The falls at Ohiopyle. Photo courtesy of PA DCNR.

Tell your state Senator to VOTE NO on HB 2224.

Some of our public lands are being jeopardized by an ill-considered bill. HB 2224 was introduced to help municipalities dispose of abandoned, blighted, unused and unusable properties. However, as it is presently drafted, HB 2224 puts our public land at risk of being sold for development. A vote in the PA Senate on HB 2224 could take place as early as the week of October 1. Urge your Senator to VOTE NO and ask for a hearing where the full ramifications of the legislation can be examined. (more…)

On Alaska’s North Slope by the Arctic Ocean and west of Prudhoe Bay is the vast 22.8-million acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A). In considering how to best manage this pristine area, on August 13 the Bureau of Land Management has chosen an alternative plan that will designate 11 million acres off-limit to oil and gas exploration. This is a significant victory for those who wish to protect a significant portion of the fragile wildlife habitat. Thank President Obama and Secretary Salazar and urge them to finalize this far-sighted Alternative B-2.

Tionesta Natural Area. Photo by Kirk Johnson

As President Obama declared September as Natioanl Wilderness Month, conservationists and wilderness advocates await action by Congress on no less that 27 wilderness bills stalled in committee. If no action is taken before January, this will be the first time since 1966 without any additions to the National Wilderness Preservation System, a system created by the Wilderness Act signed in September 3, 1964 by Lyndon Johnson. (more…)

Photo: Allegheny Defense Project

The innocuously named Conservation and Economic Growth Act (H.R. 2578) is branded by environmentalists as a collection of extreme anti-conservation proposals that would undo decades of land protection measures. Two of the fourteen provisions in the bill are especially harmful; Title III would transfer old-growth stands in the Tongass National Forest to a native-owned corporation for harmful clear-cutting, and Title XIV would remove some 36 protection laws from federal lands within 100 miles of the US borders. The latter measure would affect wilderness protection on the Allegheny NF. On June 19 H.R. 2578 passed the House 232-188 with Dems. Critz and Doyle voting Nay, and the White House expressing opposition. PLEASE URGE SENS. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey to vote against the Conservation and Economic Growth Act.

There has been a recent flurry of news about development in Allegheny County. It started with a July 7 critique of haphazard development along the Parkway West by architect John Conti. That was followed by the launching of a development plan for a county-owned site adjacent to the airport at the end of the parkway. On the same day Pittsburgh City Council heard of the benefits of developing and maintaining more greenspace in the city. A few days later Lisa Schroeder of the Riverlife promoted the development of a six and a half mile riverfront park along the Allegheny River north from the Strip district. The riverfront park would sit alongside Buncher Corporaton’s development plan for the Strip District, a plan that could finally include the long-discussed commuter rail service from Pittsburgh to Tarentum.

Photo: Allegheny Defense Project.

With a June 23-24 outing, the Allegheny Defense Project (ADP) launched a campaign to protect the newly discovered colonies of the synchronous firefly species Photinus Carolinus in Allegheny National Forest north of Pittsburgh. Since that outing the coordinated firefly show has attracted broader attention, at the City Paper and the Allegheny Front radio program. ADP hope that the fireflies will serve as a reminder to the US Forest Service that the only national forest in Pennsylvania needs to be protected for its natural values and not turned into an industrial complex. For more information, contact Cathy Pedler [ cpedler @ alleghenydefense dot org ].

The Huplits Wildlife Grants Committee of the Allegheny Group has announced the results of its 2012 annual grant competition. From seven initial proposals the committee awarded four grants worth $50,000 with the following goals.

• Provide for environmental review of oil and gas drilling operations on the Allegheny NF, as well as a Forest and Water Action campaign.
• Conduct a BioBlitz event in Bucks County.
• Continue a habitat management program to help recover and maintain populations of the endangered eastern massasauga rattlesnake.
• Introduce the national Audubon Society’s Forestry for the Birds Initiative into Pennsylvania,

Details of the six grants follow. (more…)

We Pennsylvanians are fortunate to live in a state with such beauty and opportunity for outdoor adventure. Just how fortunate is the topic of a special report in the Summer 2012 issue (pdf) of the Sylvanian, the Pennsylvania Chapter’s online newsletter. A variety of writers describe what Pennsylvania’s wildness means to them and how that wildness is threatened.

