Ethan Morris

Forest Policy and Administration

Current Issue Brief

February 12, 2018

Climate Change, Forest Change

In Horicon, New York, local officials are having problems implementing vital public

projects due to Article 14 in the State Constitution. Specifically, the article states “The land of

the state, now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserve as now fixed by law,

shall be forever kept as wild forest lands” (Foderaro, 2017). The land in question, is the heart of

the Adirondacks, specifically, the Schroon River. Recently, an old bridge was put out of

commission and many residents are enduring longer commutes. Local officials have the federal

and state funds to construct a new bridge, however, the river is considered a part of forest

preserve lands. Building anything in this area would require the state constitution to be amended.

This is not the first time this problem has come up; many other towns face similar issues

and end up pushing back the deadlines of these much-needed projects. Usually, local officials

end up performing these projects on private lands but the history of this, is many trees, shrubs,

and grasses are lost in the process. State Senator Betty Little has led the efforts to help adapt and

evolve the State Constitution (Foderaro, 2017). This project is vital, not only for convenience of

residents but for emergency workers who receives calls from the town. Senator Little has worked

successfully with many local officials, state lawmakers, environmental advocates, and the State

Department of Environmental Conservation to create a proposal. The proposal would allow vital

public projects to take place in the Adirondacks and Catskills (Foderaro, 2017).
 The exact project, agreed on by all stakeholders, would have the Department of

Environmental Conservation purchase 250 acres of private land and add it to the state forest

preserve (Foderaro, 2017). This would give towns and villages in New York the ability to

implement these small projects without taking away from the preserve. The only problem with

this plan is it will affect protected forest lands and could still lead to the loss of forest preserves.

One of the other alternatives that Senator Little had proposed was a land bank amendment.

However, after numerous meetings, the stakeholders agreed that State Constitution needs to

evolve in order to protect the 6-million-acre state park (Foderaro, 2017).

In the New York Times article, the problem is defined as a inconvenience to residents

and emergency crews because small public projects cannot be implemented on protected lands

(Foderaro, 2017). However, the problem could also be defined as humans trying to coexist with

natural resources so that each “group” can perform their function. Both parties need something,

whether that be protected lands that allow these ecosystems to grow or a well to receive water for

drinking or irrigating. I believe the plan that Senator Littler has proposed to the public is a

perfect, bipartisan way to go about this issue. No group loses because the people can still have

their bridges and wells, while the protected lands are increased by a certain number of acres.

In my opinion, this alternative seems to be the most useful and provides the highest

probability of a win-win situation. Since the article didn’t include a map of the area, I am unable

to provide any other policy options. I don’t have an understanding of the area, but I do struggle

with the policy option in one way. I believe this constitutional amendment can lead to future

groups abusing what is defined as a “small public project”. There may be groups that attempt to

implement non-necessary projects for political or economic gain. Other than this, the policy

option proposed seems fair, effective, and has the support of all stakeholders involved.
 Work Cited

Foderaro, L. W. (2017, October 09). Forest, Forest Everywhere. But Not an Acre to Touch.

Retrieved February 12, 2018, from

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/09/nyregion/forest-land-bank-ballot-question-

referendum.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForests and

Forestry&action=click&contentCollection=science®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&

version=latest&contentPlacement=7&pgtype=collection