Issue 101 - January 16, 2006
1. LAWSUIT ADDRESSES OFF-ROAD VEHICLE DAMAGE IN NATIONAL PARKS
2. YELLOWSTONE SNOWMOBILE CONTROVERSY CONTINUES
3. GROUPS SUE TO PROTECT RARE BUTTERFLY FROM OFF-ROAD VEHICLES
4. NEW OFF-ROAD VEHICLE RULES IN NEW MEXICO
5. JUDGE HALTS SNOWMOBILE GROOMING ON FEDERAL LAND
6. NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE PARK TARGETS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE USERS
7. OFF-ROAD VEHICLE RESTRICTIONS HAVE PROTECTED CANYON
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1. LAWSUIT ADDRESSES OFF-ROAD VEHICLE DAMAGE IN NATIONAL PARKS
Wildlands CPR, the Bluewater Network, and the National Parks Conservation Association filed a lawsuit against the National Park Service and the Department of Interior, in an attempt to protect the country’s national parks from the damage caused by illegitimate off-road vehicle use. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., alleges that the Park Service has failed to adequately protect the National Park System from the destruction resultant from off-road vehicle use.
In July 2004, the plaintiffs met with Park Service officials to express concerns about the harm being inflicted on America’s national parks by rampant off-road vehicle use. The Park Service then conducted an internal study of its land to assess the damage. The affected areas include archaeological sites at the Grand Canyon, hiking/horseback riding trails in Olympic National Park, animal burrowing areas in Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, the Appalachian Trail, and fossil repositories at Badlands National Park, where off-road vehicles facilitate easy poaching of the specimens. The Park Service study also reported a significant lack of funding for monitoring and enforcement of motorized recreation regulations. The only solution offered by the agency was further study of some areas.
This problem will likely worsen in the near future. The Department of the Interior has proposed a draft revision of the Parks’ management policies, which would weaken protections against off-road vehicle over-use. The agency is accepting public comment on its proposed policy revision for the next few months. More information can be found online at http://www.bluewaternetwork.org/npsorv and http://www.npca.org/policyrewrites/management_policies_factsheet_10_27_0....
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2. YELLOWSTONE SNOWMOBILE CONTROVERSY CONTINUES
The debate over winter use in Yellowstone National Park, specifically snowmobile recreation, endures as the National Park Service continues work on another environmental impact statement in preparation for implementing a final use plan in 2007.
The current, temporary rules allow 720 snowmobiles in the park each day, along with 18 snowcoaches. They must be part of commercially guided tours, and adhere to noise pollution standards. These have been set at a 75% threshold, which means that over-snow vehicle noise can be heard in a given area only 75% of the time.
However, a noise report released in December states that over-snow vehicle noise often exceeded limits, especially around “destination” spots like Old Faithful. Park Service officials have acknowledged that noise levels in Yellowstone need to be reduced, and have suggested reducing snowmobile speed limits and idle time as potential solutions.
The Park Service has also released results from the latest in a series of comment periods it has held regarding winter use in Yellowstone and Teton National Parks. More than 33,000 comments were submitted, 90% of which advocated banning snowmobile use in the park. These responses join the half-million already received by the agency that reflect a similar distribution of opinions.
A third recently released study about the issue details the response of wildlife to over-snow vehicle presence and sounds. Scientists observed more than 2100 interactions between elk, bison, and swans, and the machines. Of those, 81% of the animals displayed no reaction, or simply looked and then resumed what they were doing. Nine percent displayed attention or alarm, 7% left the area, and 3% of the animals showed a flight response. The study suggests that any adverse effects sustained on an individual level have been compensated for at the population level. However, a Park Service snowmobile plan in 2003 said regulations, policies and executive orders “clearly state that disturbance to wildlife, regardless of population-level effects, is unacceptable in national parks.”
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3. GROUPS SUE TO PROTECT RARE BUTTERFLY FROM OFF-ROAD VEHICLES
The Center for Biological Diversity, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and the Nevada Outdoor Recreation Association filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in an attempt to protect a rare butterfly species, the Sand Mountain blue butterfly, from the habitat degradation off-road vehicle use is causing in the one place it is known to live: the Sand Mountain Recreation Area of western Nevada. The butterflies’ sole habitat is one of the largest sand dunes in the west, and is also a very popular area for off-road vehicle recreation, drawing more than 50,000 users annually.
