George Washington National Forest Comment period extended to Jan 23

Well, i appreciate any comments anyone might send (and the forest staff does as well), because it helps them to fight back big money and politics.

The proposal is to clear nearly 200 feet, and keep cleared 50 feet as a corridor for a fracked gas pipeline straight through the forest

If this pipeline is allowed, the potential for exploiting fracking in the forest itself will become more profitable as well. currently there is no fracking there, although there are several private licenses already issued, waiting for the right conditions.

the short version is they are interrupting a climax forest, disturbing wildlife patterns, trout streams, the list goes on of the damage they will do.

And a quick email comment from you will throw some weight on our side of the scale, these comments are important, they are required to help make the decision

here's a link for more info http://www.friendsofbuckinghamva.org/atlantic-coas-t-pipeline-in-the-george-washington-national-forest/



the new deadline is Jan 23, and you are writing to stop the Atlantic Coast Pipeline from entering the forest, something quick and to the point is better than nothing at all, thanks, and here are the particulars

JoBeth Brown

Public Affairs Officer

George Washington and Jefferson National Forests

5162 Valleypointe Parkway

Roanoke, VA 24019

(540) 265 – 5102

jobethbrown@fs.fed.us

and /or
Email: comments-southern-georgewashington-jefferson@fs.fed.us

FAX: (540) 265-5145

Mail or Hand Deliver:

USDA Forest Service

Atlantic Coast Pipeline Survey Comments

5162 Valleypointe Parkway

Roanoke, VA 24019

I wrote um. Seems insane. What does natural gas do when temperatures change rapidly? Riveted steel? Anyone know?

There are so many reasons this thing doesn't belong in the national forest, it really goes against everything the forests were created for, and yet there seems to be a push on to plunder the forests as fast as possible. People trying to get rich(er) by exploiting the natural resources.

Funny how easy it is for them to say they plan to only take a permanent 50 feet corridor, and then come in and clearcut 200 as if that's not a part of the problem too.

But of course this sanctioned rape has been going on even worse out west where this sort of thing is business as usual, the difference is no one has been watching too close, so in the name of fiscal responsibility we are selling the crown jewels at bargain basement prices.

How much is a climax forest worth in the middle of a population center like the east coast or anywhere for that matter

ask the same question in a hundred years.

vision and foresight is too much to ask from the knuckle draggers in congress.

So I've heard Senator John McCain talk about he need for forrest thinning from time to time. I've also heard him exasperatedly admit humans where effecting the atmosphere. Last year was a hell of a season for wild fires. Do you think there is a place for selective logging with an emphasis on preventing wild fires and gully flooding?

There is certainly a place for harvesting Timber, that being said, i'm not sure that place is the national forest. wildfires can be a complicated issue, they talk about forest management with fire, some species need fire as part of their regeneration, so i guess the answer like with most permaculture questions is, "it depends"

usually to try and keep fire out of the forest, that has to do with keeping deadwood and brush cleared on the forest floor,, also a function of edges where drought can kill brush and smaller trees that grow when the canopy of climax species is removed (another good reason not to create a clearcut through the middle of the forest.) That dead brush etc is the fuel that starts or accelerates most fires.

But keeping the forest intact , especially on steep slopes as found through out the area is super important , even to the water supply of wash dc.,, that is one of the chief ways to protect from flooding and erosion, keep steep slopes and creek bottoms in forest

anyway, just two days left to send leters, and i appreciate any comments anyone might send (and the forest staff does as well), because it helps them to fight back big money and politics.

The proposal is to clear nearly 200 feet, and keep cleared 50 feet as a corridor for a fracked gas pipeline straight through the forest

If this pipeline is allowed, the potential for exploiting fracking in the forest itself will become more profitable as well. currently there is no fracking there, although there are several private licenses already issued, waiting for the right conditions.

the short version is they are interrupting a climax forest, disturbing wildlife patterns, trout streams, the list goes on of the damage they will do.

And a quick email comment from you will throw some weight on our side of the scale, these comments are important, they are required to help make the decision

here's a link for more info http://www.friendsofbuckinghamva.org/atlantic-coas-t-pipeline-in-the-george-washington-national-forest/



the new deadline is Jan 23, and you are writing to stop the Atlantic Coast Pipeline from entering the forest, something quick and to the point is better than nothing at all, thanks, and here are the particulars

JoBeth Brown

Public Affairs Officer

George Washington and Jefferson National Forests

5162 Valleypointe Parkway

Roanoke, VA 24019

(540) 265 – 5102

jobethbrown@fs.fed.us

and /or
Email: comments-southern-georgewashington-jefferson@fs.fed.us

FAX: (540) 265-5145

Mail or Hand Deliver:

USDA Forest Service

Atlantic Coast Pipeline Survey Comments

5162 Valleypointe Parkway

Roanoke, VA 24019

Anyone following this issue probably knows the closing date for comments was Friday.

