Adirondack Addition

After years of negotiation, The state of New York, two timber companies and The Nature Conservancy have preserved 104,000 acres in the Adirondacks. Stories here from the AP and NYT. The deal began when Canadian timber company Domtar decided it wanted to pull out of the area and sell. TNC is buying 20,000 acres outright for $6.26 million, which it will sell back to the state at a later date. That land will be added to the state park system. Domtar then sold the other 84,000 acres to Lyme Timber of New Hampshire for $17.47 million, with the understanding that Lyme will sell the conservation easement to the state to prevent development, open the property to limited public access and continue Domtar's certification for "green" logging under Forest Stewardship guidelines.
This is the latest deal by Republican Governor Pataki, who has pledged to preserve one million acres of state land within the decade.
This seems to be win-win for everyone. A beautiful wild land that is experiencing some development pressure will be preserved intact. The conservation easement money will go to an American timber company. Jobs will be preserved in a sustainable way. Outdoor enthusiasts will be able to use snowmobiles and ATV's on some of the property. And if George Pataki really does have his eye on the White House in '08, he just got some environmentalist credentials.

A big thanks to Jacqui at Enviropundit for adding Nature Noted to her blogroll. The hits just keep on coming....