Letter: Protecting natural areas

Friday, March 8, 2002 | 10:30 a.m.

After reading Kenneth Freeman Jr.'s March 3 letter, I feel that this gentleman just doesn't understand the point of wilderness designation. After stating that he believes that Nevadans do want more wilderness, he goes on to complain about not being able to take a horse-drawn wagon into the Black Rock wilderness area.

Wilderness designation is an important tool to help keep some portion of our country's land in a natural state, not only so that it can be enjoyed by present and future generations, but so that we can have a properly functioning ecosystem. I don't know if Mr. Freeman or any other members of the Nevada Land Users group have ever taken an ecology class, but undeveloped land contributes a lot more to society than recreational exploits. Ever heard of a watershed? And as much as everything may seem to blend together when one whirs past it by off-highway vehicle, the desert really is a fragile area of quite high biodiversity.

Four million wilderness acres is really not so much when compared to the amount of land that would still be available for development and exploitation in Nevada, and in the country as a whole. Is foregoing the passage through virgin desert (or an illegally forged two-track) with a horsedrawn carriage or off-highway vehicle such a high price to pay to ensure we will have some natural areas left?

LAURA WEISS