DESIGNATION OF WILDERNESS AREAS WITHIN THE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM

(West Sister Island Wilderness)

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 1973

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

SUBCOMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS,

OF THE COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS,

Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to recess, at 2:45 p.m. in room 1324, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. John Melcher, presiding. Mr. MELCHER. The next wilderness proposal we have is West Sister Island wilderness proposal in Ohio.

The first witness we will hear from is Mr. E. U. Curtis Bohlen, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Mr. Bohlen?

STATEMENT OF E. U. CURTIS BOHLEN, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR FISH, WILDLIFE, AND PARKS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ACCOMPANIED BY JAMES GILLETT, WILDERNESS PLANNER, BUREAU OF SPORT FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE, AND LESTER H. DUNDAS, WILDERNESS PLANNER, REGION 3, MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.

Mr. BOHLEN. Mr. Chairman, all of the 85 acre West Sister Island National Wildlife Refuge in Lake Erie, which is located about 8 miles to the south shore of the lake and 15 miles east of Toledo in Lucas County, Ohio, is recommended for wilderness.

The refuge was established by Executive order in 1938 as a refuge, and breeding grounds for migratory birds and other wildlife. Public access to the island is now controlled by permit, usually limited to scientific or nature study groups to provide necessary solitude for the nesting colonies of great blue herons, black-crowned night herons, and egrets.

Except for a gravelly beach on the mainland side, the island is bordered by rocky cliffs 15 to 20 feet high. Formed from limestone rock shaped by glacial action, it rises to 35 feet above the high watermark. About 75 percent of the island is an almost pure stand of 50-foot hackberry trees, the remainder of the island being grassland fringed with chokecherry and wild plum.

No management other than protection is planned for the island. The Bureau of Mines has advised the island has no known deposits of any commercial minerals.

A lighthouse on the southwest point of the island was erected in 1948 and is of historic value and interest. It has been automated since 1937 and the Coast Guard spends an hour cleaning the globe and checking the batteries four or five times a year.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. MELCHER. Thank you, Mr. Bohlen.

It is I assume it's rather difficult to get on to West Sister Island? Mr. BOHLEN. I must confess I have never tried.

Mr. Gillett, could you comment?

Mr. MELCHER. The gravelly beach was mentioned, the 15- to 20-foot cliffs. Is there any provisions for access to the island, a boat dock or something of that nature?

Mr. GILLETT. No, sir. It is my understanding that there are no provisions, manmade structures for landing boats on the island.

It would seem to me that they would land on the gravelly beach. Mr. MELCHER. I see a communication from the President dealing with the West Sister National Wildlife Refuge recommending it for wilderness status. I believe that the picture is taken near the lighthouse, and the gravelly beach. Perhaps the boat that is there is a Coast Guard boat.

Would that be likely?

Mr. DUNDAS. That's the refuge boat.

Mr. MELCHER. Is it felt that there will be opportunity for wilderness experience for people on the island?

Mr. DUNDAS. This island is 9 miles off the south shore of Lake Erie. It is on the path from Toledo up to the group of islands off the Catawba Peninsula, and people in the past history used to use this as sort of as a halfway stop. It's 15 miles from Toledo and about 25 miles from that group of islands. However, with the kind of boats they have nowadays, they don't bother stopping very much. If you desire to stop there, you can get a free permit from the refuge manager to stop, if your cause is good. We do not encourage use by people that are there for bird study or geological study, any scientific study.

I have been out on there a couple of times. I could see why the people on the lighthouse years and years ago this was built over 100 years ago-would feel pretty lonesome at some times during the year. It's really off the beaten track. The shipping is out farther. And the surrounding water is relatively shallow.

Mr. MELCHER. It's principally a wildlife refuge then for blackcrowned night herons?

Mr. DUNDAS. Yes. There were about 1,100 nests in the trees, although it could be as high as 1.800, but the limiting factor on the production there is the birds have to fly to the south shore to get food, and they have got at least an 18-mile trip back and forth.

Mr. MELCHER. Thank you very much, Mr. Dundas, and thank you very much, Mr. Bohlen.

The committee will now hear from Harry Crandell, director of the wilderness reviews of the Wilderness Society.

Harry?

