MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Handing a defeat to conservationists, a logging company has struck a $9.75 million deal to buy a 16-mile stretch of densely forested canyon popular with hikers and rafters.
The buyer, Allegheny Wood Products, will probably cut timber there every 12 to 15 years, said Allegheny Energy, the seller of the Cheat River tract in far northern West Virginia.
The state of West Virginia, in collaboration with the Conservation Fund and private recreational users, had hoped to buy the 5,600 acres to protect it permanently.
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The state offered $9.9 million Thursday, three weeks after official bidding closed, said Susan Small-Plante, a spokeswoman for Gov. Bob Wise.