The only word so far is that the forest staff received many more comments than they expected, and it will take some time for them to read , evaluate everything, including other requests and assaults on the Jefferson /Monongohela forest which has a comment period ending in Feb sometime, and may affect any decision about the ACP, so we may not know about this till march (possibly later)

This awareness of the assault on our national forest is just beginning, and the hope is that we will wake up and make our voices heard, although, like most people reading this i hate to spend time fighting what i consider to be evil, i would much rather be doing positives ( i have a Geoff Lawton video playing in the background) The negatives make me crazy (ier) and the positives keep me grounded.

Think i'll go out and bring in some more comfrey roots to get plants started in advance of the season, plus my pet guinea "Lucky" likes the greens, maybe they will help distract her from the peppers and tomatoes overwintering in the green house.

Anyway, Thanks to everybody that wrote, I hope everyone is having a great winter season

bob

too funny for words, just when i thought i could sit back on my laurels (yeah right) along comes phase 2

this is so funny, and i enter this fray with a light heart and smile, even laughter.

the serious side of course is the very real damage that may be done, but as far as being positive, i have to think about it as if i were building a water impoundment to control erosion, only this time the impoundment is confining the forces of big business and fossil fuel out of the national forests. These forests have the potential to be seeds for returning large scale wilderness back to the planet when permaculture allows us to remove marginal land from cultivation and let these forests increase in size and diversity. With the tide so close to turning, it seems a shame to let these biodiversity treasures disintegrate just when they might do the most good.

I was surprized to hear that the last campaign to the George Washington Forest generated 700+ letters, much fewer than i anticipated, but many more than they anticipated.

Seems like a concentrated effort from the permaculture community could easily swamp the Monongahela Forest with a positive force that couldn't be resisted.

anyway, here are the particulars, and please, if you have a few moments, think about writing to save these national treasures.



The Forest Service is taking comments until February 13th regarding whether it should allow surveying for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia. You can make comments regarding the impacts of the survey itself, but please also take the opportunity to let the Forest Service know why you are opposed to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline going through the national forest, in general.

Send letters to:
Monongahela National Forest
Attn: Atlantic Coast Pipeline Survey Permit Comments
200 Sycamore Street
Elkins, WV, 26241

Send emails to: comments-eastern-monongahela-greenbrier@fs.fed.us
Please include the project name (Atlantic Coast Pipeline Survey Permit Comments) in the subject line of your email.

Possible talking points regarding the survey itself (from West Virginia Highlands Conservancy):

•Too much disturbance for the sensitive areas they are crossing.
•Four surveys means four crews tramping around in the corridor.
•They are going to clear a “line of sight and a travel path for survey equipment.”
•How wide is this “line of sight” going to be?
•Clearing the line of sight will fragment the forest.
•What is this “equipment” besides tripods for siting?
•How will they transport it? Carry it? Will they use some kind of transport device? Motorized?
•How many lines of sight will there be? (Forest Service description says it would be for “a recording of GPS readings of the proposed centerline and other features along the route within 300 feet of the centerline.” This could result in a network of cleared strips.
•They are not including surveys for the impacts to the quality of the scenery.
•They can’t use vehicles “except to access the corridor using public and existing Forest Roads,” but what about parking?
•The work will be done by contractors, and Dominion has a very bad record of overseeing contractors to make sure they abide by the law, so restrictions, such as only using hand tools and no motorized vehicles, are likely to be violated.
•Unless there are sufficient Forest Service staff to provide constant monitoring, the surveys should not be allowed.
•Since the surveys are for the construction of the pipeline, the impacts of the pipeline construction should be considered before allowing the disturbance of the surveys.

Possible talking points regarding impacts to Monongahela National Forest (from West Virginia Highlands Conservancy):
•The proposed pipeline would cross the Monongahela National Forest in areas where there are ongoing restoration projects for trout and red spruce. The Forest Service is bound by law to protect endangered species and their habitat.
•A 100-foot clear cut across the Alleghenies will divide and fragment forest and wildlife habitat for numerous threatened and endangered species and create favorable conditions for invasive species.
•The currently proposed route will cross miles of some of the best remaining wild and undeveloped areas in the east.
•It will cross over a dozen steep forest-covered mountains at elevations of 3000 to more than 4000 feet.
•It will cross many of the highest quality rivers and trout streams in the region.
•Monongahela National Forest is a prime recreational and scenic draw for visitors to West Virginia and residents of the state.
•A pipeline of this magnitude is a major industrial operation, which includes air, water, noise and light pollution, increased traffic, and a permanent scarring of the landscape.
•More pipelines will make it possible to build more gas-fired power plants, which will delay development of renewable energy and delay reduction in usage of fossil fuels.
This entry was posted in Natural Resources, Surveying, Take Action, Water Quality on January 27, 2015 by Meredith.