This is why, in no uncertain terms, we must continue to fight for sound silviculture and the return of wilderness. Recently, I had the opportunity to view a color coded map showing degrees of wildness in the lower forty-eight states. Wild areas, those that were undeveloped and had low population densities, were designated by sky blue. While the western states had large areas in the form of national parks and forests, the eastern seaboard was devoid of any significant wild areas except for this large patch of sky blue located in the north woods of Maine. The map was a striking visualization of the uniqueness of what we have here in Maine.
Wildness is a scarce commodity in the east.
If we don't protect it now, it will be gone tomorrow - and the next generation of this map will show the north woods color coded like New Jersey, Maryland or any other part of the eastern megalopolis. The Forest Ecology Network' s mission is to protect, preserve, and restore the Maine Woods. We will never compromise this mission. Compromise is what we pay politicians to do. As we move forward in our efforts to promote sustainable forestry and to the create a 3.2 million acre park and preserve, we must not waver in the face of constant, but fundamentally flawed, opposition.