By MATT LINDSEY

COLTON -- The state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) hopes to have an agreement by the end of the year with camp owners and the landowner Danzer Forestland Inc. at Long Pond Easement along state Highway 56.

The owners of nearly 40 Adirondack camps were threatened with demolition of their structures in early 2017 on land they lease through Danzer, a German timber company based in Austria that produces veneer, lumber and other wood products from hardwood.

The camp owners were told year they had until the end of March of 2017 to let Sen. Patty Ritchie’s office know if they wish to keep their camps.

Since 2012, the camps have been scheduled to be removed on at least two occasions while Danzer has been in negotiations with DEC in an effort to save them.

Discussions are set to continue, although no official date has been publicized for meetings between the groups, according to Sen. Ritchie, R-Heuvelton.

Ritchie, who has been involved in the property dispute, is “cautiously optimistic” that an agreement can be reached.

“DEC and Danzer are currently negotiating the terms of an amendment to the 1999 Conservation Easement which will result in a net conservation benefit,” according to DEC Public Information Officer Benning DeLaMater.

Although they did not offer details of negotiations, DEC acknowledged that discussions are continuing and that the public would be given an opportunity to weight in.

“All details regarding the terms of the amendment will be released to the public once negotiations have concluded. In accordance with DEC Part 592 regulations, a public comment period on the proposed camp amendment will take place this fall,” he said.

“DEC hopes to finalize the amendment by the end of the year,” he said.

Camp owners will allegedly pay Danzer, who will then compensate or trade with DEC for the camp retentions, Ritchie said last March. The exact amount owed for each camp is still yet to be determined.

The amount of the actual payment per camp will depend on appraisals.

The current agreement calls for camp owners to pay Danzer $2,000 each year for rights to the camp building and one acre. The income is used to help offset a small portion of the overall cost of properly managing the property, including property taxes, forestry and other management costs, and environmental compliance.

In March of last year Danzer was willing to commit to a 10-year period to camp owners, meaning camp owners would have rights for a decade. Camps would receive one acre of land as part of the deal. The public would be prohibited from accessing that part of the land.

Just under a third of Danzer’s raw material comes from Africa where, as of 2016, they owned 1.1 million hectares of forestry concessions in the Republic of Congo. Annually, Danzer processes 500,000 cubic metres of wood, with processing facilities in North America and Europe. It claims to be the largest producer of decorative veneer in the world.

Danzer did not respond to an attempt from North Country This Week for comment on the issue.