Study park plan

There is an important point in your Sept. 26 story about RESTORE: The North Woods that needs clarification. Yes, we have a vision of a magnificent Maine Woods National Park being established someday in northern Maine. Yes, we hope the howl of the wolf will be heard once again in the Maine woods. But from the beginning we have called for a study of these issues before any action is taken. We want to have the facts and decide for themselves.

The eastern timber wolf is an endangered species in the lower 48 states. In 1978, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recovery plan identified parts of northern Maine as potential habitat and recommended further study. The agency has never done a study, even though wolf recovery may offer major benefits to Maine. Since 1992, RESTORE has urged that the long-overdue study finally be done, with broad public participation. After such a study, Maine people can make a decision on wolf recovery based on accurate information, not rumors or unfounded claims.

Since the early 1990s there have been several proposals for a national park in the Maine woods. RESTORE has revived this time-honored idea because the public can no longer rely predominantly on the generosity of private landowners to safeguard the forest and open access to it. We specifically proposed a Maine Woods National Park because people across Maine have told us they want a well-defined plan to respond to, not more vague ideas. We designed it to preserve the forest, ensure public access, and allow traditional recreation — including hunting, trapping and snowmobiling in a large national preserve rea. Four-fifths of Maine’s commercial timberland would be unaffected.

Since 1994, when RESTORE first proposed the park-preserve, we have said consistently that the first step should be a feasibility study that fully involves the public. With such a study in hand, we can finally move beyond simply trading opinions in the newspaper to taking badly needed action. Jym St. Pierre Maine director Michael Kellett Executive director RESTORE: The North Woods Augusta