Growing up in a city, I’m engulfed in the everyday background noise of car engines revving, keyboards clicking, and phones buzzing. It wasn’t until I backpacked in the Sierras this summer that I was able to experience true peace and quiet. The outdoors is an escape from the ceaseless sounds of the city, yet barriers to entry prevent many from appreciating it; therefore, the Adirondacks should make the outdoors more accessible through volunteer programs for people of color and low-income households.

On May 16th, backpacks on and rain sprinkling from the dark clouds above, nine schoolmates and I were bound for the Sierras for a three-week backpacking trip. It wasn’t until the following morning, meditating on the flat surface of a granite boulder with a lone, 50-foot pine to my right overlooking Rock House Basin that I immersed myself in the peace of the wilderness. I exhale and am grounded by the astral sound of wind dancing about the atmosphere, brushing through the forested mountains, and flowing through the pine needles of the tree beside me. My mind was cleared of the million thoughts, worries, and daydreams. I was at last present in the space and time I existed in. There was no feeling as gratifying, and it only grew deeper as I continued my journey. Figure 1 below is one of my favorite pictures from the trip taken at the end of week 2.

Twenty days later, my schoolmates reunited with the thirty other people on the trip, hugging each other with our wilderness-musk and sharing our desperate-for-toilet-paper-stories. Something was different about all of us, as if we were completely new people, but somehow more ourselves than before. Figure 2 below was taken at the end of the trip when all of the groups reunited at Kennedy Meadows.

I am grateful to have had this experience, yet I am aware of the barriers that hinder people’s access to the outdoors and its serenity. Transportation to the wilderness, expenses of gear, knowledge, and time taken away from work are among the many obstacles. As a result, the outdoors remains an area dominated by the white and wealthy. Making wilderness more accessible is essential as everyone should have the opportunity to experience its peacefulness. There are some volunteer-based organizations that are working to open doors to those who wouldn’t be able to otherwise. Outdoor Afro is an extraordinary example of an organization that focuses on breaking those barriers. This non-profit founded in 2009 “celebrates and inspires Black connections and leadership in nature” (Outdoor Afro). Over the summer, Outdoor Afro took a group out to Little Clear Pond in the Adirondacks for a canoe day-trip (Loomis). Outdoor Afro and other organizations are revolutionizing parks like the Adirondacks, making them more welcoming and inclusive for people to enjoy its rejuvenation.

Works Cited

Loomis, Brandon. “Outdoor Afro Helps People of Color Find Their Adirondack Comfort Zone.” Adirondack Explorer, 24 July 2021, www.adirondackexplorer.org/stories/outdoor-afro-helps-people-of-color-find-their-adirondack-comfort-zone.

Outdoor Afro . “About Us.” Outdoor Afro, CGR, 20 Oct. 2021, outdoorafro.com/about-us/.

I consider myself to have had the luxury of attending a small middle school in rural Vermont. One unique field trip, my small class of 19 students planted tree saplings along a creek; Black Creek, which runs mostly through farm fields, has little tree coverage along the sides due to the grazing pastures where cows tread heavily to access drinking water. Planting riparian buffer zones along creeks and streams can not only teach children valuable lessons about stream ecology and climate action but is also a fun and memorable way to positively influence the environment.

I live along a section of the creek where there are few trees (see Image 1). The water is murky, shallow, and warm. The lack of trees results in erosion of soil when cows walk down the bank to drink. In the Adirondacks, too, barren stream-sides lead to erosion and a decline in stream health (see Image 2). As Declan McCabe writes in the Adirondack Almanack, the eroded soil from the banks fill in under rocks where macroinvertebrates live (McCabe 2015). The Adirondacks has been subjected to disturbance, by highway-building, agriculture, and human-overuse which reduce the forest presence and negatively impact stream ecology.

As I have learned in my Ecology/Evolution class, having tree coverage on a stream increases shading which cools the stream, allowing for increased O₂ concentrations and an improved environment for wildlife. A riparian buffer zone is a treeline along the bank, where tree roots hold the soil in place against erosion. On our trips, my class spent the day planting Pine, Spruce, and Dogwood saplings which grow in sandier soils and are found locally.

