Maybe We Are Going About This SASS Thing All Wrong - A Little Backward Thinking May Be a Better Approach

Ya know…maybe I am looking at this Scenic Area of State Wide Significance (SASS) all wrong.

Till  now  I have been a supporter of this idea.  Of course one of the claims is that this is a way to enhance the tourism economy of the 1000 Islands Region and promote this beautiful area as widely as possible while keeping visually invasive development from destroying our scenic treasure.

Some people are against SASS believing it brings more regulation and would inhibit development. 

But wait a minute, do I really want a SASS designation bringing more tourists to the 1000 Islands bringing more impacts?

More people spending more money. More boats, more cars, more T-shirt shops, more bars, hotels, and restaurants, more tour boats, more pollution!

Maybe these anti SASS people are onto something.   Why bother promoting and protecting this area, it just brings more problems.

I mean after all, look at some of our iconic national parks like Grand Canyon or Yosemite  that are recognized and promoted for their unique and spectacular beauty and where there really are significant regulations.  I can tell you from personal experience that the main tourist areas in these parks have become like cities in the summer, with the same city problems.

Maybe we shouldn’t be looking to the future to promote our beautiful region for more tourism and potentially wise low visual  impact economic growth. What Communist came up with that idea anyhow? 

 Maybe the provincial backward thinking  of the anti SASS people is right on.

 Maybe we  should keep the status quo, or better yet let our region subtly slide backward and let its little tourist towns slowly  die on the vine, till the last T-shirt and trinket shop along the waterfront fades away, and the last tour boats sink at the dock.

Yeah…that’s it!!!  I’m viewing this all wrong!

That may be the ultimate protect of our region after all.  Towns fading away, less tourism, wise development dies, less people, fewer boats and jet skis, fewer second homes, fewer tourist related businesses, all adding up to less environmental  impacts.

It’s an ingenious solution for protection of our region. 

As our  tourism and communities die off nature will take back the 1000 Islands and net net it is a good thing for the ultimate protection making it less crowded and more scenic as time goes on.  Maybe if we push it far enough we could get back to a wilderness setting, and then TILT could buy it all up and preserve it. 

After all it would be a more quiet peaceful setting to enjoy for those of us who really love it.