FYI. Here is the text of a message I just emailed to Carol Morello of
the Washington Post.
Begin forwarded message:
From: Wes Brown <wbrown@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: May 21, 2005 11:33:56 AM EDT
To: MorelloC@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Cc: Susan Brown <susanbb@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Disallowance of birding from the CBBT islands
My wife and I live on the DelMarVa, are birders and, for each of the
past three years, have had written permission from the Chesapeake Bay
Bridge and Tunnel District to park, for the purpose of observing
birds, on the three islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel (CBBT)
that are closed to the public. However, our current permission letter
provides us with that privilege only until May 31, 2005, after which,
for security reasons we are told, birding from the islands will no
longer be permitted. We have always regarded CBBT permission as a
great boon and a genuine privilege, since it allows us to see pelagic
bird species that can almost never be seen from shore. While we do
not regard CBBT island access as an entitlement and are aware of the
need for increased security against terrorist acts, we are puzzled by
this particular measure.
For the past year and one-half, the use of CBBT islands 2-4 for
birding has required not only a valid and current letter of
permission, but also presentation in person at the toll office of the
license of the vehicle driver, the names of all passengers, and the
vehicle registration, before going onto the CBBT. As a part of that
process, at each visit the documentation is verified online before
permission to bird from the islands is granted. Two other changes
we've noted is that a CBBT security patrol officer now appears to be
permanently stationed on each island, whereas prior to 2004 there were
only occasional spot checks, and there are now barriers in the parking
lots of the islands that prevent direct and speedy access to the
points facing the naval passages between the islands. We regard these
measures as reasonable and understandable, and we've heard no
grumbling about them from our birding colleagues. Also, these
measures appear to us to be sufficient to prevent and counter acts of
terrorism, since (presumably) drivers and passengers names are checked
against a list of known or suspected terrorists and (again,
presumably) the security patrol officers on the islands are alert and
adequately armed.
We have been told that the interdiction of birders' access to the CBBT
islands results from concerns that a terrorist parked on an island
could launch a missile at a naval vessel as it passed by. While such
an act might be possible, it is difficult to envision how that danger
could be linked to or lessened by disallowance of birding activities.
Birders employ binoculars and spotting scopes, and I assume that even
the largest spotting scope we use is much smaller than and looks
grossly different from a missile that could pose a genuine threat to a
U. S. Naval vessel. Surely an alert security officer would see the
difference. Also, birders move around actively, with most of their
attention focussed on birds, not on ships, and much of their activity
is concentrated at the sides rather than at the tips of of the
islands. Again, an alert security officer would easily see those
behavioral differences. Given this, we do not credit the argument
that prohibiting birding from the islands will reduce the threat of a
terrorist act on U. S. Naval vessels. In fact, we believe that the
continuance of birding on the islands would enhance security, since
genuine birders would immediately notice the differences just
described and would be inclined to report suspicious persons or
behavior to security personnel.
It is, of course, possible that the discontinuance of birding results
from considerations other than that assumed above. If that is the
case, then those reasons ought to be made public so that we can know
and evaluate them. The CBBT is a unique feature of the Virginia coast
and is well-known to birders nationally and internationally. Many
birders travel (and spend money) here expressly for the privilege of
birding the CBBT. Without the CBBT, we have little (or perhaps less)
to offer than can be offered by several of the other Atlantic coastal
States (e.g., North Carolina).
P.S. We've heard nothing about a similar interdiction of public access
to the restaurant and other facilities located on CBBT island #1. Is
that also contemplated? Is it conceivable, in a supposedly rational
world, that the authorities supervising the security of the CBBT and
associated passages through it regard bird watchers as more of a
threat than the unscreened public at large?
