Club members: The linked article is an opinion article, but factually it is legit. The dismantling of the Forest Service is following the same process as the administration did with the BLM, as well as agencies like the National Park Service and the US Fish & Wildlife Service, but perhaps more devastating-especially in the massive loss of valuable research studies that can't simply be restarted.

As someone who works in Government, I can tell you that the loss of so much institutional expertise can paralyze an organization. What does this have to do with paddling? Well, one of the most valued paddling wildernesses, the Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness Area, has a lot of forest land around it that is under threat from mining and associated runoff. That threat is now more real. There is also a lot of National Forest Land in northern New England. If it now becomes poorly managed, expect resulting impacts to water quality of popular rivers. And research on impacts from such forest management and how to avoid those impacts? Gone.

So, form your own opinion if you read the article, I just wanted to provide some context. Those of you who know me and my subject matter expertise will know where I am coming from.

-Chuck