The school field trip I took planting saplings in my hometown as a child stuck with me. I still remember jumping on shovels to sink them into the ground and tugging on saplings to confirm their stability. Now studying the Adirondack Park, which houses many watersheds, I see the importance of a healthy stream ecology. The impacts of human disturbances are vast and can only be controlled if we take tangible action. The lesson I learned about riparian buffer zones and how I can maintain the environment when I was 12 years old has stuck with me into college, proving this kind of hands-on learning is incalculably valuable. 

Community News Reports. “Lake George West Brook Restoration Project Slated -.” The Adirondack Almanack, The Adirondack Almanack, 11 Sept. 2012, https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2012/09/lake-george-west-brook-restoration-project-slated.html.

McCabe, Declan. “The Impact of Stormwater on Adirondack Streams -.” The Adirondack Almanack, The Adirondack Almanack, 30 July 2015, https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2015/07/the-impact-of-stormwater-on-adirondack-streams.html.

The Adirondack park represents, to most of us, an idyllic haven composed of “forever wild” forests, lakes and mountains.  In many parts of the park, this is in-fact the case.  Aside from sparse dirt roads, rare hiking trails and the occasional cabin, about 2.6 million acres within the Adirondack park must stay “forever wild”.(NYSDEC)  The other end of that agreement however, represents privately owned tracts of land within the park.  The majority of private lands within the Adirondacks belong to 140,000 residents and small-scale landowners, most of whom reside within the 105 small towns and villages within the park.  On these smaller tracts of land, especially in the Champlain Valley, some landowners try their luck with small-scale farming or livestock raising. Although the Adirondacks are not exactly a high density area in terms of population, the people who reside there year round must have reliable jobs. While the mining industry has mostly faded out, workers in the Adirondacks have found jobs in some of the more successful industries.  Even throughout the current COVID pandemic, industry in the Adirondacks has proven to be resilient and effective in capitalizing on its natural potential.  The significance of both the logging and tourism industries in the park allow residents to have reliable jobs and industry to flourish.

The mining industry, which is no longer a major player in the Adirondack economy, once represented a great deal of economic possibility for both new companies and many migrant workers.  Immigrants fresh off the docks in New York were often recruited, despite nationality which for a time, added a great deal of diversity to the park.  Unfortunately, when the state began to close down the mining operations in the state, many of these workers were forced to return to the city in search of work.  Thus, much of the diversity left with them. Many of those who stayed behind joined the logging industry.

A large portion of the private land is owned by large logging companies.  The two largest players in the industry are a Mississippi company called Molpus Woodlands Group and Lyme Timber, based out of New Hampshire.  While these companies must abide by a slew of tight regulations set in place by the park and State, they still have annual quotas that need to be made.  Combined, these two groups alone own approximately 500,000 acres of land.  The timber industry in the state of New York directly employs at least 40,000 people and indirectly employs another 55,000 workers.(NYSDEC)  Many of the workers directly employed by the timber industry live in the Adirondack park and rely on the industry to retain a livelihood. The need for wood products is a never-ending reality which is why the industry has become so successful. Unfortunately, this livelihood which sustains many small towns is dependent on the destruction of a mixture of secondary and tertiary growth.  Most forested areas used for timber are regulated and watched carefully so that regrowth occurs faster than logging.  In some areas however, regrowth barely occurs at a 1 to 1 ratio.

Alongside logging, the tourism industry in the Adirondack park is a massive source of economic activity.  Ski mountains, hotels, boutique shops, rafting, fishing, hunting and restaurants all depend heavily on tourists from all over.  Most of the tourism industry relies on the Winter and Summer months to produce enough cash flow to last through the mud season.  Each year, more than ten million tourists visit the park and more importantly, spend their money! The tourism industry in the park represents a whopping 17% of the labor force, compared to only 9% in the city.(Adirondack Base Camp)  

Again however, the question of “forever wild” arises.  Tourists do not only bring money, they also bring their crap.  Trash being left on trails, destruction of natural lands, and increased need of infrastructural maintenance are all results of so many folks visiting areas that simply are not built for thousands of people at a time. During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, local officials considered limiting the number of people entering the park and using trails because maintenance could not keep up-especially with an endangered labor force. 

