(Excerpted from articles in the Charleston Gazette by Ken Ward, Jr.)

A Petersburg timber operator proposes to build a 600-acre resort in the Blackwater Canyon, according to state Division of Environmental Protection records.

On Tuesday, however, Allegheny Wood Products (AWP) issued a statement that the company "has no immediate plans to develop the Blackwater Canyon."

Months ago, John Crites of AWP filed plans with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to build more than 280 residential lots and a large resort lodge in the Tucker County canyon.

"This looks like a big real estate project," said Dave Atchinson, an engineering technician with the DEP regional office in Fairmont. Dozens of residential lots would line Canyon Loop Road near Blackwater Falls State Park and hug the Blackwater River farther west toward Hendricks, according to the plans. Several scenic overlooks -- including the popular Lindy Point area -- would be closed as private "common areas" for the resort. Access to parts of the resort would be through the state park. The development’s water service would hook into the park’s existing system.

Last week, lawyers for AWP said in a formal response that the company "has no present, mature and imminent plans to develop its entire tract for timber harvesting or housing sites."

"There is a little bit of bad faith in here," said Jason Huber, lawyer for the environmental groups. "They have the permit application pending and they deny in federal court that they have plans for development."

In June 1998, the DEP water office approved AWP’s request for "waste load allocations" for the right to a portion of the pollution load that the Blackwater can safety handle. The action gave AWP the right to more than 300,000 gallons per day of wastewater discharge into the river. Clifton Browning, a DEP engineer, said no public notice of that action was required by state regulations.

In December and January, AWP asked the DEP water office for wastewater permits for the resort’s sewage treatment plants. In mid-April, DEP asked AWP for more information about its construction schedule. The company has not responded.

A permit cannot be granted without a public comment period.

Donna Reckart, a media spokeswoman for AWP, said the company wanted to get the resort permits to back up its appraisals of the canyon property’s worth.

"To justify appraisals, you have to be able to justify them with permits," Reckart said Tuesday. In a prepared statement, Reckart said, "AWP is in the final stages of preparing a suitability study so that the company can analyze the future use of the property. "We have no immediate plans to develop the Blackwater Canyon and will continue to manage the property for long-term timber management to provide timber resources which are vital to the future of Allegheny Wood Products, Inc., and our employees."

Judy Rodd, a spokeswoman for the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, said, "We’re not surprised at this sort of development. We’ve been predicting it for two years. "And now we see that John Crites wants to make the Blackwater into his own private sewer," she said. "The people of West Virginia aren’t going to let this happen," Rodd said. "It’s too valuable of a natural resource. We’re going to continue to go to our elected officials and get Blackwater Canyon made into a national park."

May 13,1999 -- State Parks Director Opposes Blackwater Resort

A 600-acre Blackwater Canyon proposed resort would devastate the environment, the chief of the state parks system said Wednesday. Cordie Hudkins, director of parks and recreation for the Division of Natural Resources, said the resort could ruin nearby Blackwater Falls State Park.

"That has the potential to be devastating to Blackwater Falls State Park," Hudkins said. "I’m not against progress, but that one particular area, on top of the canyon, just should not be developed."

John Crites of AWP has asked the state Division of Environmental Protection for a permit to discharge treated sewage from the resort into the Blackwater River. Crites proposed to build 280 lots for "summer cottages" and a large resort lodge, according to permit applications filed with DEP. The company proposed to call the development Canaan Mountain Resort.

Hudkins said Underwood administration officials who are "close to Mr. Crites" told him that Crites did not plan to develop the area. Hudkins said the permit applications made him wary of those statements. "I'm surprised, and I’m shocked," Hudkins said.

Crites proposed that some vehicle access to the resort be through the state park, and that the resort’s water supply hook into the park’s water system.

Hudkins said the resort will bring too much traffic and too many people into the area. "It’s just such a fragile area, I hate to see it developed," Hudkins said. Hudkins said he thinks the canyon, at least the portion near the state park, should be public land owned by the state or federal government.

"Mr. Crites has said he does not intend to develop the Blackwater Canyon," said Dan Page, a spokesperson for Governor Underwood. "We hope to find out at that time whether his plans have changed."

State health officials have rejected AWP’s request to permit a drinking water system for a huge resort proposed for the Blackwater Canyon.

Months ago, the Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) turned down their permit application. The agency said it needed more information.

Since then, AWP has not responded to the agency’s questions. "I haven’t heard from them," said Bill Herold, assistant director of environmental engineering for the DHHR’s Bureau of Public Health. "I haven’t heard anything."

AWP asked the DEP Office of Water Resources for water pollution permits to discharge 300,000 gallons per day of treated sewage from the development into the Blackwater River.

DEP officials have quietly processed the applications and related permits for nearly a year. No public notifications of the requests have been issued. In January, AWP also asked the DHHR for a permit for a water supply system for the resort. The company proposed to hook its water supply into the system at Blackwater Falls State Park.

