About this book
The Adirondack region of New York State is, in many respects, America's cauldron of conservation. It was there, more than a century ago, that wanton exploitation of forests first aroused concern about human impact on the environment. It was there that Americans first began to set aside lands proclaimed as "forever wild". The establishment of the Adirondack Park created an immense landscape of 6 million acres composed of a mixture of public and private lands in nearly equal proportion. This unprecedented blend of human communities within wild lands makes the Adirondack Park perhaps one of the greatest case studies in conservation and development in U.S. history.
Representing a remarkable achievement in environmental scholarship and drawn from decades of research, The Great Experiment in Conservation captures the wisdom born of the last thirty years of the park's evolution. The editors bring together leading scholars, activists, and practitioners – those who know the Park's origin and the realities of living in a protected area – to narrate this history. Organized into three sections, contributors explore the ecological, cultural, and economic aspects of the region, drawing lessons from successes and failures as they struggle to find the right balance of private interests and public controls. With keen insight and deep passion, the authors reveal the Adirondack Park's rich natural and cultural history in shaping conservation policy, providing vital contributions to the future study of land preservation.
Contributors include: Herman Daly, Bill McKibben, Barbara McMartin, Philip G. Terrie, Amy Vedder, and Bill Weber.
Contents
Foreword: Connecting Means and Ends in the Study of Place / Herman E. Daly
Introduction: The Cornerstones of Conservation / Ross S. Whaley, Jon D. Erickson, and William F. Porter
Part One | Foundations of the Adirondack Ecosystem and Economy
Introduction: A Dark Spot in a Sea of Lights / William F. Porter
1. Geology of the Adirondack Mountains: Like an Egg with Its Major Axis to the North / James McLelland and Bruce Selleck
2. Water Resources: The Unique Adirondack Aquascape / Christopher P. Cirmo
3. Soils of the Adirondacks: Out of Site, Out of Mind / Russell D. Brigg
4. Upland Forests of the Adirondacks: Reflections of Soils and a Record of Disturbance / Charles D. Canham
5. Fish and Wildlife Communities of the Adirondacks / Roland W. Kays and Robert A. Daniels
6. Wildlife Exploitation in the Adirondacks From Beavers to Biodiversity / William F. Porter
7. Mining the Adirondacks / James Mclelland and Bruce Selleck
8. Forestry in the Adirondacks: An Economy Built on a Handful of Species / William F. Porter
9. Human Impacts from Afar: Acid Rain and Mercury Deposition in the Adirondacks / Charles T. Driscoll, Kimberly M. Driscoll, Myron J. Mitchell, Dudley J. Raynal, and Karen M. Roy
10. Recreation and Tourism in the Adirondacks / Chad P. Dawson
11. Great Camps and Conservation / Craig Gilborn
12. Development Rates and Patterns in the Adirondacks: Paradise Lost / Peter Bauer
13. Wildlife for a Wilderness: Restoring Large Predators in the Adirondacks / Rainer H. Brocke
Part Two | Institutions and Management of the Adirondacks
Introduction: The Park in Perspective / Jon D. Erickson
14. Cultural History of the Adirondack Park: From Conservation to Environmentalism / Philip G. Terrie
15. Legal Structure and Defense of the Adirondack Park / Robert Malmsheimer
16. Public and Private Land-Use Regulation of the Adirondack Park / William F. Porter and Ross S. Whaley
17. The Early Years of the Adirondack Park Agency / George D. Davis
18. The Evolution of the Department of Environmental Conservation / Stuart Buchanan
19. A Land Not Saved / Robert Glennon
20. Top-Down Regulation and Local Economic Autonomy / John Penney
21. Lessons from the Commission on the Adirondacks in the Twenty-First Century / Ross S. Whaley
22. A Perspective from the Forest-Products Industry / Roger Dziengeleski
23. Reflections on the Adirondack Park Agency in the Current Era / Richard H. Lefebvre
Part Three | Many Voices, Many Opinions
Introduction: Visions for the Adirondacks and Beyond / Ross S. Whaley
24. Compromise, Continuity, and Crisis in the Adirondack Park: Shortcomings and Opportunities in Environmental Protection / Philip G. Terrie
25. Renewing Adirondack Park Mission Through an Educational Forest Preserve: Shortcomings and Opportunities in Wilderness Preservation / David Gibson
26. The Role of the People in Wilderness Preservation: Shortcomings and Opportunities in Governance / Barbara McMartin
27. Public Opinion and Public Representation: Strategies in Bio-Regional Development / Jon D. Erickson, Graham L. Cox, Anne M. Woods, and William F. Porter
28. The Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages: Strategies in Local Governance / Dean Lefebvre
29. The Adirondack North Country Association: Strategies in Economic Development / Terry Defranco Martino
30. The Adirondack Environmental Nongovernmental Organizations: Strategies in Conservation / Graham L. Cox
31. Envisioning the Future of Wilderness: Public Demands and Private Lands / Elizabeth Thorndike
32. Toward a New Wilderness Paradigm for Adirondack Park: The View from Bear Mountain / Rainer H. Brocke
33. Can Such a Noble Endeavor Succeed? Alaska and the Adirondack Park / Donald Behrend
34. The Adirondack Park in Global Perspective / Bill Weber and Amy Vedder
Conclusion: The Adirondack Experiment in a Full World / Jon D. Erickson, William F. Porter, and Ross S. Whaley
Afterword: Living Within Limits / Bill McKibben
Customer Reviews
Biography
William F. Porter is a professor of wildlife ecology and director of the Adirondack Ecological Center at SUNY ESF.
Jon D. Erickson is an associate professor of ecological economics at the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, faculty of the Environmental Program, and a fellow of the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics at the University of Vermont.
Ross S. Whaley is emeritus president and professor of SUNY ESF. He is a former chairman of the Adirondack Park Agency and served on the Governor's Commission for the Adirondacks in the Twenty-First Century.