Despite many of the shortcomings industries in the Adirondacks face, the logging and tourism industries have been able to provide consistent and stable jobs to tens of thousands of Adirondackers.  While the chopping down of trees by loggers and stomping about on trails by hikers may cause damage to the idyllic haven of the Adirondacks, those trees and those tourists allow residents of the park to live everyday lives.  

NYSDEC. “New York’s Forest Preserve.” New York’s Forest Preserve – NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, https://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/4960.html. 

Tourpro. “Tourism Impact in the Adirondacks.” Adirondack Base Camp, 30 Mar. 2011, https://www.adirondackbasecamp.com/2008/09/tourism-impact-adirondacks/. 

NYSDEC. “Economic Value of New York’s Forest Resource.” New York State Wood Products, https://woodproducts.ny.gov/economic-value-new-yorks-forest-resource. 

Most residents of the United States — and even many residents of the Northeast — know very little about the history of the Adirondacks region. Specifically, the Native Americans that originally settled the Adirondacks have received minimal recognition for their long history prior to the creation of the United States. Over the 800 years, the Adirondack natives have been here, the Europeans that have come into the region have done nothing but destroy the land that they once lived freely on. However, there have been recent efforts to commemorate their existence and recognize that this population resided in the area. 

Europeans “discovering” America had a significant and negative impact on both Native American culture and the natural resources critical to the Native American tribes’ way of life. A prime example of the destruction that Europeans wreaked in this region was the fur trade. During the colonial era, Europeans and Native Americans fought over beavers, which were very profitable due to the usage of their fur in various products. Eventually, this contributed to not only the destruction of the relationship between the Europeans and Native Americans but also forever changed the natural landscape of the Adirondacks. The conflict obliterated the beaver population and considerably altered key features of the region. The region underwent significant modifications — particularly to its waterways — because of the absence of beavers, which are second only to humans in their ability to modify their environment. 

In addition, throughout the conflict, there were numerous instances of the Europeans building forts and then simply abandoning them to decay. After abandoning these forts, they would often construct new ones nearby, further altering the land. The image below depicts Fort Ticonderoga, the most famous of these forts. 

Recently, there has been an increased effort to show respect and support for the Native American tribes that first settled this land. One example of this is an exhibit built at The Adirondack Experience, The Museum on Blue Mountain Lake that highlights the Native American tribes that settled in the Adirondacks. “‘We have not tackled the story of Native Americans in the Adirondacks in the past,’ said David Kahn, executive director of The Adirondack Experience, The Museum on Blue Mountain Lake.” The museum is hoping that this exhibit will set the record straight, and be a “wake-up moment” for people that have the misperception that the Adirondacks weren’t Mohawk and Abenaki territory. The image below is from the new exhibit at the museum. Natasha Smoke Santiago, a Mohawk who is an artist-in-residence at the museum, said that it made her happy “that they wanted to genuinely include us in the exhibit—and that they picked really beautiful work.” 

Although examples such as the exhibit represent a step in the right direction, they are clearly not sufficient. The long history of Native Americans in the Adirondacks deserves more recognition, particularly given its enduring impact on our natural landscape and our political system. 

“Adirondacks: Europeans and American Colonists (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/articles/adirondacks-europeans-and-american-colonists.htm.

Braine, Theresa. “Adirondack Museum Dispels Myths with Native Exhibit.” Indian Country Today, Indian Country Today, 13 July 2017, indiancountrytoday.com/archive/adirondack-museum-native-history.

“Facts about Beavers in the Adirondacks.” Adirondack.net, www.adirondack.net/wildlife/beavers/.

“Fort Ticonderoga.” Fort Ticonderoga | Official Adirondack Region Website, visitadirondacks.com/attractions/fort-ticonderoga.

Looking at the Adirondacks from a distance, it’s easy to see how the region’s cliffs and peaks are magnetic to climbers. Yet from a distance, it’s impossible to see the tiny pieces of technology needed to make climbing possible. Most notably, certain types of climbing require the installation of permanent bolts into the rock. During the twentieth century, rock climbing’s popularity skyrocketed, and with it came a new host of hurdles for conservationists. Such controversies still exist. Adirondackers don’t consider climbing a predominant part of outdoor recreation and thus view it as an impediment to the environment. As a result, efforts for climbers to enjoy their sport safely are overlooked. If climbing was more valued and regulations over bolting were more nuanced, the sport could provide a new flux for tourism and culture in the Adirondacks.

