Field Meeting Scheduled

The initial comment period closed on January 31, 2006. The Forest Service has now scheduled a field meeting on October 24, at which it will present the alternatives being considered, then provide an opportunity for new issues to be submitted.

This will be the final opportunity for public input before the Environmental Assessment (due for release early next year) is prepared. See the Activities Calendar for more information.

The USFS contact person is Jim Wentworth at jwentworth@fs.fed.us (FAX 706-745-7494).

Why We're Concerned

Sweeping views of the affected area (Over 700 acres!) can be seen from several places on the BMT. If approved, this unusually large project will drastically change the landscape creating an eyesore and diminishing the recreational experience of the trail. A second threat to the BMT is from the required periodic fires (future). And yet another threat is from illegal ATV users - after heavy equipment has opened access-ways for them.

Key Notes

It is important to understand a couple of key points while reading the scoping document and preparing your comments. The golden-winged warbler, around which much of the justification for this project is built, is not 'rare', 'endangered', or even on the 'sensitive' list. It is a bird with a declining population whose southernmost habitat reaches the north Georgia mountains. There is no scientific evidence that projects such as this will affect the decline. See the Audubon page for more information.
Secondly, the "Woodland" referred to in the Plan is not so much woodland as it is grassland. It is a wide area where some, if not most, of the trees have been removed, herbicides applied to suppress natural reforestation, and fires set periodically to maintain the brushy, open conditions. These unnatural, human-created areas, which have been described as 'stark' and 'bizarre', require sustained labor (funded by taxpayers) to maintain the artificial landscape.

Our Position

The BMTA has raised objections to the increased scope of this project in fulfillment of one of our core commitments, to protect the BMT. At the same time, we have a strong working relationship with the US Forest Service that goes back to our foundation. Indeed, BMTA volunteers contributed over 3,600 hours of trail work on National Forest lands in 2005 alone.
It is our hope that the Forest Service will agree that the timber harvest from this project and the ruffled grouse habitat/hunting area gained for the Georgia DNR are not worth the large-scale destruction to the landscape, the ongoing cash drain for maintenance, and the harm that will be done to the recreational use of the forest in this area.

Our Official Comments

January 24, 2006

Jim Wentworth
Brawley Mountain Woodland Project
Brasstown Ranger District
US Forest Service
P.O. Box 9
Blairsville, GA 30514

Dear Mr. Wentworth,

This letter is to record the concerns of the Benton MacKaye Trail Association(BMTA) with the proposed Brawley Mountain Woodland Project. While the BMTA finds the stated objective of the project, the increase of songbird species populations (especially the Yellow Winged Warbler) worthwhile, we do have concerns with the project as specified in the scoping letter (1920/2600) dated December 15, 2005.

While we know that canopy reduction to correct errors from past clearcutting and fire suppression is required, we feel that >80% specified for several areas is extreme and much more than our representatives understood would happen when the project was first presented to them on field review. Their understanding was that the canopy reduction would be less than 50%. We fear that the ridge tops will become greenbriar thickets perhaps accompanied with the invasion of exotic species such as privet which is spread by bird droppings.

Secondly we are concerned that visitors to our trail not be presented with views from the ridge tops which resemble clearcuts. Also this letter fails to specify exactly what width of canopy cover would still be maintained over the Benton MacKaye Trail.

Another concern is that the logging roads which would probably be cut in to provide access for timber removal might inadvertently provide illegal ATV access to our trail. This had been a major problem for us in other areas and is difficult to address once it has started.

For the future when the controlled burns are held, we do not wish our trail to be used (or even viewed as a potential backup) for a firebreak since this could damage the trail and its protective canopy. Such an event could harm the trail’s appearance and functionality for a long time to come.

In addition to the greater percentage of canopy removal than we understood initially, the entire acreage (over 700) involved in the project seems to be much greater than our representatives understood. This would seem a little unwise since this is an experimental project to increase Golden Wing Warbler habitat. This species, while rare in Georgia, has a widespread range concentrating around the Great Lakes. It seems to like marshes and is currently extending its range northward. This is a little inconsistent with the letter’s stated preference for higher elevations. It is also a migratory species which means that many of the northern individuals pass through Georgia on their way to Central America each year providing contacts for the Georgia nesting birds with other members of the same species. It would seem wiser to conduct an experiment on a smaller scale to see if this type of habitat creation really would increase the numbers of these birds in Georgia or if their decline is due to some other factors such as loss of winter range, warming of the southern climate, predation by other species such as cowbirds, etc.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Sincerely,

Steve Cartwright, President         Betty J. Petty, Conservation Chair

BMTA Home   Contact Us   Site Map   Events   Membership Info

All content copyright © 2003-2008 by Benton MacKaye Trail Association, Inc. All rights reserved.