Allegheny Defense Project
Commercial Logging
At present, federal management policies of the Allegheny National Forest (ANF) promote black cherry monoculture. The result of this bias has been clear - visitors can see for themselves massive clearcutting, herbicide spraying, decrease in wildlife habitat, and loss of recreational opportunities.
Oil and Gas
The ANF contains more oil and gas wells than the other 154 national forests combined. Spills and pollution release toxins such as benzene, toluene, and xylene into forest streams and air. Drilling and fracking releases the greenhouse gas, methane, accelerating global warming and climate change.
Wilderness
Today there are more than 105 million acres of Wilderness protected in the Na- tional Wilderness Preservation System. In the ANF, there are only two designated Wilderness areas, totaling just over 9,000 acres. This equates to less than 2% of the 513,000 acre Allegheny National Forest.
Industrial Extraction
Allegheny Defense Project’s Forest Watch conducts aerial and on-the-ground monitoring of agencies and companies responsible for resource extraction on pub- lic lands. We actively participate in the decision making process. Our Industrial Extraction campaign seeks to end commercial logging and drilling on public lands protecting forests for carbon sequestration.
Wild Forests and Rivers
Wilderness is defined as “an area of undeveloped Federal land retaining its primeval character and influence... which is managed so as to preserve its natural conditions.” This campaign seeks to substantially increase the mere 1.74% of designated wilderness to more than 50,000 acres in the ANF, while researching practices which affect native wildlife populations and ecosystems.
Recreation
The ultimate goal of this campaign is to encourage responsible use of the ANF by educating the public on recreational opportunities and how to take advantage of them in a sustainable way. By working with local outfitters and guides, promoting forest recreation at public events and festivals and greeting folks on the trail, our recreation campaign gets word directly to the people.