One of the casualties of tight budgets is protection of the environment. State parks have not been adequately funded since the 1980s. Despite the turn-around in tax revenues, it’s no better now. Once again I’m seeing newspaper stories pointing out that the budget for the state parks this year is barely better than in straight dollars (not accounting for inflation) than the budget five years ago – with now recognition of how bad that baseline budget was.
The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), which runs our state parks, held a public comment meeting at the Notch Visitor’s Center recently. DCR is in the process of defining criteria for deciding which state parks and forests can be used by all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) without unacceptable damage to the trails. A large group of people who like to drive their vehicles on trails was very vocal about their desire to keep riding. The Mt. Holyoke Range Park has not allowed ATV riding for years, but those of us who hike there know that not everyone obeys the rules. The worst damage is in South Hadley and Granby, but there is some in Amherst, too: we observed tracks on trails a couple of weeks ago after a light snow fall. At the meeting, some people were complaining that they had been riding there for years before the state closed it. Those who spoke were unconvinced by evidence of damage to trails and dirt roads in other state forests and parks.
One of the points made by state officials is that they don't have the staff and resources to create and maintain extensive additional trails for ATVs. Most people using the state parks are walking or hiking, some are riding mountain bikes, some are swimming in the lakes; only a few are driving vehicles. Given budget cuts and staffing shortages, and the fact they have had to close many swimming facilities because they don’t have people to run them or life guards, they really need to focus their work meeting the needs of the greatest number of users.
As it is, there is little or no hiking trail maintenance done by DCR in the Mt Holyoke Range State Park. There is some volunteer trail work, I believe. Enforcing the law against illegal riders without adequate staff is close to impossible, so bad trails are made worse. The best-maintained trails on the mountains are those on Amherst conservation land, and are taken care of by town employees. Given the town’s budget situation, I doubt that will continue.
The future for public funding for conservation efforts looks bleak. Even in Amherst, money for staff or equipment to maintain properties or study problems is not going to do well in competition for scarce funds with schools, the library or public safety.
Besides lamenting, we can, as individuals, take some action. We can support the Amherst Tree Initiative in its efforts to nurture the trees we have and plant more. We can pay attention to the migratory habits of turtles, that start crossing some of our roads in mid-June, on the way to laying their eggs for the next generation. It’s generally pretty easy to see them up ahead in the road, and unlike animals that dart right in front of us so we don’t have a chance to stop, usually we can stop before we reach the turtle. We can then carry her across in the direction she was going. If she happens to be a spotted turtle – which are easy to identify – we can also go to the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s website and download the form for reporting rare wildlife. It’s a real contribution to the effort.
Did you know that a sizeable flock of chimney swifts nests in downtown Amherst? According to Kevin Eddings, who lives nearby, they nest in the old chimney at Amherst Cinema. Kevin is trying to get people involved to protect the flock, first by making sure that they don’t nest in the chimney this year since it’s due to be taken down as part of the renovation, and second to get a substitute nesting site (a fake chimney) built that they can use. Swifts are those fast-flying insect eating birds that are accurately described as looking like flying cigars. Their numbers are declining throughout the country, probably largely because they have fewer places to nest and rest: buildings less frequently have big chimneys now, and more and more chimneys have covers to keep animals out. We can start a local effort to help the swifts.
When government has fewer funds to work with, we can take the opportunity to remind ourselves how much we can do ourselves.