In the early days of rock climbing, climbers hammered pitons into the rock to minimize falling distance. Pitons are a relic of the past. Yet they remain on some Adirondack crags: a reminder of the subtly artificial form climbing can take. In sport climbing today, drilling metal bolts into the rock is a common practice to promote safety and efficiency, especially on routes with no natural anchors (like trees or boulders). 

Although bolts are never more than a couple of inches in width, the issue surrounding them is nationwide. In protected areas like the Adirondacks, proponents of other types of climbing forcefully remove bolts. In protected areas across the country, climbing is a valuable pillar to outdoor recreational culture, and thus bolts are still legal. However, New York state law prohibits defacing or building on “any tree, flower, shrub, fern, fungi or other plant like organisms, moss or other plant, rock, soil, fossil or mineral or object of archaeological or paleontological interest found or growing on State land.” (Brown) Bolts fall under this domain.

It seems unfair to restrict a one-inch bolt under the same clause that prohibits hundred-foot buildings. Bolts are a necessity for some visitors’ enjoyment of the area and ensure safe recreation. As a sport, climbing is a low-impact activity, but because it contributes relatively little to Adirondack cultures and economies, its value is less than hiking, hunting, or skiing. Creating special regulations for bolts and other climbing infrastructure would increase accessibility, safety, and potential popularity. As one Adirondack climber said during a forum, “Climbing is a viable wilderness usage in Yosemite, and it should be considered viable in the Adirondacks.” (“DEC responds to climbers’ concerns over access”)

Works Cited

Brown, Phil. “Phil Brown on Climbing: To Bolt Or Not To Bolt.” Adirondack Almanack, 10 May 2010, https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2010/05/phil-brown-on-climbing-to-bolt-or-not-to-bolt.html. Accessed 14 November 2021.

“DEC responds to climbers’ concerns over access.” Adirondack Explorer, 10 July 2018, https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/outtakes/dec-rock-climbing-access-adirondacks. Accessed 14 November 2021.

“File:Climbing bolt with waterpipe close view.JPG.” Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. 29 Aug 2020, 16:39 UTC. 14 Nov 2021, 22:19 <https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Climbing_bolt_with_waterpipe_close_view.JPG&oldid=444975390>.

Growing up on the hills in Kathmandu showed me breathtaking scenery that I thought existed only in books. Nine thousand feet above the sea level was my room in the Shivapuri hills, where I would often lookout to see the majestic beauty of the hills that surrounded my room. The bright shades of blue and clouds that ruffled in ripples would brighten up the entire landscape until the day of its arrival. The infernal blaze would transform the beauties of the woods into hot ribbons of light, and by the time the first morning light hit the smog, the forest would have disappeared.

A few weeks after studying the Adirondack mountains, I learned how the fires, that I had seen turn landscapes into ashes, could benefit the same landscape. It turns out that farmers, across centuries, believed that ashes from burnt trees increase soil nutrients, which would increase their yield. This belief was the building foundation of an agricultural practice known as Slash-and-Burn.

Although considered primitive, Slash and Burn still prevail in subsistence farming to grow a range of crops over a long period. In regions with declining forest coverages, like the Adirondack in the past, practicing Slash-and-Burn had many repercussions because setting out fires in parcels of land would light up entire forests through the dried slash left over from logging operations.

Controlling the magnitude and intensity of a forest fire is highly challenging. Even with slight carelessness, it is only a matter of a few minutes until habitats for hundreds of plants and animals will vanish. During summer, when the rain is the heaviest in the Adirondack region, there would be no longer be trees to canopy the soil or hold the ground firmly with its roots, which would cause soil erosion and landslides. Moreover, turning woods into ashes comes at a high cost of carbon dioxide, increasing greenhouse gas emissions.

