Decimation. Desecration. Destruction. Any of these words describes what was done to Chester Creek recently -- and not by the big flood ("Naturalists up in arms over downed trees along Chester Creek," July 17).
Volunteers did a wonderful job cleaning up debris at the park. They got the picnic area and creek bank looking almost normal -- until other hands took over and did more damage than can be reversed in 50 years or more. Six new oak trees don't replace what was lost. Along the whole length of the creek, old trees had almost as many roots in the water as on the bank, offering a habitat for all kinds of creatures and stabilizing the bank. One hopeful sight I notice was that some of the stumps are now sending up many new shoots. One day, if we're lucky, they may grow as big as their parent trees.
As we now know, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources had plans for the pond and the dams, but Mother Nature got there first. The upper dam was in such disrepair it was unsafe to cross, so no great loss. Since the DNR
wouldn't allow it to be repaired I hope the two ends can be left in memory of when things were built to aesthetically complement nature. Perhaps any salvaged stone blocks could go to repair the lower dam as a bridge across the creek is definitely needed.
Anne Jones
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Duluth
