February 4, 2010

	Featured Story: Mixed news for watershed restoration in budget The President’s budget was just released, and with it came increased attention to restoration within the Forest Service, unfortunately that was coupled with what appears to be a decrease in focus on the Legacy Roads and Trails Remediation Initiative.
	News: Man gets prison, fine for illegal ATV trail (MT) Building an illegal trail and clearing trees in the Gallatin National Forest will cost a Livingston man five months in federal prison, a fine and $25,000 restitution. Check out our blog about this article.
	News: Off-road vehicle bill signed into law (NJ) Mandatory registration for ORV's & stiffer penalties for illegal riding could be in the offing but the state Department of Environmental Protection must first select at least one site for a public riding facility before those provisions can go into effect.
	News: Forest Service closes ATV trail system (VA) The USFS has closed an ATV trail system where erosion caused by four-wheeling has created high levels of sediment in nearby streams. After completing water-quality monitoring, the Forest Service decided to close indefinitely the Patterson Mountain ATV Trail System.
	News: Lawsuit challenges forest's motorized vehicle plan (ID) Two environmental groups have filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming the new off-road vehicle plan for the Salmon-Challis National Forest fails to protect land, streams and wildlife across hundreds of thousands of acres of eastern and central Idaho backcountry.
	Opinion: A Sickly Smell From the Colorado ORV Program Colorado's public lands have experienced an explosion in ORV use in the past few years. Most riders are responsible, but a significant number of reckless riders continue to venture off marked trails to cause extensive and lasting damage to watersheds and fish and wildlife habitat.
	Opinion: Fat Tires in the Everglades (FL) Commissioners scheduled a public hearing on its growth management plan. An item brought forward by Miami-Dade County commissioners: whether or not to amend their comprehensive growth map to create a recreational area for ORV's in the middle of the Everglades.
	Resource: An unquiet nation Silence is something you assume you will always be able to find if you need it. All you have to do is drive far enough in the right direction, trek through quiet fields or woods, or dive into the sea's belly.But silence is rapidly disappearing, even in the most remote places.
	Resource: The jobs are in the trees With Congress & the White House considering spending scarce dollars to jump-start employment, probably the biggest jobs generator of all is investing in forest & land restoration & sustainable management, with conservation, watershed projects coming close behind.