Economy vs. heritage

Economy vs. heritage

Members of Congress get reelected by helping the citizens and communities they represent every way they can. If the whole country is a forest, then members of Congress do everything they can to protect their individual trees. They do not seem to care for the health of the forest at all. • If the forest is dying, their only concern is that their tree be the last to die. Unfortunately this short sighted, costly qutlook gets them reelected year after year so they keep at it.

Rep. Frank Wolf has just added yet another “constituent services” aide to his staff, bringing the number to 19. His huge Staff works to answer our questions and meet our needs. After Watching Wolfs work over the Shenandoah National Park during the past three weeks, it is obvious that he never considered the needs of taxpayers throughout Virginia and the other 49 states. j According to a report released earlier this year by the independent National Parks and Conservation Association, the entire national park system in in peril. The repair, protection and preservation of park resources have been neglected for years. The current backlog of deferred maintenance throughout the park service is estimated at $2 billion. ; During the 1980’s the national park system doubled in size from about 40 million acres to more than 80 million. Visitation continues to grow throughout the system.

Closer to home, the Shenandoah National Park is one of the most heavily used parks in the system, partly because of its great beauty and partly because it is within a day’s drive of inore than 20 million people. As a result the park has seen nearly two million visitors a year for the past several years.

Yet the park’s operating and maintenance funds have been severely squeezed. The park has no special fund to replace aging equipment. The shortfall in this one area stands »t nearly $1.7 million according to the Park Association. Maintenance of existing facilities also has been short changed and the need now exceeds $7 million.

Superintendent J. W. Wade has tried to balance the needs of resource protection and tourist services. Time and time again he has judged the former to be more important.

The hot air generated by Rep. Wolf should be ignored. If the northern and southern sections of the park had been closed for six months as Wade suggested, fewer than 10 percent of the park’s visitors would have been affected.

National parks are Supposed to be protected for future generations. We need to remember that thousands of people were thrown out of these mountain hollows 60 years ago to make this park. A cultural heritage was nearly destroyed in the process. The existing park and its cultural background are much more valuable and need more protection than the short term needs of the tourism industry in Front Royal.

Rep. Wolf is so concerned about the health of his one tree, he has lost sight of the forest.