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Conservation of the Oswegatchie Great Forest and
Boreal Heritage Reserve, two areas of especially high ecological,
economic and recreational value, would create the premier Wildland
in the Adirondack Park. Here, several state-owned parcels could
be combined with new acquisitions from willing sellers to form the
second largest wilderness area in the eastern Unites States. Within
the Wildland, vast tracts of sustainably managed, private timberlands
would be protected from development to ensure jobs and other open-space
benefits.
Approximate Acreage: 1 million acres
Location:
Western and northwestern portion of Adirondack Park
Lakes:
• Cranberry Lake,
• Lows Lake,
• Little Tupper and Tupper Lakes,
• Stillwater Reservoir
Rivers & Watersheds:
• All or parts of the watersheds of the Oswegatchie, Grasse,
Little, Beaver, Moose, Jordan, Raquette, Independence, Deer and
St. Regis Rivers
• More than 100 miles of designated Wild and Scenic rivers
Plant Communities:
• More than 50,000 acres of old-growth forest, the largest
tract in the eastern united States
• Extensive Massawepie wetland complex, an area of international
significance that contains one of the largest heath-sphagnum mats
in the Northeast
• Boreal ecosystems in an extensive region of low-elevation
spruce-fir forests and sphagnum bogs
Habitat
and Animal Life:
• Examples of nearly all Adirondack ecosystems in the Great
Forest and Boreal Reserve, which could sustain viable populations
of most, if not all, native species
• Critical wild habitat for the restoration of large predators
such as lynx, cougar and wolf
• Ideal habitat for pine marten, spruce grouse and rare birds
Outstanding Recreation:
• Extensive canoe routes on wilderness lakes and rivers
• Hunting, fishing, camping and skiing
• Opportunities for extended backcountry travel
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Protected Lands:
• Public ownership of more than half of the Oswegatchie Great
Forest
200,000 acres of Wilderness including • Five Ponds, Lila-Whitney,
Pigeon Lake, Pepperbox and Ha-De-Ron-Dah Wilderness Areas
• 80,000 acres of Wild Forest including Fulton Chains, Independence
River and Cranberry Lake Wild Forests
• 50,000 acres of former Champion International land protected
under conservation easement.
• 18,500 acres of Long Pond Easement
• 26,500 acres of land owned by The Nature Conservancy, containing
portions of Shingle Shany Brook, Round Lake and biologically rich
wetlands
Existing Development:
• Varying degrees of conservation protection throughout the
Adirondack Park's mix of publicly and privately owned lands.
Current Threats:
• Fragmentation and development of industrial forest land
Current Conservation Opportunities:
• 36,000 acres of Whitney Park additions to Forest Preserve
• Easements on 25,000 acres of International Paper lands
• Easements on 35,000 acres along the Wild Rivers of Clerical-Medical
Forestry lands
Current Community Involvement:
• Oswegatchie Great Forest & Boreal Heritage Reserve has
always been the least developed, most remote and wildest area in the
Adirondacks- and Adirondackers want to see that continue. Working
with the Residents Committee to Protect the Adirondacks, local residents
are envisioning several different projects using full-fee acquisition
that would increase the size of Wilderness areas and conservation
easements that would ensure that the Wildland succumb to development
pressure.
Current Action Step:
• Conservation
easements are becoming an increasingly important tool in the conservation
movement. By purchasing conservation easements development can be
curtailed and, depending on the goals of the easement, other values
(like public access and sustainable forestry provisions) can be assured.
Forest Legacy is a federal program that helps local communities protect
lands susceptible to development by grants for conservation easements
and/or full fee
acquisitions.
Ask your
Members of Congress to protect the Oswegatchie Great Forest &
Boreal Heritage Reserve by increasing the funding available through
Forest Legacy |
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