Although folks may regard me, a Marylander as an interloper, I have two reasons to thank Mike Costello for his thoughtful article on the recent designations of Wilderness Areas in West Virginia.
First, I spent a number of years on the board of The Mountain Institute and helped staff outdoor education programs at their Spruce Knob campus where I had first hand experiences in the Monongahela National Forest. It was there that I developed a deep appreciation and love of your incredible West Virginia natural heritage.
The second reason is that I was a co-chairman of the Maryland Wildlands Committee that worked for many years to get ecologically rich and diverse lands legislated into our Maryland equivalent of the National Wilderness program. I know how difficult it is to get preservation of wilderness areas officially designated.
Mike is to be commended for praising the passage of the Wild Mon Act and the five members of the West Virginia congressional delegation who supported the act.
While there are several other important areas that didn't make the cut, such as the one I am most familiar with, Seneca Creek, perhaps when the Wilderness Act is revisited in the future, they will make sure they are also preserved for future generations.
Ajax Eastman
Baltimore, Md.
