Crater Lake merits protection

Tim Lillebo responds to a Bend Bulletin editorial and makes the clear case for keeping helicopters out of Crater Lake National Park.

Crater Lake is one of the most spectacular natural places in Oregon, if not the world. The lake, at nearly 2,000 feet deep, is the deepest in North America and the clearest in the world. Aside from the breathtaking scenery, the park also serves as a critical wildlife sanctuary. Unfortunately, this natural treasure is threatened.

Our parks and wilderness areas are part of what make Oregon a great place to live, work and raise a family. Places like Crater Lake and the Three Sisters provide world-class outdoor recreational opportunities that are key to our quality of life. These places serve as an escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. We have a responsibility to protect the special natural areas that offer this experience, especially when they’re threatened.

You probably assumed that Crater Lake was already protected, but its National Park status still leaves it vulnerable to some ill-conceived schemes. One of these schemes is a proposal to have helicopter tours buzzing around the park.

The Bulletin recently lent its support to this proposal in an editorial (“Let helicopter tours fly over Crater Lake,” Feb. 25). We have a responsibility to special places with a certain respect and stature. There are no elevators in the Sistine Chapel to give visitors a closer view of the ceiling. Do we really need helicopters buzzing overhead at Crater Lake?

It’s not like Crater Lake is only accessible to visitors in an aerial tour. Quite the contrary, the rim road winds all the way around the lake, leaving no shortage of public access, and the lodge allows a quality experience for those who choose not to venture into the solitude of the park’s backcountry.

I applaud Sen. Ron Wyden for his legislative efforts to address this issue by clarifying that the National Park Service has the authority to approve or deny these flights at Crater Lake. It’s an important step in the right direction. This would not guarantee protection, but it would level the playing field when it comes to considering flights over the park.

Unfortunately, helicopters aren’t the only threat to Crater Lake.

While the park is a scenic wonderland for people, it is also a key area for wildlife, with habitat corridors that stretch beyond the park to lower elevations. These wildlife corridors will play an increasingly important role as animals are forced to adapt to a changing climate.

As the climate warms, wildlife will likely adapt by moving either up in elevation or northward. Having protected corridors that connect core habitat areas will be key to the continued survival of numerous species. Currently, the U.S. Forest Service has four separate logging proposals in these pristine wildlife corridors, some of which would allow trees to be toppled right up to the edge of the park.

With the threat of helicopters buzzing over Crater Lake and the chain saws and bulldozers amassing in the National Forests surrounding the park, Oregon Wild has developed a proposal to protect the Crater Lake Wilderness.

The plan is twofold. First, we propose to designate the backcountry of the park and the wildlife corridors surrounding the park as Wilderness areas. This would include old-growth forests, hiking trails, Mount Scott, Pelican Butte, Sawtooth Mountain and other spectacular areas. This designation would not include, or have any effect on, the lodge, access roads or rim road. Wilderness protection in the backcountry of national parks is fairly common around the country, including in parks like Yosemite. The second facet of the plan would ban commercial flight tours over the park to preserve the unique experience of tranquility and serene beauty that a Crater Lake trip provides.

Oregon has protected only 4 percent of our great state, compared to 10 percent of Washington, and 15 percent of California.

It’s time we restore some balance and live up to our green reputation by ensuring that our natural treasures are protected for current and future generations.

It’s time we permanently protected Crater Lake, because even if the current threat of helicopters buzzing around the park goes away, there will never be any shortage of bad ideas that threaten our natural treasures.