This week’s ClickBack, the BDN editorial pages’ interactive feature, elicited strong sentiments on the stand of old-growth trees on Plum Creek’s land in Elliotsville. The Native Forest Network believes the trees, in a 200-acre plot near Big Wilson Stream, are more than 100 years old and should be conserved. Yet harvesting the timber would be allowed under the law, and Plum Creek believes it should be able to cut on its own land.

Plum Creek’s old-growth trees – should they be cut or preserved?

Natural wonders transcend “ownership.” A law that lets Plum Creek profit from plundering a natural treasure is a bad law. Plum Creek wants us to dismantle our zoning laws so they can make more money. The fact that they’re even considering cutting those old-growth trees shows how arrogant and self-serving they are.

– TScully

Are you interested in going on a hike through an amazing old growth forest to see the bobcat tracks, pink and white lady slippers and 4-foot-wide old growth white pine trees?

Very few areas like this still exist in Maine. This area is an important ecological feature in the region due to not only the 200 to 300 old trees, but because of the flora and fauna diversity it supports.

Plum Creek’s plan to log this area, destroying one of our last links to Maine’s early history, is only the latest example of the company’s disregard for Maine’s heritage, people and the environment.

Even large retailers such as Home Depot, Lowe’s, Kinko’s, L.L. Bean and hundreds of other companies won’t purchase wood products from old growth forests. It’s time Plum Creek gets with the times and commits to not logging in any old-growth or late-successional forests.

Plum Creek is racing to cut this last bit of ancient forest and in just a few weeks will be constructing a temporary bridge over the Big Wilson to get at these old trees just off the Appalachian Trail then ship them to mills in Canada. That is unless public outrage at this barbaric act stops them.

Please get involved and lend your voice to these last remnants of Maine’s big trees. A community hike in the Big Wilson old growth will be leaving the Monson General Store at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 12. For more information: savebigwilsonoldgrowth.blogspot.com.

-lovethisstate

Plum Creek has made enough money raping America’s forests. Leave Big Wilson alone!

– atsmith

Old growth trees are rare, and once gone, gone forever. Profit before all else has gone too far. Plum Creek should show some restraint here – it might not want to be seen as a plunderer in Maine now.

– mcpd

It would be an excellent public relations decision for Plum Creek to leave the old growth forest be.

In 100 years, when their corporation might just be a hazy memory, the trees could be a living, breathing tribute to generations to come of a rare example of corporate decency.

– takei

As a youth I spent many summers in the woods with my grandfather, an ex-lumberman, especially upper waters of the Allagash.

Saw a stand of old growth spruce behind Haymock Lake and knew of a stand in the Klondike, north of Mt. Katahdin. Any that are still standing should be preserved.

– msqtohd

Is it time to expedite offshore oil and natural gas drilling?

Since there is currently no shortage of oil, I fail to see how drilling off our coasts and in ANWR will lower the price.

-takei

There is no need to endanger the already fragile fishing grounds off Maine’s coast when the oil companies have millions of acres of territory already at their disposal that they haven’t tapped yet.

– mayerysr

More ClickBack questions will be posed in Tuesday’s editorial column and on the BDN’s Web site, bangordailynews.com.

Readers may post their own questions as well.