Forest Preserve (New York): Difference between revisions

[[New York]]'s '''Forest Preserve''' is all the land owned by the state within the [[Adirondack Park|Adirondack]] and [[Catskill Park|Catskill]] parks, managed by its [[New York State Department of Environmental Conservation|Department of Environmental Conservation]]. These properties are required to be kept "forever wild" by Article  14 of the state constitution, and thus enjoy the highest degree of protection of wild lands in any state. It is thus necessary to [[Constitutional amendment|amend]] the New York State Constitution in order to transfer any of these lands to another owner or [[lease|lessee]]. Currently there are more than 2.6  million acres (10,400 km²) of Forest Preserve in the Adirondacks and 287,514  acres (1,150 km²) in the Catskills.

While today the Forest Preserve is valued largely as a [[conservation biology|conservation]] measure, its establishment in the 19th  century was motivated primarily by economic considerations. Gradually its inherent worth as a nature preserve came to be seen, as it became a draw for [[recreation]] and [[tourism]]. A later amendment to Article  14 also made the lands important parts of [[water supply network]]s in the state, particularly [[New York City water supply system|New York City's]], by allowing 3% of the total lands to be flooded for the construction of [[reservoir (water)|reservoirs]].

Since then, over 2,000 amendments to Article 14 have been introduced in the legislature. Of those, only 28 have made it to the ballot, and only 20 have passed. Many of those have been otherwise routine land transfers that enabled the construction or expansion of public [[cemetery|cemeteries]] or [[airport]]s. Others have allowed for the construction and continued maintenance of reservoirs and highways. The most significant change was a pair of amendments that created the [[Alpine skiing|ski centers]] at [[Belleayre Mountain Ski Center|Belleayre]] in the Catskills and [[Gore Mountain (ski resort)|Gore]] and [[Whiteface Mountain|Whiteface]] in the Adirondacks. The latter includes a [[toll road]] to the summit as well.

[[ecology|Ecological]] and [[environmentalism|environmental]] awareness grew in the later years of the 20th century. Recreational use of the Forest Preserve began to rise to new levels, and newer methods of outdoor recreation became popular. These two factors led to a widespread realization that it was no long enough to simply rely on the language of Article  14 and the state's Conservation Law (as it was called at the time) and the [[case law|court decisions]] and administrative opinions that relied on them.

The only significant difference between New York's wilderness policy and the federal government's is that the former limits the classification to contiguous parcels of at least 10,000  acres (40 km²), instead of 5,000 (20 km²).

In the Catskills, it has long been informal DEC policy to treat all Wild Forest lands above 3,100  feet (944.8  m) in elevation as ''de  facto'' wilderness. A proposed update to the master plan for the park would not only make this formal but extend the limit to 2,700  feet (822.9  m).

Intensive Use areas are places like state [[campground]]s or "day use" areas (more like a small [[park#publicGovernment-owned parkor operated parks|public park]]) without camping. There may be designated [[campsite]]s, [[picnic]] tables, [[charcoal]] [[barbecue grill|grill]]s, public restrooms and [[shower]] facilities and [[human swimming|swimming]] areas with [[lifeguard]]s. A fee is charged between May  1 and October  1 for most of these activities, and sometimes just for entering the area. DEC manages 45  campgrounds in the Adirondacks and 7 in the Catskills, for a total of 52 (public campgrounds elsewhere in New York are under the authority of [[New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation|the state parks]]).

The state's three [[ski area]]s — [[Belleayre Mountain]] in the Catskills and [[Gore Mountain (ski resort)|Gore]] and [[Whiteface Mountain|Whiteface]] in the Adirondacks — also fall under this classification as well.

This classification refers primarily to lands not really considered for recreational use but for those sections of the Forest Preserve constituting the [[easement|right-of-way]] and roadbed for sections of the [[Interstate 87|Adirondack Northway]], other public highways in the Park, the [[Remsen (village), New York|Remsen]]-to-[[Lake Placid, New York|Lake Placid]] railroad[[Adirondack Scenic Railroad]] right-of-way and lands immediately adjacent to and visible from them. It results from a mid-1960s amendment to Article  14 that allowed such road construction and maintenance, primarily to complete the Northway.

State law also allows DEC to classify land it acquires outside the Blue Lines, but in counties partially within the parks, as Forest Preserve. These have usually been small detached parcels rarely organized into larger, named units. Article  14's prohibition on further sale or transfer still applies, although the state may allow the timber on these lands to be harvested.