wild and free

What Is Mount Hood Worth?

By Tomi Owens, 12-09-06

Mount Hood Meadows ski resort opened yesterday to the delight and joy of thousands of snow riders. The glacial flooding that washed away roads on both sides of the resort has been cleared, ODOT having risen to the challenge. ‘Pray for Pavement’ parties have ceased and Meadows is planning a "Glacial Outburst: l survived 35” party for December, 16th.

But glaciers will be glaciers. The Hood River News writes that the “price tag for the 2006 event is expected to be at least $20 million and possibly higher. State and federal officials are in agreement with ODOT that a long-term fix is needed to prevent ongoing emergency expenditures.”

A long term fix makes perfect sense to those of us who think of Mt. Hood Meadows as our local ski resort. But do the numbers pencil out for Meadows? Does the fact that the main lodge is more than a little bit threadbare, that the plumbing is questionable, that the structure has the all the warmth and charm of a 1950’s bomb shelter ever concern Meadows management? And twenty million to fix the roads plus however much more to craft a “long term fix” to the North Side of the mountain, which will always be at risk of future debris flow damage no matter how much money you throw at it translates into more taxpayer woes.

Transforming the north slope of the Mount Hood into a destination resort, bringing money, jobs, and a general “value increase” to the area could, theoretically, offset the cost to state taxpayers. But a recent report by EcoNorthwest, an economic consulting service, claims that although it is difficult to determine the value of a forest lands that have been protected from logging and development compared to forests which already have commercial price tags attached to them, old growth can still provide quantifiable, long term economic benefits.

The EcoNorthwest report (here for full report) will hopefully put to rest the controversy between Mt. Hood Meadows and Cooper Spur Wild and Free Coalition over the relative value of two parcels of land involved in a federal land swap.

Reading the report is to delve into the matrices of Mount Hood’s measurable assets. By evaluating the forest’s “ecosystem functions” which benefit our area by providing water purification and carbon sequestration, as well as “the production of recreational opportunities, including opportunities with roadless/wilderness characteristics” ECONorthwest places an estimated value of close to $16million on 4000 acres of old growth forest.

In the summary, ECONorthwest estimates the present economic value of this forest in terms of: Water-Purification at $1.5-$3million, Recreational Opportunities at $4.8 million, and Carbon Sequestration at $5.1-9.0million.

Whether or not this study will dissipate the dispute between Mt. Hood Meadows and CSWFC remains to be seen. The trade is to be incorporated in Congressmen Greg Walden and Earl Blumenauer’s proposed Mount Hood Stewardship Legacy Act currently limping through congress.

What I find most interesting about Old Growth economics is the way in which a forest reduced to the conceptual equivalent of a modern industrial factory, a water purification system and carbon storge facility, with or without the benefit of being a recreation destination, carries so much more political clout.

Gone, I think, are the days of Green activism embracing a “save the Earth Mother” or ‘Trees are Nice” slogan. Here to stay are the days of variables and value-adds, data collections and resource projections, confronting commercialism with science rather than sentiment.
[End of article]

Tomi,

Thanks for reporting on this issue.

The Cooper Spur Wild & Free Coalition commissioned this report from ECONorthwest to assess the full range of benefits that would result from the historic settlement that protects the North Side of Mt. Hood. Economist Ernest G. Niemi was tasked with determining the economic value of protecting the unique resources that will be protected if Oregon's congressional delegation is able to pass federal legislation for more Wilderness on Mt. Hood.

The Cooper Spur Wild and Free Coalition is a diverse coalition of recreation clubs, conservation groups and local residents who have been working for over five years to protect the unique resources on the North Side of Mt. Hood. The historic solution combines a proposal to permanently protect the historic backcountry on Mt. Hood’s North Side as Wilderness with permanent protections for the Crystal Springs Watershed.

As part of the historic solution, the Cooper Spur Wild & Free Coalition required Mt Hood Meadows to offer up its land holdings on the North Side in exchange for up to 120 acres of public land in the community of Government Camp. Mt Hood Meadows currently owns over 720 acres of private land, including the Cooper Spur Mountain Resort. Much of this land is within the Crystal Springs Watershed which provides drinking water to 25% of the residents of Hood River County. Mt Hood Meadows also owns a 1,400 acre ski permit area which is within the Tilly Jane Roadless Area. 50 acres of this permit are currently developed as a ski area. As part of the settlement, all of these lands excepting the 50 acre ski development would be permanently protected through congressionally-designated Wilderness.

In March of 2005, the parties commissioned an appraisal by an independent appraiser selected by the Hood River Valley Residents Committee. The appraiser completed his report in September of 2005 valuing the exchange properties on both sides of the mountain. The appraisal determined that the ski area and the 720 acres of land was worth more than the 120 acres in Government Camp, and Mt Hood Meadows agreed to donate the difference to allow the entire North Side to be protected. The historic solution was reached after months of intense negotiations among Mt Hood Meadows, the Hood River Valley Residents Committee, and Hood River County.

The Forest Service was invited to participate early on in the process but declined to do so. Yet, in an Oregonian story that appeared in the paper in September of 2006, a retired USFS official stated that the property would fetch far more at auction.

However, Oregonians are not interested in getting a big pile of money in exchange for federal land. At Cooper Spur, conservation groups have actually advocated for the protection of this wild qualities of this amazing place. All too often conservation groups face the false frame - jobs versus environment - and what ECONW provides is a true assessment of the costs and benefits of protecting versus paving over the place.

As for real appraisals, those inquiries focus almost exclusively on the real estate values of the lands proposed to be traded. With this report, the conservation community aims to help the public understand the tangible and continuing economic benefits of permanently protecting these unique resources for future generations of Oregonians. The benefits that were assessed include the values or the water supply to Hood River County, the economic contribution of recreation in the Cooper Spur area and money saved by concentrating public infrastructure on the already developed south side of the mountain.

The Coalition has made the results of the study available in the hopes of informing the public of the full range of benefits that are provided by this historic solution. The Coalition has not relinquished the inherent appeal of protecting this place - as a wild place with old growth forests - rather they have simply provided another approach to understanding what is at stake.

Finally, I want to note that the Hood River Valley Residents Committee has been watchdogging Mt. Hood Meadows for over 30 years. The Residents Committee challenged Meadows over a previous land trade with Hood River County - and held their feet to the fire for getting a sweetheart deal from the County. The Residents Committee entered settlement discussions with Mt. Hood Meadows and through those discussions was able to reach out a mutually agreeable solution. The Residents Committee selected an appraiser and Mt. Hood Meadows hired that appraiser to value Mt. Hood Meadows' property on the North side. That appraiser also valued 120 acres in Government Camp. The Residents Committee received broad support for this proposal from the Cooper Spur Wild and Free Coalition, which includes over 15 groups from around the mountain. These groups support the proposed solution, which involves an open and public land trade. The questions that have been raised about that trade were raised by a retired Forest Service official who wanted to auction off the public land in Govt. Camp for cash. Oregonians, however, are not interested in a big pile of cash for public land, they would much rather see the North side protected and that is why the Cooper Spur Wild & Free Coalition and the Residents Committee agreed to settle their difference with Mt. Hood Meadows through a land trade.

All that remains is for Congress to include the proposal in federal legislation and order the Forest Service to complete the proposed solution.

Ralph Bloemers, Counsel to the Residents Committee
Crag Law Center
http://www.crag.org