Protect Waldo's Purity.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Unique natural treasures impose upon their custodians unique responsibilities. For that reason, the extreme purity of Waldo Lake requires that the Willamette National Forest take extreme care to protect against degradation.

Errors should be on the side of caution; close calls should be decided in the lake's favor. After nearly 10 years of discussion and study, boats with gas-powered engines should be banned from Waldo Lake.

Waldo Lake, located 20 miles east of Oakridge, is the headwaters of the North Fork of the Willamette River. It is among the clearest lakes in the world - geologically akin to Lake Tahoe and chemically like Crater Lake, but more pure than either. The Atlas of Oregon Lakes describes Waldo's clarity as "closely similar to that of rainwater in a pristine envi- ronment."

The greatest threat to Waldo Lake's purity comes from human intrusion, which accelerated by a factor of 10 with the construction of a paved road in 1969. The road made Waldo Lake readily accessible from Eugene and other Willamette Valley communities. While people create more problems for the lake than the boats they bring with them, the precautionary principle - do nothing that can't be undone - argues for a policy recognizing that oil and water don't mix.

A ban on gas-powered boats is contained in the preferred alternative in the Willamette National Forest's Waldo Lake management plan. The motivation for the ban appears as much aesthetic as environmental - lakeside use of gas-powered generators and chain saws also would be banned. The proposal would not end all of the noisy disruptions at Waldo Lake, but the tranquility of the entire area would be greatly enhanced. Waldo Lake, bordered on two sides by wilderness, should offer a quieter experience than nearby Odell and Crescent lakes, where much of the activity centers on motorized recreation.

The preferred alternative focuses on the aesthetic merits of a ban because the environmental gains can't easily be quantified - there are no studies tracing water-quality problems to the use of gas-powered engines. Yet it's undeniable that fuel and oil are discharged and spilled from gas engines - quite a lot of it, in the case of two-stroke engines. By the time evidence suggested that the spillages and discharges were harming the lake, the damage would have been done. Better to act now. In the case of Waldo Lake, it's better to be overprotective.

The ban would cause few hardships. Electric motors would still be permitted, allowing older or disabled people to get out on the lake or reach dispersed campsites by boat. Waldo Lake is not a favorite destination for people with gas-powered boats. The speed limit is 10 mph, which means waterskiers and personal watercraft hotdoggers must go elsewhere. The end of an ill-considered stocking program in 1990 has led anglers to try their luck in other waters. About five of six watercraft on Waldo Lake already are powered by sails, paddles or oars, and most visitors say they would favor a ban on gas engines.

Getting gas engines off of Waldo Lake would be only a minor part of a comprehensive effort to protect the lake's purity. The U.S. Forest Service has been warned of threats to the lake's water quality since 1995, when a survey found that the number of microscopic organisms had increased as much as 20-fold over a 30-year period. Signs of degradation led federal land managers to make improvements in campground waste disposal systems, move campsites back from the lakeside and take other steps to protect the water.

Continued monitoring is essential, and further steps to reduce human impacts may be required.

The 10-fold increase in visitors to Waldo Lake means that each one must be 10 times more careful to protect it. Keeping fuel, oil and exhaust away from the lake's waters is an obvious step.