ABSOLUTELY DO NOT allow it. This is a internationally recognized mountain that artists, & visitors come to admire and paint.

I would compare recognition of this to the Matterhorn, Kilimanjaro & North America's Crowsnest mountain. Submitted by Joe, Cocoa; 2008-12-20 08:02:51

One problem, too, with the despoiling from the clearcuts in sensitive areas, is that there is so little stumpage revenue to compensate for the social loss. Submitted by Glen, Cowley; 2009-01-18 04:29:01

Who are we kidding. The big logging companies have been winning these battles for decades. Using "forest management" as an excuse is the government's way of legitimizing it. Pine beetles aren't going to turn tail and run because of some bare spots in their path, but tourists (and their money) certainly will. Calypso, and ladyslipper orchids, will be smashed into the debris, along with the homes of many animal species. Guess I'll have to find a new favorite spot to spend my holidays.Submitted by Allan, Calgary; 2008-11-25 12:43:10

I am an avid hiker and fisher, and I have been coming to the Crowsnest pass for my summer vacation for the past 6 years. I know the Atlas road well, as it is the way to my favorite trail to Window Mountain. It turns my stomach to imagine this gorgeous area defaced by clearcutting. Isn't there somewhere else to cut that won't leave such such visible scars on the Crowsnest Mountain? Submitted by Janice, Edmonton; 2008-11-25 12:31:51

We run a trail riding business at the foot of Crowsnest Mt. This proposal if approved will be the end of our business. Our clients will not pay to ride through cut blocks. More importantly is the fact that this area is too special a place to be defaced in this way. Submitted by Leslie, Blairmore; 2008-11-18 23:20:14

I have been a frequent visitor to the Crowsnest Pass area over the past decade. I have come to ride in the mountains and enjoy the wilderness and wildlife. I will be unlikely to return if the area is logged I will look elsewhere for my outdoor recreation.Submitted by Gordon, Hope; 2008-11-17 15:29:25

I have looked at the Spray Lakes Sawmills general working plan for the next two years and it is very disturbing to me. As a local tourism operator, I can say flat out that this will likely ruin our business. Like many others, we rely on this trail network and the surrounding wilderness to bring people to the Pass. We are projecting really high growth over the next two years, which will result in hundreds of thousands of dollars coming into town. If the logging goes ahead as planned, we’ll likely have to find a new home for our operation.

I moved here recently with the intention of trying to develop the sport tourism market. If they log Crowsnest Mountain, they will be defacing the icon of the entire region. During a hundred years of settlement, Crowsnest Mountain has remained untouched and I would like to believe that people have always understood its importance to our community’s identity. Beyond affecting all of the tourism providers, property developments and resorts currently working in the region, logging around Crowsnest Mountain and the Atlas trail network will shut out the opportunity for future growth in these markets. People want “pristine wilderness”, not “logged out mountainside” destinations. Even self directed tourism will see a downturn because of this. The area around Crowsnest Mountain is packed with quad and dirt bike riders all summer and snow mobiles all winter. When visitors see these areas shut out because of logging, they’ll continue on down the road to Fernie or other areas. The bucks will not stop here. If there were a lot of jobs at stake in the Pass, I might speak differently, but there are not; most of the work goes up the road to Cochrane or to Tembec in BC. The community has a lot to lose and nothing to gain through this logging.

I am asking you; please act now while there is still a hope of affecting change to the logging plans. I hope that Council will take a public stance on this issue and pressure SLS, as well as the Provincial government, to reconsider their plans to log this area. Like many people, I look at this mountain every day and sometimes even take it for granted. By the end of next year, if it is covered in clear cuts, people will shake their heads and say “I wish we had done something”. So here is our chance. Let’s do something. Submitted by Brian, Coleman; 2008-11-09 20:26:05