Together with the Adirondack Council, Adirondack Mountain Club, Adirondack Wild: Friends of the Forest Preserve, Audubon New York, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Environmental Advocates of New York, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, we’re calling on the governor to expand the protected site to 280,000 contiguous, motor free acres, which would make it one of the largest natural parks in the country.
The land in question is the 20,494-acre Boreas Pond tract, which the governor has announced his intent to purchase within the coming months. The organizations have urged him to join the stretch, along with other recent purchases – MacIntyre East and West and Case Brook – to the designated motor-free areas. A small portion at the parcel’s southern end would remain open to accommodate a community-connector snowmobile trail, outside of the wilderness area.
The move aims to continue the ongoing crusade to defend the Adirondack preserve, which is protected by the state of New York, but not the National Park Service. Under this expansion, it would rival a number of national parks in the west, including the Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. It would exceed the size of Mount Rainer National Park in Washington, and double the area of Zion National Park in Utah.
The Adirondack Forest Preserve is classified as “forever wild,” meaning that they have protection from logging, lease, sale, or development under the New York State Constitution. Less than half of the Adirondack Park, however, is public land, and not subject to these laws. Wilderness areas do not allow motor vehicle trespassing. The proposed expansion would unite a number of critical spots in the preserve, helping to maintain a diverse and healthy ecosystem.