The Adirondack mountains can be said to be a mountain shaped by fires. It has a long history of disastrous fires, including the fires around Lake Placid in 1903 and the Long Lake West fire in 1908 (“Forest Succession in the Adirondacks”, n.d.). Such fires initiate succession- the change in either species composition or vegetation architecture through time (Davis, 2019). Much of the Adirondack forest that we see today is a result of succession. When fire removes canopy, shrubs, grasses like prairies can thrive from receiving adequate sunlight and nutrients from the ashes. Some animals, such as deers, require these areas for living. Similarly, woodpeckers, sparrows, rattlesnakes, and other animals also benefit from the early phase after burning the woodlands (National Geographic, 2021). Besides providing the nutrients to the soil, fires would also get rid of invasive species such as ticks, which will give the wildlife a new, more suitable environment to grow.

Similar to planned forest fires, slash-and-burn is one of the most controversial techniques of agriculture. Many conservationists are against slash-and-burn because it has consistently led to forest fires over the years. Despite having some benefits to ecological systems, no forest burnt through slash and burn can recover back to its original state within a human’s lifetime. Slash and Burn agriculture could have long-term benefits, but today’s evidence shows that the raging forest fires are not helping the planet’s biodiversity.

Citations:

Davis, Ben. “What Is Plant Succession?” MVOrganizing, 19 Apr. 2019, https://www.mvorganizing.org/what-is-plant-succession/.

“Forest Succession in the Adirondacks.” Adirondack Forest Succession, shorturl.at/bfuE7.

“How Wild Animals Cope with Wildfires.” Environment, National Geographic, 4 May 2021, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/150914-animals-wildlife-wildfires-nation-california-science.

The reds, yellows, and oranges jump out at me. They are unappealing blotches on a fruit-salad map of speckled green. The Adirondack Park is mostly green and yet undeniably industrial and civilized.

It feels impossible to find a solution to a massive problem: how humans and nature can live together harmoniously. The Adirondack Park, while flawed in its execution and demonstrably imperfect, represents a valiant attempt at balancing the needs of humans and nature.

Robert Glennon, in his reflection on the APA focuses on perceived negatives – the times when the APA failed to protect nature (Glennon). Alternatively, these may be moments for optimism – moments when the needs and wishes of the people of the park, and other outside stakeholders, were heard. While I personally believe that the park should include more protected land, and protection should be more rigorously supported, I recognize that conservation only works with the support of the general public. The APA’s regulations mean nothing if people are unwilling to actually abide by them. As a public agency, the APA is ultimately (albeit indirectly) responsible to voters; as a result, it must balance its conservation efforts with maintaining some support in the Adirondack and statewide community.

Adirondack conservation efforts began over a century after settlement began and during a period of intense desire for use of Adirondack lands (Terrie). As a result, it quickly became impossible for the Adirondack Park to be a continuous tract of unbroken wilderness (Terrie). Nonetheless, the fruit-salad map is mostly green. Significant portions of the park are protected – through easements, state landholding, private hunting clubs not developing for their own use, various levels of state wilderness, and other arrangements. For all of its failures the APA did and does protect the Adirondacks.

Yes, far more houses were (and are) built than would be ideal for the environment (Glennon). Yes, highways, tourist attractions, downtown areas, increased trail use, prisons, and manufacturing facilities negatively impact ecosystems. And yet – the park is mostly green. It still contains some of the largest tracts of unbroken forest left in the world. Its lands (although mostly privately held) are far more protected than the vast majority of other (even theoretically-protected) lands in the United States (Terrie).

And 130,000 people live in the Adirondacks year-round. And there are 200,000 seasonal residents. And the Park hosts 12.4 million visitors every year (Adirondack Council). The Adirondack Park is mostly green, has some of the healthiest and largest forest ecosystems in the world, and supports a huge human population. A human population, many of whom view the Adirondacks and leave with an increased sense of purpose to protect other ecosystems and the planet as a whole.

I pause for a moment in class. When we talk about the Adirondacks, I hone in on the negatives. The traffic, the overused trails, the kitschy storefronts, the condos along once-pristine lakes. I fail to ponder what all of that green really represents.

At least some of that green represents trees (an unfathomable number of them) and ecosystems miles from the nearest tree or railroad. Places where humans almost never are. Forests either at or near (depending on how long ago they were logged – so much prime wilderness was logged) their climax successional stage. Flourishing ecosystems that exist hardly anywhere else in the world.

