Dear Editor,
The Highwood River Valley, which most are familiar with as the stunning scenery surrounding Highway 40 40, located South West of Calgary in the heart of Kananaskis Country, is unique, not only for it’s natural beauty and wildlife, but also for the way it’s natural integrity has been preserved against the effects of human use.
The Highwood is one of the few places where, absent the destruction of OHVs or vehicles of any kind, one can roam the backcountry wherever they desire, whether it be for hiking, back country camping, fishing, hunting or climbing.
The Highwood is unique in that it bridges the gap between the OHV chaos in most of Alberta’s Forest Reserve and the heavily regulated and heavily populated Provincial Parks. The Highwood allows Albertans and people from all over Canada and the world, to engage in our primitive and traditional backcountry activities, while preserving the area’s natural beauty and integrity.
It is disturbing to learn that, short of some level headed decision making in Alberta’s government, clear cutting by BC company Balcaen Consolidated Contracting Ltd. is set to begin in the Highwood River Valley this year. What argument can be made in support of this? Are we, Albertans, going to devastate our prized and coveted mountain landscapes just to support the timber industry in BC?
One has to acknowledge that the timber industry does play a notable part in our economy, but not at the expense of our most coveted mountain parks. There are millions of hectares of forest in Alberta, most of which does not fall under any special land use designation like Kananaskis and is already compromised by OHVs, logging and other human caused devastation. Why then, must this pristine area, an area where one must hike a kilometer away from the road just to have a campfire or pitch a tent, be destroyed?
I have personally been stalked by cougars and have had close encounters with grizzlies in the areas that are to be clear-cut. I have encountered just about every species of animal known to roam our mountains in the Highwood Valley, from packs of wolves to mountain goats and even a wolverine. There is even an old grizzly den on the very edge of the clear cut proposed for this year. Is this the kind of area we want to clear-cut?
The current plan to eventually clear cut up the entire valley all the way to the edge of Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, will scar every hillside stared upon by the thousands, or more likely millions, of cyclists, motorcyclists, tourists and Calgarians out for an afternoon drive who use Highway 40 every summer. One can imagine the outcry this will cause.
It is in the best interest of all Albertans, to stop this devastation before it is too late. Let’s not destroy the few pristine mountain environments we have left.
Jeff O’Keefe
Calgary
