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October 19, 2006
The Allegheny was Created for Watershed Protection
There are some folks who remain confused about the creation of the Allegheny National Forest. Or more accurately stated, there are certain special interest organizations which believe it is in their best interest to mislead the public about why and how the Allegheny National Forest was created. This is easily resolved with a reiteration of the facts.
The national forest system was established in 1891. The original guidelines adopted in 1893 established that there would be no logging, no drilling, and no grazing on these "forest reserves". Industry lobbyists attached a rider on an appropriations bill in 1897 (remember this was the anti-trust era of industrial corruption) which opened our national forests to logging and other industrial uses.
Eastern national forests didn't come into existence until the Weeks Law of 1911 which allowed the President to purchase lands for designation of eastern national forests for timber or watershed protection. (emphasis added)
In 1923, President Calvin Coolidge established the Allegheny National Forest under the Weeks Law of 1911. Coolidge specifically cited watershed protection as the purpose in establishing the Allegheny forest reserve.
You can view the 1923 proclamation here
Posted by jkleissler at October 19, 2006 11:16 AM
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