Debate still flows over Allagash proposals

loading...

On Tuesday night, a few dozen folks with varied ties to the Allagash River met in a Bangor conference room to share opinions on proposed revisions to the Allagash Wilderness Waterway management plan.

The result of this latest public hearing, unfortunately, was predictable.

When it comes to talking about the future of this special place in the Maine woods, it seems that various factions agree on only one thing: The Allagash is a wonderful natural resource.

Beyond that, everything seems up for debate … just as it has been for the past 40 years or so.

The problem may be that the Allagash is so special, it stirs unique passion in people from across the political spectrum.

There, in extreme northern Maine, are the locals who learned early on that the river that flowed through their village also contributed to every aspect of their lives.

Their fathers and grandfathers participated in log drives generations ago to put food on the family table, and as one Tuesday attendee pointed out, the Allagash was a playground, a swimming pool, and the key geographical feature in a sometimes hardscrabble existence.

Now, those people – or their descendants – are afraid that the access to the water they’ve enjoyed will be taken from them.

I’ve become friends with many in the St. John Valley and in the town of Allagash, and hope for a compromise that not only satisfies them, but also reflects the fact that their river is also a jewel to those who visit it once in a lifetime … or who only read about it and dream about getting the chance to paddle down it one day.

There are others who feel that the more you restrict access to the Allagash, the better the experience will be for everyone who chooses to put in the time and effort to visit.

It should not be easy to access such a special place, those folks may tell you. It is, after all, considered a “wild” river under the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

There are the timberland owners, who continue to harvest wood from the working forest that rests on each side of the more than 90-mile Allagash corridor.

Some people consider the bridges that cross the Allagash intrusive to the wilderness experience and hope they’re not rebuilt when they eventually decay and fail.

But large landowners owned that swath of forest long before the Allagash Wilderness Waterway became a reality, and those bridges serve as a business lifeline for all of them.

There are interested folks who stand far from the fringes, yet still hold fast to a few core beliefs that others disagree with.

Some want access a particular spot … or want access there denied. Others want to retain historic manmade structures … or to remove all evidence of man when possible.

And there, in Augusta, there is the bureaucracy that oversees the Waterway: The Department of Conservation’s Bureau of Parks and Lands.

As you may guess, they’re the ones who listen to the conflicting complaints of all the stakeholders, hold the hearings, and try to do the best they can.

There are plenty of thankless jobs in state government. Dave Soucy, the director of the Bureau of Parks and Lands, certainly has one of them.

On Tuesday, Soucy sat at the head of the hearing table, listened to the comments, and offered explanation when possible.

But history has proven one thing: No matter what Soucy says, and no matter what decisions are made, he will anger somebody.

Adding to the confusion of some, the state legislature has gotten involved. A committee has moved forward with a bill that would guarantee access to the river at 11 sites and designate one bridge as a permanent structure.

In addition, the bill would require the DOC to submit any proposed changes to the Allagash management plan to the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee for review.

Legislative oversight, in itself, is no cause for alarm. But further muddying an already contentious debate (and those debates that are sure to follow) will certainly complicate future decision-making.

Each party in the Allagash debate ought to remember one thing as proposed changes to the management plan are rehashed in the coming weeks: Visitors to the Allagash don’t seem to notice, nor worry about, access points (or the lack of them). They don’t remember the bridges.

They remember the moose and the flowing water, the beauty and serenity.

And 97 percent of them rate their experience as highly favorable, according to a survey released last year.

In that context, it would seem to make sense to step back and realize how good things already are … and to be careful not to love our precious Allagash to death.

John Holyoke can be reached at jholyoke@bangordailynews.net or by calling 990-8214 or 1-800-310-8600.