FAIRVIEW — More than 30 landowners met Thursday at the Pennyroyal Opera House, where they took issue with the Egypt Valley Wildlife Area’s management and called for action to correct the situation.

Organizer Darol Dickinson of Dickinson Cattle Co. said the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has owned and operated the Egypt Valley Wildlife Area in Belmont and Guernsey counties since the 1990s. Area residents allege poor management on the part of the state, and that taking away the tax base of those 28,000 acres has impoverished Kirkwood Township.

Dickinson said that early on, ODNR made promises including building a 100-acre lake and public water system for nearby communities, as well as providing fishing and hunting opportunities. However, the agency would not be taxed for the acres.

Dickinson alleged the area has not been maintained and that hunting there is impractical. He also said the lack of select cut harvest timber and negligence in spraying for blister rust, which damages pine trees, and emerald ash borers, which feed on ash trees, has led to rot and loss of timber.

Dickinson also said the area has been infested by nuisance predators such as coyotes and bobcats that have decimated the wild turkey population.

“It isn’t a refuge, it’s a death camp,” he said.

He calculated the loss from property tax for 28 years at $11 per acre has cost the township more than $8 million. He mentioned other losses, including surface leasing for agriculture or recreation and oil and gas leases and future oil and gas royalties. At a lease rate of $5,000 per acre, the potential payout for 28,000 acres amounts to $140 million, not including any royalties.

Dickinson proposed that the land parcels be released for sale and private development, as well as the release of parcels for select cut mature timber and immediate release of all parcels where oil and gas leasing is possible. He also suggested loss damage reparations to the township and county from ODNR, including back taxes, a lake and a public water system.

The attendees were largely in agreement, but one man objected to some development and the loss of forests.

Kirkwood Township Trustee Tim Lara spoke and elaborated further afterward, saying there are unfulfilled promises from ODNR dating back about 15 years, but they were not made during official meetings and no minutes were taken.

During the meeting, Dickinson said he searched through Belmont County Board of Commissioners and Kirkwood Township Board of Trustees meeting minutes from the 1990s and could find no records of agreements made.

“When there are no minutes and it’s an after-hours meeting, you may know what they’re going to do and they may tell you what they’re going to do, but when you go back and look at it you have no evidence,” Dickinson said.

Attendees included Belmont County Commissioners Josh Meyer and J.P. Dutton and Port Authority Director Larry Merry.

Dutton said the commissioners also have been discussing the wildlife area.

“It’s time for the state of Ohio to hear from Belmont County government, from Belmont County residents, the concerns you have with the property,” he said. “At minimum, 28,000 acres with no plan on what they plan to pursue with this property, and I think it’s time they provide some answers.”

Dutton added that the state has decided to allow for oil and gas exploration under state lands, which begs the question of whether Egypt Valley will be tapped and what potential revenues could be used for. He added that there are communities on the outskirts of the wildlife area that do not have water service.

Merry said there are similar issues with government-owned land in other counties around the state.

Also present were representatives from the office of Ohio Rep. Don Jones, R-Freeport, and Ohio Sen. Brian Chavez, R-Marietta. Riley Eberhart, legislative aid to Jones, commented after the meeting.

“There are genuine concerns here. We’ve seen a community show up about this, and we are listening. Rep. Jones does want to listen to what they have to say, what they want to tell him about the situation. We may not have a solution right away — this is a pretty big issue that’s been going on for quite a few years and there’s a lot of moving pieces to it,” she said, adding that Jones encourages residents to remain active in their communities and government. “We can use that information ourselves to work through the state legislature with state directors, with different organizations to make a difference.”

Several attendees agreed to join Dickinson to form the Egypt Valley Recovery Committee. He said they will continue to gather information and reach out to elected representatives at the state level.

“I think we’re asking for something that’s fair and reasonable,” Dickinson said. “It is so easy for our state to be kind to this area, and they’ve sucked this value out of here and it’s time they gave back. I’m not sure all of what they will give back, but I hope they will be honorable about it and realize there’s a need.”

Dickinson said more information can be found at the group’s website, wasteland@downsize-government.org.