ATTENTION!

 

Unofficially, Erie County Parks has decided to stop the Eternal Flame Falls disc golf course from further development, and to remove the metal chain baskets already installed. 

HOWEVER, I will keep this petition open until we have some definitive word about what the next steps are.  Please sign it, if you support this cause.

Thank you to everyone who has showed their support thus far, in maintaining Eternal Flame Falls as scenic and natural as possible. 

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The Eternal Flame Falls section (a.k.a. Shale Creek Preserve) of Chestnut Ridge Park (Orchard Park, NY) is threatened by the development of a new frisbee golf course.  The course conflicts with previous park master plans, calling for the area's designation as a Natural Reserve Zone.

We are not the first community to be concerned with the impacts of a disc golf course upon a cherished park. 

I hear your next question - just how can a frisbee golf course harm the park?  There have been reports and dissertations written about the environmental impacts of disc golf.

Here are a few of the negative environmental and recreational impacts that the new course will bring, many of which are already visible at the current frisbee golf course located within the same park:

-The purposeful creation of course “fairways” involves cutting down forest trees, typically understory individuals. Some trees have already been cut down within the Eternal Flame Falls area.  Course fairways - both intentionally and unintentionally created - alter the viewshed of the popular trails throughout this area, by creating forest openings.

-Concentrated foot travel along "herd paths" across creeks speeds up erosion into the nearby gullies. The new course is designed in steep terrain, already sensitive to erosion.

-Frisbees inflict hundreds of wounds upon countless numbers of trees within the course, that hasten tree mortality.

-Poorly-situated frisbee golf holes run across popular foot paths, and errant frisbees are a safety hazard to those using the park for other means.

-Soil compaction from foot travel restricts the regeneration of the forest understory. Young trees cannot grow in hard-packed soil.

-Littering could increase.

-Holes located along gullies impose a safety risk to the players of the course itself.

-Course-related noise affects the relative tranquility of the area.

-Rare plants, such as Pink Lady's Slipper, have been reported in the Eternal Flame Falls area, and confirmed elsewhere in the park.  They are protected under State Law, yet they could be threatened by the new course.  The park's namesake species, the American chestnut, is also found in the Eternal Flame Falls area.

The original course is approximately a mile long, and the collective impacts upon the forest are evident throughout its entire length. Please do not let this happen elsewhere within Chestnut Ridge Park, especially not in the scenic Eternal Flame Falls area.

Disc golf can have its benefits, but not in this sensitive area of Chestnut Ridge Park.  The Eternal Flame Falls area should be maintained for its traditional uses – passive recreation and scenic enjoyment. We request that the disc golf course be temporarily suspended, so that we can discuss the appropriate uses for this area.

Please sign this petition to protect the solitude and nature of Eternal Flame Falls.