As part of its overall planning process, in June the US Forest Service issued an analysis of the public’s participation in outdoor recreation since 2000 and the trends out to 2060. The team at the USFS Research Station in Asheville NC, found a recent shift in the recreation behavior away from motorized activity and towards photography and general nature viewing. Future growth is most likely to be in “skiing, other skiing, challenge activities, equestrian activities, and motorized water activities”, with lower growth rates for “visiting primitive areas, motorized off-road activities, motorized snow activities, hunting, fishing, and floating water activities”. (more…)

Join folk from the Allegheny Defense Project to Observe and Document Synchronous Fireflies in the Allegheny National Forest.

Photo: Allegheny Defense Project

To learn how valuable an asset the Allegheny National Forest is to our region, the Allegheny Defense Project invites the public to a two-day camping outing June 23-24 in the Salmon Creek watershed. Not only will this be an opportunity to enjoy a Spring outing and learn of forest issues, but of special interest will be the newly discovered presence of the synchronous firefly species Photinus Carolinus that produces a spectacular evening light show. See here for location of the campsite. For more information, contact Cathy Pedler at cpedler [@] alleghenydefense.org and check the account of the 2011 outing.

SC members and friends are invited to Register now for Memorial Day weekend event, May 25-28.

Heartwood is a cooperative network of individuals and organizations working to protect the hardwood forests of the Ozarks, the Ohio River valley, and the Appalachian mountain region. For the first time since 2001, the Heartwood Council will meet in Pennsylvania. The four-day event will be held in May 25-28 at Boy Scout Camp Olmstead near Warren, PA, just south of the CornPlanter Land Grant. Open to all, registration can be made on-line. (more…)

Photo from the PA DEP

First, thanks to all who urged their State Representative to vote NO on HB 1904. This bill, with only a handful of co-sponsors, would outlaw all new federal requirements regarding oil and gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing on Allegheny NF. Apparently there was sufficient public outcry that instead of voting on May 9, possible action on HB 1904 has been delayed until after May 21. IF YOU HAVE NOT YET HAD A CHANCE TO DO SO, PLEASE CONTACT your State Representative now and urge her or him to vote AGAINST HB 1904.

Photo from the PA DEP

A vote is soon expected in the State House on H.B. 1904. This legislation would hamstring our ability to protect Pennsylvania’s only national forest—the Allegheny National Forest—from gas drilling. Gas drilling companies already have access to 700,000 acres of our state forests for drilling; they’re pressing for mineral rights that are held under our state parks; and they have ability to lease most of the private land that makes up the vast majority of property in the Marcellus Shale region. Why should our elected officials even consider removing federal protections for certain land within the Allegheny National Forest. PLEASE CONTACT your State Representative and urge her/him to vote AGAINST HB 1904.

Photo: Allegheny Defense Project

On April 17, the House passed H.R. 4089, the so-called Sportsmen’s Heritage Act. Viewed as a ‘Trojan horse’ by conservationists, the bill would severely roll-back decades of federal law that protect our public lands, including the Wilderness Areas in Allegheny National Forest. The bill moves to the Senate and Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey will be a key vote. PLEASE CONTACT Sen. Casey’s office and urge him to vote against HR 4089. Read more. (more…)

Tioga SF. Photo: DCNR

Pennsylvania has earned sustainable management certification for our publicly owned forests more years than any other state in the nation. This is the conclusion of an independent analysis by the Rain Forest Alliance. The challenge facing the state Dept. Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) is to ensure that shale gas drilling has a minimum effect on the leased 700,000 acres of the 2.2 million acres of the whole system. With 300 wells already on state forest land, the potential is for an eventual total of 6,000 wells, according to former DCNR Secretary John Quigley.