Allegheny Wood Products.

"By calling for National Park status for this crown jewel of West Virginia’s natural areas, the people are acting to protect both their own long-term economic interests and the Blackwater Canyon’s rare ecosystem," Rodd said. "Now its up to our elected officials to serve the people’s will."

The groups that have so far endorsed the formation of the Blackwater Canyon National Park and an associated Blackwater Ecotourism Enterprise Training Center are the: American Hiking Society, Appalachian American Indian Council, Appalachian Restoration Campaign, Blue Heron Environmental Network, Brooks Bird Club, Friends of the Earth, Heartwood, League of Women Voters, Mountaineer Chapter of Trout Unlimited, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, Religious Campaign for Forest Conservation, United Mine Workers, West Virginia Citizens Action Group, West Virginia Environmental Council, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, West Virginia Organizing Project and West Virginia Rivers Coalition.