STATEMENT OF HARRY CRANDELL, DIRECTOR OF WILDERNESS REVIEWS FOR THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY

Mr. CRANDELL. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Chairman, I am Harry Crandell, director of the wilderness reviews of the Wilderness Society. I have a statement that I would like to submit for the record and summarize it if I may.

Mr. MELCHER. Without objection your statement will be made a part of the record at this point.

It is so ordered.

You may proceed.

[The prepared statement of Harry Crandell follows:]

STATEMENT SUBMITTED BY HARRY CRANDELL OF THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY

Mr. Chairman, I am Harry Crandell, Director of Wilderness Reviews for The Wilderness Society, a national conservation organization of approximately 80,000 members primarily concerned with the preservation and beneficial use of America's wilderness.

We appreciate the invitation to testify today before the Subcommittee on Public Lands concerning the wilderness proposal for the West Sister Island National Wildlife Refuge located in Ohio in the western waters of Lake Erie about 15 miles east of Toledo and 9 miles off the south shore of the lake.

This 85 acre island is the home of large colonies of great blue herons, black crowned night herons and egrets. It contains over 1100 active nests cradled in the tops of hackberry trees which cover most of the island.

It is a remarkable thing to have this remaining bit of island wilderness offshore from a heavy industrialized area. The island and its community of wildlife most assuredly deserves the protection of the Wilderness Act against developments not in keeping with its wilderness quality.

The committee will be interested in knowing that the remains of an old lighthouse, of historical virtue since it was built during the days of sailing vessels, still stands on the souhtwest point of the island. A modern, automated beacon is located on top of the lighthouse. This lighthouse may be included in the wilderness area as provided in Section 2(c)4 which states: "may also contain ecological, geological, or other features of scientific, education, scenic, or historical value." In our opinion, the continued operation and maintenance of this beacon is compatible with the Wilderness Act. Accordingly, we recommend that in the legislation approved by this committee the phrase appearing in H.R. 5422 which stated "Provided, that nothing in this Act shall be construed to preclude continued essential maintenance of the lighthouse as a navigational aid and as a historical srtucture" (or any similar statement) be deleted as unnecessary.

The proposal to place West Sister National Wildlife Refuge in the National Wilderness Preservation System is an excellent one which receives our full support.

Thank you for the opportunity to appear here today.

Mr. CRANDELL. Thank you, sir.

Mr. Chairman, the Wilderness Society and its Ohio cooperators support the Department of the Interior's proposal for inclusion of the West Sister Island National Wildlife Refuge in the national wilderness preservation system.

This is an example, we think, of the provisions of the law that require all the wilderness islands. Since it is, we feel, eminently qualified under the department to review all 5,000 units in the wildlife refuges and those criteria for inclusion in the wilderness system, we support it.

We do have one difference, I believe, if that's the way to put it, with the legislation as is presently written. That is, we do not feel it is necessary to legislate the right of the Coast Guard to polish the lantern in the lighthouse once or twice a year or whatever it is at the very

minimum. We feel that is adequately covered by the wilderness laws since it is an existing right.

We would recommend that the West Sister area be included in the wilderness system without that kind of special provision which we feel deletes the intent of the Wilderness Act itself.

Thank you very much.

Mr. MELCHER. Since the lighthouse is here, it is being served as necessary now. You find no reason to mention it specifically in the act. Mr. CRANDELL. Yes; that's right, sir. We look on it as being the same as the fire tower in the forest service wilderness. We have to occasionally maintain the thing in order to properly administer the forest resources. In this case, the Coast Guard has to polish the light. Sometime in the future we feel, as technology advances, the Coast Guard will possibly come up with a different method of alerting ships. They are already using it in a number of areas on the west coast in particular, radar devices, sound devices, and so forth. At that point the lighthouse would not be required and we would like to see it preserved as a historical structure within the wilderness area, which is also one of the purposes of the Wilderness Act.

Mr. MELCHER. Thank you very much, Harry.

I have no further questions.

I will say again that there seems to be no opposition to this particular wilderness proposal and that you, repesenting the Wilderness Society and the Department, are in complete agreement.

Thank you very much.

This concludes the hearing on West Sister Island wilderness proposal.

The hearing record will be held open for 10 days for anyone who may care to submit a statement.

With that the committee is adjourned.

[Whereupon, at 3 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]