The lawsuit alleges that the USFS has been negligent in its failure to declare the Sand Mountain blue butterfly an endangered species, as petitions filed in 2004 requested. Such a designation would legally require the agency to protect the butterflies’ habitat from damage, including that inflicted by motorized recreation. Nevada USFS officials cite lack of funds as the primary obstacle to the further study of the issue required to pursue a new “endangered” listing. The agency has instead been working with local groups intent on the butterflies’ survival, and plans to post more signs designating approved off-road vehicle routes, construct fencing around critical habitat, and create an enhanced law enforcement presence in the area.
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4. NEW OFF-ROAD VEHICLE RULES IN NEW MEXICO
A New Mexican law has changed regulations for off-road vehicle recreation in the state, opening more off-road vehicle routes, adding safety provisions and increasing user fees and penalties. This law is an attempt to make off-road vehicle recreation less dangerous in a state that has seen more than 60 ORV-related fatalities in the last decade. The location or amounts of new routes on state land has yet to be announced.
Off-road vehicle riders under 18 now need to wear helmets and goggles at all times, and take a safety training course. They are not permitted to have passengers on their off-road vehicles. Children under 10 who ride off-road vehicles need constant supervision, and need to use “appropriately sized” vehicles. The appropriate size will be determined by a Trail Safety Board composed of ORV dealers, environmentalists, law enforcement officials, health professionals, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management.
The registration fees have increased from $15 for a three-year registration to $17 for two years. Also, those who ride on state land will be required to pay an additional fee of up to $30. Breaking the new law is considered a misdemeanor, and violators may have to attend additional training courses.
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5. JUDGE HALTS SNOWMOBILE GROOMING ON FEDERAL LAND
An order to halt grooming of trails for snowmobiling in a critical section of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest has been issued by a U.S. District Judge of Eastern Washington. The order was the result of a motion for preliminary injunction in a lawsuit filed by environmental groups against the U.S. Forest Service, claiming that threatened caribou in the area are not being afforded adequate protection. Plaintiffs include the Selkirk Conservation Alliance, Defenders of Wildlife, Idaho Conservation League, and the Lands Council of Spokane.
The last remaining woodland caribou in the lower 48 states are part of a small herd that migrates between Idaho, Washington, and British Columbia. Under the Endangered Species Act, a 450,000 acre Recovery Zone in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest has been designated, 25 square miles of which are closed to snowmobiles.
The area is a popular snowmobiling destination, and outdoor recreation groups as well as local business interests have intervened in the lawsuit. However, the order only restricts trail grooming in the Recovery Zone and doesn’t restrict snowmobile use in any other part of the forest. The ruling states that the Forest Service’s agreements with local trail groomers should have included more discussion with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about the impacts of snowmobile use on the caribou herd.
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6. NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE PARK TARGETS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE USERS
In an effort to accommodate the growing demand for off-road vehicle trails in the region, New Hampshire is in the process of buying 7,500 acres to be converted to a state park open to off-road vehicle use. The park will provide up to 350 miles of off-road vehicle routes, most of which will be located on old logging roads. Some could be open as early as spring of 2006. This will be the first park of its kind in New England, and is not intended to be used only by off-road vehicle riders, but also to provide a destination for snowmobilers, mountain bikers, hikers, skiers, boaters, hunters, and dog sledders.
Conflicts between off-road vehicle users and landowners have escalated with the sport’s popularity. There has been significant opposition in the past to the creation of new ORV routes in the state. Development plans to provide riders with amenities in the surrounding area are already underway.
Conservation groups have expressed concern that off-road vehicle riders will stray from designated routes, and damage ecosystems in the adjacent White Mountain National Forest. In many areas around the country, restricting vehicles to legitimate routes has proved difficult.
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7. OFF-ROAD VEHICLE RESTRICTIONS HAVE PROTECTED CANYON
A California canyon containing a rare desert stream has been closed to off-road vehicle use for four years and in its recovery process is transforming into a swath of prime habitat for wildlife, including some threatened species.
A former hotspot of off-road vehicle activity, Surprise Canyon, located on the western edge of Death Valley National Park, has been protected as the result of a 2000 lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity. The area was suffering soil erosion, streambed alteration, and other environmental degradation as the result of unregulated off-road vehicle use. For the last four years, it has been available only to non-motorized recreation. The desert riparian habitat the canyon provides makes it an extremely critical but sensitive area, functioning as an oasis for numerous plant and animal species.
The area is managed jointly by the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management who are conducting a study to determine the future of the area, and whether motorized access will be allowed in the future.