February 26, 2007 Saving by using .. in the rainforest and
elsewhere … Is utilization sometimes the best path to
conservation? From adaptive reuse of historic buildings to
preservation of the rainforest, students of land use are
accepting more often the notion that limited use of a special
place may be the most stable method of conserving it for future
generations. This variant of sustainable use, sometimes derided
as an apology for degradation, runs counter to the traditional
model of using strict land use barriers. It is only a second-
best solution, more strict preservationists contend. But usage
has often been a large part of the most successful efforts to
protect special places. Congress was encouraged to enact the
legislation that reserved Yellowstone National Park in 1872 in
part by the political support of the Northern Pacific Railroad,
which foresaw a tourist magnet for its rail lines. The bison is
unlikely ever to go extinct in the United States in part because
it is now ranched for meat on private l