WEB EXCLUSIVE: Fairy Caves Closing Scandal
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May 3, 2011
Kallie Felkey, J1 Corespondent
The National Speleological Society (NSS) will allow cave trips for the Glenwood Springs National Convention on July 18-22 2011. Cavers will have the opportunity to spelunk through many caves in Colorado. Cavers will also have the opportunity to take caving classes and camp at the Glenwood Springs High School.
The National Speleological Society (NSS) holds a convention in different locations across the country every year. This year they have chosen Colorado and GSHS to host the convention. Although this is an annual convention, some worries have arisen because of the spread of White Nose Syndrome (WNS).
White Nose Syndrome is a disease that is spreading among bats; “it was named for the white fungus that grows around the muzzles, ears, and wing membranes of affected bats,” Fort Collins Science Center said. WNS originated in the East coast where caves are moist and damp and spread from cavers going into different caves. “The NSS convention brings many cavers from the East coast, who may be carrying WNS,” Base Operations Manager Wade Beattie said.
The Glenwood Caverns has many precautions in place to protect the cave life, including the bats. “Each Caver has a set of ethics to protect the caves. One thing that is well known by cavers is that you never wear the same set of clothes inside different caves, not even the shoes.” Beattie said. To protect each cave, cavers must wear a different set of clothing or clothes that are uncontaminated from other caves systems or organic bacteria. “We will not be closing the Fairy caves; we will just teach people to be more aware of the protocols to protect the caves,” Beattie said.
Each cave spelunker guide has their own set of ethics they abide by. “They have to make sure their group is not wearing anything that could be carrying WNS, each spelunker must be cautious of what they bring into the caves if we want to preserve the caves,” Beattie said. Although WNS hasn’t come to Colorado, the Fairy Caves are taking precautions to make sure it doesn’t affect their bat populations.
The NSS has already started taking precautions to protect many of the caves across Colorado. “The NSS has closed off caves from the public to protect them and only allow people who know how to preserve the caves. They even have secret caves for spelunkers who can keep them a secret from the public,” Beattie said. The NSS keeps them hidden from the public to preserve them and let them grow new formations without the interference or vandalism from humans. “Caves that have WNS get closed down until the disease has dissipated so the bacteria can’t be spread around anymore.” Fort Collins Science Center said.
“We want people to become aware of this problem and become educated on how to prevent the spread of WNS,” Beattie said. There will be classes on caving held at the Glenwood Springs High School in July of 2011.
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