BLM: Details of Plan
March 21, 2000
A key development in the hottest fight involving our vast public lands-- off-road-vehicles.
Trailriding enthusiasts are odds with environmentalists over where the machines should be allowed to go, and both sides have criticized the Bureau of Land Management.
Now--a new plan.
Here's News Specialist John Daley.
Perhaps the most contentious fight over ORVs is in the San Rafael Swell.
The BLM has just released a new plan to deal with the problem there.
Everyone agrees it's just a first step, but some wonder if it's just a band-aid.
It's a spectacular landscape--the San Rafael Swell.
At the center of the debate--off-road-vehicles.
And bullet-riddled federal government signs declaring some areas off limits show just how hot that debate has become.
Environmentalists say out-of-control ORVs are trashing the Swell.
They've sued the BLM, the agency that controls that land, to force it to take steps to stop the damage.
The BLM took its first step today, issuing a new plan which restricts motorized travel in seven wilderness study areas there, but allows four routes in the SId's Mountain area that will remain open on a conditional basis.
The head of Utah's BLM says the agency is looking for balance.
Sally Wisely/Utah BLM State Director: "I FEEL WE HAVE TWO MAIN GOALS: TO PROTECT OUR SPECIAL PLACES AND TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITY."
The BLM will post new signs, pass out new maps, and have monitors on the ground by Easter.
The head of a trailriders group says they're glad to have some guidance about where to go, and calls it a plan "we can live with."
Environmentalists too call it progress, but say it's just a superficial move that still leaves the vast majority of the Swell open to the machines.
Steve Bloch/SUWA: "IT'S TRYING TO PUT A BANDAID ON A SORE THAT'S BEEN THERE FOR 20 YEARS. IT'S JUST A SMALL MEASURE."
Meantime, the Sierra Club is planning a new adopt-a-wilderness program, looking to sign up hundreds of volunteers to monitor Utah's wild lands.
Organizer Marc Heileson says one goal is to keep an eye on destruction caused by ORVs.
Marc Heileson/Sierra Club: "WE'LL BE DOWN THERE AND WE'LL BE WATCHING."
All sides agree education is crucial, saying trailriders need to know just where they are allowed to ride.
The best way to check out maps and other information on the new plan is on the internet.
Dial-up the BLM's website at www.ut.blm.gov.