The Adirondack Park is imperfect. In so many ways, it fails both its people and its ecosystems. But in so many ways, in attempting to balance the two, it is an unprecedented success – a success story unlike that of any other region in the world.

It’s a cause for optimism. Or at least a cause to avoid the doomsday depression rational environmental thinking usually brings.

Works Cited

“About the Adirondack Park.” Adirondack Council, 2021, www.adirondackcouncil.org/page/the-adirondack-park-19.html. Accessed 11 Nov. 2021.

Glennon, Robert. “A Land Not Saved.” The Great Experiment in Conservation: Voices from the Adirondack Park, by William F. Porter et al., Syracuse, Syracuse UP, 2009, pp. 265-81.

Terrie, Philip G. Contested Terrain: A New History of Nature and People in the Adirondacks. 2nd ed., Blue Mountain Lake, Adirondack Museum, 2008.

The 1980 Olympics, hosted in Lake Placid, New York, produced a series of iconic moments including the “Miracle on Ice,” as the U.S. men’s hockey team defeated the heavily favored Russian squad. We generally look back on these Olympic games quite fondly, though the brief period in which Lake Placid was a bustling Olympic village was surrounded by periods of great controversy. Despite this, the impact of the 1980 Olympics has been overall positive and is a large component of culture in Lake Placid to this day.

One of the perks of building in Lake Placid in the first place was that they already boasted significant athletic facilities, and as such the Olympics would be cheaper to fund. In approving the budget for the games, Congress instituted a secondary mission to build structures that would not be abandoned soon after the games concluded, which proved more difficult. It was a struggle to build something practical in a town that originally consisted of 3,000 people. This period in time happened to align with a significant increase in incarcerations in the U.S., which the government addressed by building more prisons. Logically, the best proposed plan was to convert the Olympic Village into a prison. 

The housing for the athletes very much embodied that mission. Rooms resembled cells, shaped as small rectangles with solid concrete walls, bunk beds, even sporting a single, tiny window with a steel bar running down the middle. The building was surrounded by electric fences. As such, some nations refused to house their athletes there, as it was a far worse residence than the villages of past games. Reception to the Olympic village was overwhelmingly negative, as people generally did not like the idea of a new prison in the area. An activist group formed under the acronym STOP (Stop the Olympic Prison), filing a lawsuit that threatened to stop construction on the village. But since the Olympics were a massive operation, construction went on, and to this day what used to be the Olympic village is a prison that houses about 1,000 inmates.

Despite this controversy, we don’t see this side of the story dominating the narrative around the town today. The town of Lake Placid itself is thriving, becoming a popular destination for tourists and winter athletes alike. Even prisons themselves are necessary and as bizarre as it was to have the Olympic village in that form, the prison succeeded in bringing purpose to a structure that would otherwise be abandoned, and brought jobs to the area. The Olympics inarguably brought economic prosperity to the area despite the number of year-round residents hardly changing since the games. It is difficult to argue that Lake Placid would be better off today without the Olympics, not to mention the joy and memories the games brought to the rest  of the world

Works Cited:

Nofil, Brianna. “The Forgotten Tale of How America Converted Its 1980 Olympic Village into a Prison.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 4 Nov. 2016, https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-time-that-the-us-turned-an-olympic-village-into-a-prison . 

Rielly, Kimberly. “The Olympics’ Impact on Lake Placid -.” The Adirondack Almanack, 25 Feb. 2014, https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/01/moon-boots-miracles-olympics-impact-lake-placid.html . 

Sue Cameron. “The Olympic ‘Prison’ Story.” Lake Placid, Adirondacks, 22 Apr. 2019, https://www.lakeplacid.com/story/2016/02/olympic-prison-story . 

The 1980 Olympics, hosted in Lake Placid, New York, produced a series of iconic moments including the “Miracle on Ice,” as the U.S. men’s hockey team defeated the heavily favored Russian squad. We generally look back on these olympic games quite fondly, though the brief period in which Lake Placid was a bustling olympic village was surrounded by periods of great controversy. Despite this, the impact of the 1980 olympics has been overall positive and is a large component of culture in Lake Placid to this day.

