Topeka ? Kansas may lack mountains and oceans, but it is filled with other wonders being studied by a group that has been directed to put together a plan to develop, manage and protect the state’s natural resources.

The Kansas Natural Resource Legacy Alliance was formed last session by the Legislature and recently finished a round of public hearings statewide.

In well-attended meetings this summer and fall, the 15-member group heard from hundreds of Kansans about the best way to use land, water and air.

“It has been an assessment of where we are and where do we need to be, and how do we get there,” said Steve Adams, natural resource coordinator for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

Adams, who serves as a staff assistant to the alliance, said the group was scheduled to have a draft report prepared by May and make recommendations in December for the 2004 Legislature.

The desires and concerns of Kansans are as varied as the landscape, Adams said.

In western Kansas, the major concerns are about depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer and the need for more lakes and reservoirs for recreation. Eastern Kansas concerns focus on preserving the Flint Hills and expanding hiking and biking trails in and around urbanized Johnson County.

Carolyn Wulfkuhle, a Douglas County farmer and agricultural businesswoman, is a member of the alliance. She said she learned from the public hearings that more needed to be done to give people a statewide perspective.

“Education is important. People in the eastern third of the state don’t understand the agricultural portion of western Kansas, and western Kansas doesn’t understand the eastern third of Kansas, as far as what they feel is important,” said Wulfkuhle, whose family owns Lone Pine Acres farm and Lone Pine Ag Services, which is a pesticide and fertilizer business.

The alliance has caused heartburn among environmentalists because it is made up primarily of people with an agribusiness perspective. Aside from the alliance members, it has nine nonvoting advisers, which include state agency representatives and representatives of the Kansas Farm Bureau and Kansas Livestock Assn.

Charles Benjamin, an attorney and lobbyist for the Kansas chapter of the Sierra Club, said the alliance’s deck had been stacked against producing pro-environmental recommendations to lawmakers.

The makeup of the alliance and absence of environmental advisory members was a typical example of the Kansas Legislature’s disdain for environmental concerns, he said.

“The largest and most influential environmental organization in the world is not being asked to provide input,” he said, referring to Sierra Club. “What is going on?”

Benjamin said he didn’t want to sound cynical, but added, “I don’t know what the ultimate aim of the legacy alliance is. I think I would say there is skepticism on our part.”

Wulfkuhle and Adams said they had heard the criticisms, but urged people to wait until the alliance produced its draft recommendations before forming an opinion.

“I really feel that the advice we have been getting has not been slanted toward agriculture,” Wulfkuhle said. “We are a farm family. We look at issues differently than someone in town. We want to protect our resources and have a good quality of life and stay economically sound.”