I got kind of a wierd letter in the mail today. I'm in New York, but I suspect such things happen all over the country.
My wife and I own several large rural properties. They are, more-or-less our private wildlife sancturaries. Most we bought cheap years ago, with many wetlands, beaver dams, trout streams, etc. and low taxes (so far).
So, got this letter today about a piece we own in Jefferson County New York, in the middle of the "Tug Hill Plateau." This area is often considered the 2nd most wild area of New York, with the Adirondack Park being the 1st most important.
Letter says that people from the Tug Hill Tomorrow Land Trust request permission to enter our land and do an inventory of conditions, wildlife, plantlife, water quality, etc. They then added the following that I quote:
"New York law gives landowners the right to manage rare plants and natural communities on their lands in whatever way they find appropriate."
Now I'm wondering if we'd be making a mistake letting any of these people in. That statement is absolutely nuts unless I'm missing something here.
First, New York laws rarely give the right to do anything. They prohibit, not allow in most cases. It is the absence of law that allows behavior, and the presence of law that disallows behavior.
If a property owner was free to manage such things anyway he/she desired to, deer could be shot out of season, fish could be caught out of season, beaver dams could be broken anytime, rare species of plants and wildlife destroyed on a whim, wetlands filled in, invasive species propagated, etc.
Now I'm wondering why they stuck this in the letter. I'm also wondering that if they did find something that they felt needed protection, we could wind up with restrictions put on our land.
My wife and I own several large rural properties. They are, more-or-less our private wildlife sancturaries. Most we bought cheap years ago, with many wetlands, beaver dams, trout streams, etc. and low taxes (so far).
So, got this letter today about a piece we own in Jefferson County New York, in the middle of the "Tug Hill Plateau." This area is often considered the 2nd most wild area of New York, with the Adirondack Park being the 1st most important.
Letter says that people from the Tug Hill Tomorrow Land Trust request permission to enter our land and do an inventory of conditions, wildlife, plantlife, water quality, etc. They then added the following that I quote:
"New York law gives landowners the right to manage rare plants and natural communities on their lands in whatever way they find appropriate."
Now I'm wondering if we'd be making a mistake letting any of these people in. That statement is absolutely nuts unless I'm missing something here.
First, New York laws rarely give the right to do anything. They prohibit, not allow in most cases. It is the absence of law that allows behavior, and the presence of law that disallows behavior.
If a property owner was free to manage such things anyway he/she desired to, deer could be shot out of season, fish could be caught out of season, beaver dams could be broken anytime, rare species of plants and wildlife destroyed on a whim, wetlands filled in, invasive species propagated, etc.
Now I'm wondering why they stuck this in the letter. I'm also wondering that if they did find something that they felt needed protection, we could wind up with restrictions put on our land.