One of the perks of building in Lake Placid in the first place was that they already boasted significant athletic facilities, and as such the Olympics would be cheaper to fund. In approving the budget for the games, Congress instituted a secondary mission to build structures that would not be abandoned soon after the games concluded, which proved more difficult. It was a struggle to build something practical in a town that originally consisted of 3,000 people. This period in time happened to align with a significant increase in incarcerations in the U.S., which the government addressed by building more prisons. Logically, the best proposed plan was to convert the Olympic Village into a prison. 

The housing for the athletes very much embodied that mission. Rooms resembled cells, shaped as small rectangles with solid concrete walls, bunk beds, even sporting a single, tiny window with a steel bar running down the middle. The building was surrounded by electric fences. As such, some nations refused to house their athletes there, as it was a far worse residence than the villages of past games. Reception to the olympic village was overwhelmingly negative, as people generally did not like the idea of a new prison in the area. An activist group formed under the acronym STOP (Stop the Olympic Prison), filing a lawsuit that threatened to stop construction on the village. But since the Olympics were a massive operation, construction went on, and to this day what used to be the Olympic village is a prison that houses about 1,000 inmates.

Despite this controversy, we don’t see this side of the story dominating the narrative around the town today. The town of Lake Placid itself is thriving, becoming a popular destination for tourists and winter athletes alike. Even prisons themselves are necessary, and as bizarre as it was to have the olympic village in that form, the prison succeeded in bringing purpose to a structure that would otherwise be abandoned, and brought jobs to the area. The Olympics inarguably brought economic prosperity to the area despite the amount of year-round residents hardly changing since the games. It is difficult to argue that Lake Placid would be better off today without the olympics, not to mention the joy and memories the games brought to the rest  of the world

Works Cited:

Nofil, Brianna. “The Forgotten Tale of How America Converted Its 1980 Olympic Village into a Prison.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 4 Nov. 2016, https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-time-that-the-us-turned-an-olympic-village-into-a-prison . 

Rielly, Kimberly. “The Olympics’ Impact on Lake Placid -.” The Adirondack Almanack, 25 Feb. 2014, https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/01/moon-boots-miracles-olympics-impact-lake-placid.html . 

Sue Cameron. “The Olympic ‘Prison’ Story.” Lake Placid, Adirondacks, 22 Apr. 2019, https://www.lakeplacid.com/story/2016/02/olympic-prison-story . 

Complete deforestation for the purpose of helping ecosystems? Conducted in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, approximately 8,300 acres of forest were striped for research purposes. The Hubbard Brook Experiment has generated crucial data about ecosystem responses to global change.

The purpose of this study was to better understand “the response of northern hardwood forest ecosystems to large-scale disturbances such as deforestation or acidic deposition” (TIEE). In other words, scientists wanted to explore how land would be affected when trees are gone within the area. They also wanted to determine the amount of time it would take for an affected forest to recuperate.  

This study was carried out by comparing two different watersheds, or two forests. One being The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest and the other being a nearby forest that was left to reflourish for 60 years. 

Different factors considered included: precipitation, stream flow, evapotranspiration, calcium, potassium, among a few others. Final results concluded that taking away trees from a forest heavy area allows more sunlight to  help flourish light-dependent species. Since there will be a higher photosynthesis and respiration rate, then there will also be an increase in plant reproductivity (An Analysis on the Hubbard Brook Experiment). More rain will also reach the floor’s surface resulting in an increase of temperature and moisture, also contributing to the rapid growth of species. 

Although different plant species were quickly growing, a lingering question remained – will “nutrient and organic matter lost from the forest floor would be regained before the next cutting rotation” (An Analysis on the Hubbard Brook Experiment).

However, this would not be the case. “Organic matter on the forest floor would accumulate to a depth equivalent to pre-cutting levels in more than 65 years and biogeochemical flux and storage of nutrients would return to that of a normal hardwood forest (An Analysis on the Hubbard Brook Experiment). Essentially, regardless of plant species growing back at faster rates, there were more long term losses and nutrients would take much longer to become surplus again. 

Forest ecosystems must be given time to regenerate the nutrients they once had since they have been proven to take much longer to regenerate than the actual plant species. As a result, it has been legally established that forests must be provided with “enough time before the next cutting rotation,” (An Analysis on the Hubbard Brook Experiment).  These are legal periods of 110-120 years in which forests are given a break to allow them to nourish themselves and recuperate the lost nutrients.

