Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 17, 1991 TAG: 9103170152
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: D-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAVID REED/ ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"It's just by accident that these things exist," said Ernie Dickerman of the Virginia Wilderness Committee. "Either they were overlooked or they would have cost too much to get out."
The Wilderness committee is trying to get federal wilderness protection for eight areas of the Jefferson and Washington national forests, including the 8,500 acres in Amherst County surrounding Mount Pleasant.
Virginia has 16 wilderness areas in the national forests. James River Face in southern Rockbridge County was the first to be given the protection by Congress in 1975, and the last four were included in 1988.
The designation means the land must be kept in its natural state, with no roads, motorized vehicles, permanent structures or woodcutting. Hunting, fishing, camping, hiking and swimming are still allowed.
"We're interested in keeping these choice areas the way they are," Dickerman said. "Why should we be deprived of them? When you log a place, you change its character. You need to build roads. Then you get vehicles coming in, streams dammed and what is fine and natural you lose."
Rep. Jim Olin's district includes six of the eight proposed wilderness areas. Olin, D-Roanoke, said he will co-sponsor legislation this spring that will propose "two or three" of the eight for wilderness designation.
Olin has hiked in the Mount Pleasant area, where there are four peaks higher than 4,000 feet and dramatic granite outcrops along with virgin hardwood stands. He also has walked within a proposed 13,000-acre expansion of the Ramsey's Draft wilderness area in Augusta County.
Olin said he plans to devote three days during the Easter break to scouting the other proposed wilderness areas in his district:
Laurel Fork, 10,900 acres in Highland County where there is a northern hardwood and red spruce forest rarely found in the state as well as the federally endangered northern flying squirrel.
Little River, 28,000 acres in Augusta County that is the largest roadless area in the Washington forest.
Skidmore Fork, 5,600 acres in Rockingham County where there are old-growth hemlock trees and several rare, endangered and threatened plants and animals.
Kelley Mountain, 8,000 acres in Augusta County where the forest's age is generally from 70 to 90 years. There is a series of small waterfalls in the upper portion and several endangered species.
Olin said loggers, hunters, fishermen and nearby residents are opposed to the Ramseys Draft addition. He said Little River, which is heavily used for recreation, and Laurel Fork, which is nearly all leased for its potential gas and gas extraction, may be unsuitable for wilderness designation.
The other area within the Washington forest is in the district of Rep. L.F. Payne, D-Nelson County: Three Ridges, 4,800 acres in Nelson County noted for its sheer cliffs, waterfalls and panoramic views.
There is one area of the Jefferson National Forest on the Wilderness Committee's list: Whitetop Mountain. The 4,500 acres are on the slopes of the mountain, which is Virginia's second-highest peak at 5,540 feet.
But Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, whose district includes the Jefferson, has asked the Wilderness Committee to come up with a few more areas for him to consider.
Dickerman said the problem in the Jefferson is that most of the roadless areas are in the southwestern coalfields and are leased for mining.
Seventy-five members of the Wilderness Committee scouted 15 roadless woodlands last summer and fall, and the group decided in January that only eight made the grade.
The George Washington National Forest is evaluating 26 roadless areas for their wilderness potential, including the six on the Wilderness Committee's list.
Steve Sherwood, a recreational forester, said the recommendations for wilderness areas will be in a draft management plan due out in October. When you log a place, you change its character. You need to build roads. Then you get vehicles coming in, streams dammed and what is fine and natural you lose. Ernie Dickerman Wilderness committee member
by CNB