“Tying up land in North Woods for single use doesn’t make sense” (Oct. 10) was one of the most misleading Maine Compass pieces I have read.

To imply that national parks are single-use resources shows a complete ignorance of the facts. National parks allow more activities — hiking, biking, boating, cross-country skiing, fishing, camping, even snowmobiling — than they restrict. About the only things you can’t do are hunt, cut trees and ride all-terrain vehicles.

Conversely, while Maine’s working forests allow these activities, many people avoid them because of logging, trucking and compromised fish and game populations.

If the industry practices sustainable forestry as it claims, removing 70,000 acres (roughly 1 percent) should not cripple it as the author warns.

As for paper demand going up, he might ask the U.S. Postal Service about its mail volumes. Or ask Borders how many books it is selling. Or check out a magazine rack to see how many have folded, reduced the number of issues or shrunk in size.

As for the feds owning the “poorest managed” lands in the country, the author couldn’t be more wrong. The feds own some of the healthiest forests left. The fires he speaks about are a result of years of fire suppression, not a lack of logging.

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More well-managed public land is exactly what Maine needs. Roxanne Quimby is offering to do this. Towns around our national parks are typically prosperous.

The same cannot be said for those around Maine’s working forests. Under Jim Robbins plan, the only “winners” are those who exploit forests for profit or under the guise of high-impact recreation. Everyone else loses.

Moving away from an industry that has imploded for years would be a far better idea than trying to stop a national park.

 

Bob Mallard

Skowhegan

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