Bibliography 

Adam Welman, Cynthia Berger. “Overview of the Ecological Background.” Hubbard Brook Streamflow Response to Deforestation (Overview), https://tiee.esa.org/vol/v1/data_sets/hubbard/hubbard_overview.html.  

“An Analysis on the Hubbard Brook Experiment.” YouTube, uploaded by Sophie Izzo, 18 October 2020, https://youtu.be/isFi5qxWzsE “Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study: Overview and Organization.” Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study: Overview and Organization | Hubbard Brook, https://hubbardbrook.org/about. 

Out of all New Yorkers and out-of-state visitors, 72% visit the park to enjoy the outdoor activities and 85% of those come for hiking, according to a regional tourism survey. The surge of hikers are raising some concerning issues in the Adirondacks, in which the trails in populated areas are being overused, resulting in erosion, damage on vegetation, and negative impact on wildlife.

However, unfortunately, this is not necessarily good news for the “wilderness”, which the park is supposed to be conserving primarily. According to High Peak Wilderness’ research, visitor number have recently surged to 250% beyond capacity. Crowding leads to increase in demand, and the overuse in certain locations is putting pressure on the park and its natural resources.

Out of all New Yorkers and out-of-state visitors, 72% visit the park to enjoy the outdoor activities and 85% of those come for hiking, according to a regional tourism survey. The surge of hikers are raising some concerning issues in the Adirondacks, in which the trails in populated areas are being overused, resulting in erosion, damage on vegetation, and negative impact on wildlife.

To meet the increased demand in use, a new, sustainably designed trail is being built. However, implementing a new trail, and dealing with overcrowding in general, requires more resources, which is limited in nature. In addition, any newly made trail will degrade overtime, especially with current lack of staffing and maintenance level, leading to a damage on the entire ecosystem built around it.

Taking erosion as an example, it happens when the trail use becomes excessive, soil eventually gets damaged and degrades. Eroding soil can then degrade the nearby waters’ quality and consequently harm the wildlife, plant life and the structure of waterbody.

Furthermore, to satisfy the increased hikers but maintain the feeling of solitude in the great wilderness, the trails have been rebuilt wider and wider and the long lines of cars overflowing from parking lots near trails are further disturbing the resources and wildlife, and hence, the beautiful “wilderness” of the Adirondacks.

The report released by the Leave No Trace Center recommends a better education for “leave no trace” policy and limiting crowd sizes in wilderness areas to combat the growing concerns. Some of the recommendations, such as placing capacity limits, reservations and user fees are already in place for campgrounds and areas used for the day, but interestingly, not in the protected wilderness areas.

Additionally, Adirondack High Peaks Strategic Advisory Group, consisting of 22 members (January 2020), was newly formed by the state to find solutions to overuse and overcrowding issues in the park. “Managed right, this park could welcome many more visitors than the 12.4 million who came in 2018,” said Adirondack Council Executive Director William C. Janeway.

Hopefully, the Adirondacks will find a way out of these rising issues by collaborating with the advisory group and the new policy to maintain the balance of conserving its beautiful wilderness and high quality of life for its residents.

Works Cited

Adirondack Council, n.d. Overuse in the Adirondack Park.
Available at: https://www.adirondackcouncil.org/page/overuse-in-the-adirondack-park-298.htmlA

New York League of Conservation Voters, 2020. Combating Adirondack Park Overuse.
Available at: https://nylcv.org/news/combating-adirondack-park-overuse/

Reisman, N., 2020. Adirondacks Face Crowding and Overuse Issues, Report Finds.
Available at: https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/ny-state-of-politics/2020/08/25/adirondacks-face-crowding–overuse-issues

Sheehan, J. & Council, A., 2020. Leave No Trace Center Recommends 52 Actions to Curb Impact of Crowds on Popular Adirondack Wilderness Trails.
Available at: https://www.adirondackcouncil.org/page/press-releases-16/news/leave-no-trace-center-recommends-52-actions-to-curb-impact-of-crowds-on-popular-adirondack-wilderness-trails-1282.html