Public Asked to Help Buy Blackwater Canyon

By the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy Blackwater Canyon Committee

As we write this, representatives from the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy (WVHC) and other state and regional conservation groups are meeting with national environmental groups in Washington, DC. They are discussing strategies for moving ahead with the establishment of the Blackwater Canyon National Park. Other meetings for the day in Washington include visits with officials from the Department of Interior, Senator Rockefeller, and aides for Senator Byrd.

These national conservation contacts, plus the in-state supporters (over 20,000 have signed the "Save Blackwater Canyon" petition), add up to overwhelming, positive support for the protection of Blackwater Canyon. The public is primed! Statements about the value of the Canyon abound:

The West Virginia Supreme Court justices said, "If the natural integrity of the Blackwater River Canyon is destroyed, it will be a tragedy for the people of West Virginia." The Director of the State Park Systems, Cordie Hudkins, said that development within the Canyon would have a devastating effect on Blackwater Falls State Park.

Recently, the Clarksburg Exponent editorialized: "The Blackwater Canyon is one of nature’s wonders. It’s a trademark of the state’s beauty and a key part of the tourism industry in Tucker County. The value of saving a natural wonder is priceless to our children and our children’s children."

But, government agencies make no moves toward saving the entire Canyon. What to do?

BUY IT BACK!

Under the leadership of two volunteers, Ann Murray and Sandra Fallon, the WVHC has launched the "BUY IT BACK: BLACKWATER CANYON" campaign. The aim of the campaign is to raise money to literally buy back one of West Virginia’s most important natural heritage sites and to jump-start the federal process for creating the Blackwater Canyon National Park.

With a goal of raising $3,000,000, WVHC volunteers will contact school groups and youth organizations, sports clubs, churches, civic groups, and business owners all across the state. We will ask them join the effort by sending in bucks for Blackwater, coins for the Canyon, or pennies for its protection. Yup, every penny counts!

It’s a tall goal, but we can settle for nothing less than full protection of the entire Canyon. Because of the continuous support the public has so far given our Canyon protection efforts, we are confident we can reach our goal.

Thousands of people have asked how they can help protect the Canyon and now we have a very simple task for them -- help us Buy it Back!

It’s important to act now to buy Blackwater Canyon. For two years, a conservation organization had worked toward purchasing the Canyon. In 1997, without warning, Allegheny Power Systems struck the deal that sold almost 3,000 acres of the Canyon to the Allegheny Wood Products logging company. The company has already timbered over half of the land. Timbering and road construction have already scarred and eroded the Canyon. Unchecked sediment from the steep Canyon walls has begun to runoff into the Blackwater River, threatening its trout population. Timbering has also damaged the already fragile habitat of several threatened and endangered species that make the Canyon their home. The Canyon’s spectacular scenic views are at risk and public access to recreation there is restricted. Every day the Canyon is not in public hands, West Virginia’s tourism economy suffers.

John Crites, owner of Allegheny Wood Products, took a big risk in purchasing the Canyon. He must have known the value of the Canyon, both to the State’s public relations/ tourism efforts and to private citizens who have visited there from far and wide. He has sought waste water permits for tightly-packed condominium developments on the Canyon’s rim. Although architectural plans exist for the condominiums, Crites said he won’t build the development. He has publicly admitted that his development plans were made to increase the Canyon’s value. If the development did move forward, the purchase price for the Canyon could skyrocket.

Development or not, Crites appears to be green-mailing the public. Governor Underwood has condoned the green-mailing by offering to pay $50,000 per acre for 5 acres of the Canyon.

("Green-mailing" refers to a practice, more common out west, where land known to have outstanding natural or historic values is grabbed up by developers before it can be inventoried and protected for the public. Often developers grab inholdings in public lands and threaten to develop them. When the public demands that the special land be saved, the developers ask exorbitantly inflated prices.)

This is part of the reason the Conservancy targets raising $3,000,000 to buy the Canyon from Crites. We want to stop the green-mail! In addition, the Conservancy’s Blackwater Canyon Committee believes Crites has recouped much of his expenses in purchasing the Canyon by selling trees and more trees.

Furthermore, Crites has caused degradation of the Canyon due to logging activities. He has harmed endangered species habitat. The controversy surrounding his actions in the Canyon has no doubt created negative effects on the West Virginia tourism industry.

How does one put a price tag on those kinds of losses -- the pilfering of beloved and irreplaceable resources in the public’s treasury? Who pays for those damages? Crites should not be rewarded for his actions by asking for and receiving an exorbitant price for the Canyon. Nor should anyone else be rewarded who might, in the future, seek to cash in on natural areas in the state that are truly outstanding treasures worthy of protection rather than exploitation.

We want our natural heritage back!

Please help in the Buy it Back campaign by donating time, ideas, or money. Concerned citizens are encouraged to get the word out, organize local awareness-raising and fund-raising events, write letters to the editor and to write to state and federal officials.

For more information on the "Buy it Back" campaign contact West Virginia Highlands Conservancy at P.O. Box 306, Charleston, WV 25321. Or call Judy Rodd at 304-265-0018, or visit www.wvhighlands.org.