President Calvin Coolidge established the Allegheny National Forest in 1923 specifically for the purpose of watershed protection. Despite this fact, the Allegheny has come to be managed primarily as a commercial timber farm for black cherry at the behest of industry interests. The now outdated Allegheny National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) made watershed protection one of the Forest Service's lowest priorities. The Forest Service has continued this dis-interest in watershed protection by rejecting management alternatives to protect and restore water quality at nearly every turn. Clearly, in order to serve the public interest, watershed protection must be restored as the primary goal of the Allegheny National Forest. Watershed protection is a unique service best provided by public lands such as the Allegheny National Forest. In fact, our national forests today contribute 530.4 million acre-feet of clean water valued at $3.7 billion to America every year. This contribution is irreplaceable. Watershed Protection Management Areas Currently there is no specific management area in the 1986 forest plan dedicated exclusively to watershed protection. Yet there are numerous watersheds within the Allegheny National Forest for which watershed quality is a primary value. Thirteen percent of the Allegheny National Forest land-base falls within watershed areas that flow unimpounded into the Allegheny River section which provides habitat for the federally endangered Northern Riffleshell and Clubshell mussels. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has already identified this section as a priority for conservation for one of only two reproducing populations of the Northern Riffleshell left in the world. The Millstone Creek watershed southeast
of Marienville features the largest concentration of unroaded habitat
for a watershed of its size in the Allegheny National Forest. Therefore
it is no surprise that scientists have documented Millstone Creek
to have a higher diversity in macro-invertebrates than any other
Allegheny streams. These same scientists recommended this watershed
for extra protection. Numerous other watersheds including exceptional value streams, excellent trout fishing waters, and waters exhibiting exceptional biodiversity would be protected as part of the 78,470 acres committed primarily to watershed protection under the Allegheny Wild! proposal. Wild & Scenic Rivers There are two recognized Wild and Scenic River sections within the Allegheny National Forest along the Allegheny and Clarion Rivers. Despite this, the Forest Service made a minimal effort to conserve the wild and scenic components of these watersheds. In adopting the Allegheny River Management Plan in the mid-1990s, the U.S. Forest Service specifically opted for the minimum effort alternative. In failing to develop a Clarion River management plan within the legally provided time-frame, the Forest Service reached a new low in Wild and Scenic River management. The Ridge Administration in Pennsylvania put a freeze on the designation of new state scenic rivers despite the recognition of several waterways in the Allegheny which qualify for such designation. Opportunities for new state and federal scenic rivers, and the completion of management plans for already designated segments, is a priority under the Allegheny Wild! proposal. Wilderness Trout Streams Trout fishing is one of the prime recreational opportunities awaiting visitors to the Allegheny National Forest. Numerous streams in the Allegheny have been dedicated as Wilderness Trout Streams under Pennsylvania law or Remote Trout Streams by the Forest Service. Nevertheless, these watersheds remain largely in management areas dedicated to commercial timber production and heavily roaded settings. Establishing management areas to manage wilderness trout streams as wilderness trout streams is a core component of Allegheny Wild! and currently covers more than 8,000 acres in the proposal. Other Designations Because watershed management is the primary purpose for the Allegheny National Forest, it holds that even where watershed management is not the highest priority, that the area must still be managed consistent with this goal. The designation of Wilderness, National Recreation Areas, Old Growth, Natural Areas, and Scenic Areas flow easily from the watershed management priority for the Allegheny.
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