See the Pearl Garden
Thursday, August 22, 1997
Not all rock musicians are into destruction, as members
and friends of rock giants Pearl Jam and Soundgarden
pitched in $400,000 to save a prime spot of wilderness in the Cascade
Mountains.
In its first partnership with rock musicians, the Land Conservancy of
Seattle and King County recently closed the deal with United Cascade
Mining. By buying the large parcel, the conservation group saved 220
acres of prime habitat. The property, which abuts the federally
protected Alpine Lakes Wilderness near Hardscrabble Creek, was slated
for development when it was saved by the rocker's generosity.
"Many of the musicians have been up in the Cascades and are aware of
its natural beauty," said Gene Duvernoy, the Conservancy's executive
director. "These folks are just really committed artists."
The property is home to eagles, bear, mountain lions and elk. "It
offers many varieties of trees, flowers and other vegetation...," Duvernoy
said. "At its highest zone of 5,000 to 7,000 feet, glades and meadows
mix with dense forests and jagged peaks. Snow depths can range to 20
feet and the summer season is short."
The sale of the parcel, the last
privately owned piece in the upper region of the Mid-Fork of the
Snoqualmie Valley, was three years in negotiation. "Our purchase of
this strategically important
property will forever protect this extraordinary region from the impact
of development," Duvernoy said.
Duvernoy called this conservation partnership "exceptional" as it is the
first time the Conservancy has worked with musicians since its 1989
inception.
The interest was first shown by the bands' friend, Gerry Amandes, who
recruited the musicians and Soundgarden manager Susan Silver. "Gerry
spends a lot of time in the wilderness, heard about the sale, and knew
the preservation would have an impact on the Mid-Fork Valley; a domino
effect on preservation of that area," Silver said.
Amandes was unavailable for comment as he was "in the wilderness,"
Silver said. Pearl Jam and Soundgarden, who disbanded in April, have
been involved in a number of charitable endeavors concerning human
rights to ecology (Soundgarden recorded an album for Greenpeace where
the studio was completely solar powered).
-- Sarah Love, Mountain Zone Staff
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