SAY NO TO HOWITZERS IN THE ADIRONDACK PARK!

No Howitzers in the Adirondack Park

The undersigned oppose the proposed howitzer test range by Unconventional Concepts, Inc, in the Adirondack Park Town of Lewis, and call on the Adirondack Park Agency to deny the permit for the howitzer test range. - The goal of the Adirondack Park Agency Act is to insure "conservation, protection, preservation, development and use of the unique scenic, aesthetic, wildlife, recreational, open space, historic, ecological and natural resources of the Adirondack Park." - The proposed howitzer test range clearly conflicts with the Adirondack Park Agency land classification of "Rural Use" which is to retain the “essential open space atmosphere that characterizes the park”, and the “unique character of the park”, uniqueness which includes “significant ecotones” and “critical wildlife habitats.” The proposed howitzer testing range in no way meets this standard. - The proposed howitzer test site abuts the Taylor Pond Wild Forest; it is 2.5 miles from the Jay Mountain Wilderness Area, and 4 miles from the Hurricane Mountain Wilderness Area, and it lies within the 567 square mile Taylor Pond Wildlife Management Complex, a mix of public and private land, managed for the protection of wildlife and user experience on the public lands. A howitzer test range will adversely affect my experience of wildlands and wildlife in this area. - A recent meta-analysis by the University of Michigan demonstrated that noises made by humans -- from traffic, construction and other activities—are adversely impacting birds' behavior, physiology and reproduction. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Taylor Pond Unit Management Plan, states that the New York Breeding Bird Atlas documents the Taylor Pond Management Complex in the 1980-1985 atlas contained 22 boreal forest bird species; but in the 2000-2005 atlas the number of species in the TMC had declined to 15. We need to do more to protect our declining bird populations, not add to the burden of their survival. The Adirondack Park should be managed for the protection of wildlands, wildlife and user experience. A howitzer test range will adversely affect my experience of wildlands and wildlife in this area.