Support Protection For Boundary Creek

I support the Forest Service plan to close the Boundary Creek Road section that repeatedly slides and adds a lot of sediment to Boundary Creek.

Studies have shown that national forest roads cause the most damage to water quality and wildlife. USFS records show that the Boundary Creek Road section to be closed has been the most expensive road in this ranger district to maintain over the years, with major slides in 1953, ‘74, ‘84, ‘88, ‘95 and ‘96.

Let’s not forget that the upper and lower portions of Boundary Creek will still be open for recreation and that Saddle Pass offers access to lands above.

The main obstacle to closing the road section is the property rights monster. Who does the road belong to? Who cares? Whether it’s a Forest Service road or county road, it should be closed.

There is disagreement about repair and maintenance costs for the road, with the county and Forest Service far apart in their estimates. Let’s take a figure close to the county’s estimate and say it’s $200,000 for repair. If county residents are to be taxed an additional $200,000, is this where we would want the money spent?

I’d rather spend any additional tax improving our school buildings, maintaining county roads where we live or spending more on the hospital.

The property rights position is too often about greed. Don’t we have a responsibility to present and future generations, where the environment is concerned?

The saddest comment I heard at one of the meetings about this issue was that it didn’t matter that the road was sliding into the creek, ruining water quality and good fish habitat, because Boundary Creek only flows in the U.S. for a few miles before flowing back into Canada, so it’s a Canadian problem. I hope reasonable residents of this county will urge that the commissioners support closing that road section to protect the creek.

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