In February, DHHR rejected the request. In letters to the company, Herold said he could not approve the permit without knowing who will be responsible for long-term operation and maintenance of the water facilities. "If there is no public entity, such as a municipality or a public service district, to own and operate the sewage and water facilities, a private utility regulated by the West Virginia Public Service Commission must be formed or a Property Owners Association must be established," Herold wrote.

Herold also asked for more information about the size of the water system, and for more precise drawings of the proposed system. "It was kind of difficult to follow what was going on, it was such a large project," Herold said last week.

At the same time, the DEP has stopped processing Allegheny Wood’s permit applications for the sewage discharges. Pravin Sangani, engineering branch manager for the DEP water office, said he doesn’t want to waste resources in the permits if the company doesn’t plan to build the resort. "We don't want to spend time working on things that they are not going to construct," Sangani said.

In mid-April, DEP sent a letter to AWP to ask for more concrete information on the company’s plans. "We have no response," Sangani said. "And we’re not going to work on that permit until we have a response."

May 22,1999 – Landowner Fears Government Condemnation, Official Says

AWP wants resort permits to increase the value of its Blackwater Canyon property in case the land is condemned by the government, the state forestry director said Friday. Randy Dye, director of the state Division of Forestry, said he met last week with John Crites. Crites and Dye toured the company’s Blackwater Canyon timbering sites and discussed the company’s permit applications for a 600-acre Canaan Mountain Resort near Blackwater Falls State Park. Dye said he was told that AWP is worried public pressure will force the federal or state government to condemn the property to move it into public ownership.

"It’s a concern," Dye said. "I have asked the question and have been told they need a permit so they can prove the true value of the property in case -- because of all the pressure -- the property is condemned," Dye said.

The West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and other groups are campaigning to make the canyon into a national park.

Leaders of the state parks system agree the area should be in public ownership.

May 25,1999 -- Blackwater Advocates to Ask for Park

Advocates of making Blackwater Canyon a national park will take their cause to elected officials in Charleston and Washington, D.C. this week. Members of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, the state Sierra Club and other groups will deliver copies of petitions in favor of the action.

Today, petitions with more than 18,000 signatures will be presented to West Virginia’s senators and congressmen in Washington. On Wednesday, petitions with another 4,000 signatures will be delivered to Gov. Cecil Underwood.

"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," said Judy Rodd, chairwoman of the conservancy’s Blackwater Canyon committee. "This resource should belong to the public -- now and always."

During today’s meeting, environmentalists will ask the congressional delegation to support a Special Resources Study by the Department of Interior on the national park proposal. Such a study is the first step in forming a new national park.

"We know Governor Underwood and the state parks folks have received hundreds and hundreds of phone calls asking them 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 and recreational resources of the canyon," Fout said. "Blackwater Canyon must be saved for the benefit of everyone."

Backers of a national park in Blackwater Canyon have one very big potential stumbling block: the congressman who represents the area. Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-WV, represents West Virginia’s 1st Congressional District, which includes Tucker County. Any federal action to protect Blackwater Canyon would probably need Mollohan’s approval. "I think the whole proposition would be problematic," said Mollohan, a former coal industry lawyer from Fairmont, in an interview last week. "I'm not sure you can talk about it realistically in any way."

The League of Conservation Voters says Mollohan’s record of voting for environmental protection is worse than West Virginia’s other two congressional representatives. Since the Republicans took over Congress in 1995, Mollohan has consistently voted with GOP efforts to limit U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulatory power and against tougher air pollution rules. But Mollohan has been less likely to vote for bills that would reduce protection for public forests and wilderness areas. In each of the past two years, he voted against GOP "takings" proposal, which would force the federal government to pay land owners when environmental protection limits the way they use their land.

In West Virginia, Mollohan was a strong supporter of creation of a national wildlife refuge in Canaan Valley. He was also instrumental in creation of the Ohio River Islands National Wildlife Refuge. "I am very interested in creating wildlife refuges and adding to the national forest," Mollohan said last week. But Mollohan said he sees two problems with the Blackwater proposal. First, he said money for land purchases probably won’t be available as long as the Republicans control Congress. Second, Mollohan doesn’t believe the national park idea is worth discussing unless John Crites, president of Allegheny Wood, says he wants to sell his land. "I would be very interested in pursuing the idea, if there were a willing buyer and willing seller," Mollohan said.

Mollohan added that he doesn't think government officials should try to pressure Crites to sell. "There is a lot of resentment and a lot of mistrust of the days when the federal government would just go in and take land," he said.

During the 1998 and 1994 elections, Crites contributed a total of $2,500 to Mollohan’s campaign, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Linda Cooper, a member of the Highlands Conservancy’s board, said the state condemned land from 27 families when it created the Blackwater Falls State Park. "How can it be justified for 27 families and not for one man," Cooper said. "[Crites] might be a willing seller if the right people ask him."