Environmentalists blast new off-road policy
By Matthew Daly The Associated Press |
November 3, 2005
WASHINGTON � Environmentalists and recreation groups decried a Forest Service plan to restrict off-road vehicles, saying the new policy could legitimize hundreds of illegal trails carved out by off-road enthusiasts.
The Forest Service announced Wednesday that it intends to halt the roughhewn roads and trails that proliferate in public forests due to increased traffic by dirt bikes and other off-road vehicles.
The new policy would require all 155 national forests and 20 grasslands to designate roads and trails that are open to motor-vehicle use. But for the first time, heavily traveled “renegade routes� created illegally by off-road drivers could be designated for legal use.
“Instead of a bold stride, we got a baby step,� said Jason Kiely, director of the Montana-based Natural Trails and Water Coalition. “The practical effect is that you are going to have to take out rogue routes created by off-roaders one at a time.�
The agency said it will take up to four years to designate roads and trails on all 193 million acres of public lands. Each forest or grassland will publish a map of approved routes riders can use, with penalties specified for riding on unmarked trails.
Environmentalists and other critics said the plan did not go far enough to ensure effective enforcement. In the past three decades, the number of off-road vehicle users has increased sevenfold to about 36 million, causing conflicts with other users such as hikers, horseback riders and the growing number of homeowners who live near national forests.
“This is like throwing a bucket of water on a raging inferno. It’s the right medicine � it’s just not nearly enough of it,� said Jim Furnish, a former deputy Forest Service chief who has been critical of the agency under the Bush administration.
“It’s almost an oxymoron that there is a good illegal route,� he added.
Forest Service officials defended the plan, saying some of the illegal routes have been used for so long that they no longer pose a threat.
“Some of the routes have evolved over the years to the point where they are enjoyed by the public,� said Jack Troyer, a regional forester who led the Forest Service team that developed the policy. Routes that cause erosion and other problems will be removed, he said.
Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth said the new policy encourages off-road enthusiasts to use the forests in an environmentally friendly way
“It’s my belief that most users want to do the right thing,� Bosworth said.
Don Amador of the Blue Ribbon Coalition, an Idaho-based group that advocates motorized recreation, called the new policy a good start and said he would encourage group members to participate as the Forest Service designates trails.
Amador called the criticism by environmentalists off-base . “It’s our feeling that when forests had an open designation, cross-country travel was legal. We feel those (long-established ) routes are legitimate, at least for consideration� by the Forest Service, he said.
Some New Mexico off-road enthusiasts have already been working with the Santa Fe National Forest to inventory and map trails. The New Mexico Off-Highway Vehicle Alliance issued a statement earlier this year saying it supported designating trails for off-road use but that no such restrictions should be made until trail inventories are completed.
The alliance also proposed setting a sound limit on off-road vehicles on national forests.
Both the alliance and the Tucson, Ariz.-based Center for Biological Diversity worry lack of funding will hamstring implementation of the off-highway vehicle rule.
More than 200,000 miles of forest roads are currently open to off-highway vehicle use as well as more than 36,000 miles of trails.
The New Mexican contributed to this report.
ON THE WEB
Forest Service off-highway policy:
www.fs.fed.us/recreation /programs/ohv/
