Stanislaus National Forest

Projects and Plans

Motorized Travel Management

Background

Environmental Impact Statement | Background | Inventory | Public Meetings

The rapid expansion of motor vehicle use on national forests and grasslands is impacting the natural and cultural resources of federal lands. The Chief of the Forest Service has identified unmanaged recreation - especially impacts from motor vehicles - as one of the key threats facing the nation's forests today. Unmanaged motorized use has resulted in unplanned roads and trails, erosion, watershed and habitat degradation, and impacts to cultural resources.

Improved management of motor vehicle use on National Forest System lands would allow the Forest Service to enhance opportunities for public enjoyment of the National Forest System, including motorized and non-motorized recreation experiences. The Forest Service is revising its national policy governing the use of wheeled motor vehicles to develop a system of roads, trails and areas designated for motor vehicle use to minimize or eliminate the undesirable impacts from unmanaged use.

Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV), hunting, environmental, and other non-motorized groups from California and at national levels have been involved in developing the strategy for route designation and the proposed motorized rule. The Stanislaus National Forest is seeking and encouraging the participation of local groups in this process at the forest-level.

TIME TABLE FOR CALIFORNIA

The following is a summary of the five steps that are designed to provide a strategy to implement the Memorandum of Intent (MOI) between the Forest Service and California State Parks and designate roads, trails and areas for motorized use on all National Forest land in California. Note that this timetable is the one established in the MOI.

1. Map existing roads, trails (both National Forest System and non-system), and off-route use areas, and enter the data in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Infrastructure (INFRA) databases. Designate team leaders, compile Forest Motorized/OHV Management Direction, assemble needed information, identify gaps in data, prioritize, develop action plans, and begin field surveys. Share maps with the public by December 2005 (earlier if possible). Collect public input by March 2006.
2. Issue temporary Forest Orders prohibiting wheeled vehicle use (including mountain bikes) off mapped roads, trails, and off-route use areas. Involve the public. Complete no later than June 2006.
3. Evaluate inventoried roads, trails, and areas; collaborate with the public in developing proposed systems of roads, trails, and specifically defined areas for use by motor vehicles; complete surveys of information and data gaps. Involve the public. Publish maps of proposals by September 2006. Collect public input no later than February 2007.
4. Complete analyses and prepare National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents that propose a system of designated roads, trails and specifically defined areas for motor vehicle use. Involve the public in compliance with NEPA and Forest Service regulation and policy. Complete no later than December 2007.
5. Issue Forest Orders to prohibit motor vehicle use off roads, designated trails, and specifically defined areas. Involve the public. Install appropriate signing, publish maps of approved OHV systems for public distribution, and implement any mitigation measures by September 2008.

IMPLEMENTATION GOALS

The goal is to have a motorized route system that is both manageable and sustainable. Options that arise through analysis may include (but are not limited to) making adjustments to the designated system to improve some routes through re-routes and/or additions, consolidate others to eliminate duplication, and close routes that are unable to be maintained in a manner compliant with applicable laws, regulations and policies.

A 'manageable' system would be designed and located on the landscape such that routine maintenance - barring the impacts of unforeseen events such as wildfires or floods - would allow the motorized system to be maintained annually in a condition compliant with applicable laws, regulations and policies. A 'sustainable' motorized system would be an environmentally sound system that could be maintained in an acceptable condition throughout many consecutive years.

Problem

The Chief of the Forest Service has identified unmanaged recreation - especially impacts from OHVs - as one of the key concerns facing the nation's forests and grasslands today. Unmanaged OHV use is creating a number of undesirable impacts on National Forest System (NFS) lands including: user-created unplanned roads and trails; severely eroded soils; damaged wetlands and harm to wetland species; habitat destruction; degraded water quality; the spread of invasive species; user conflicts; destruction of cultural sites; and disturbance to sites sacred to Native Americans.

Opportunity

The Pacific Southwest Region of the Forest Service has entered into a Memorandum of Intent (MOI) with the Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Commission and the Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division of California State Parks and Recreation. The MOI spells out the strategy the Region will use to designate roads, trails, and small areas for Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) use and sets a schedule for completion. It also identifies a level of funding support the OHV Commission will provide to assist the Forests in the route designation effort.

Key Messages

• OHVs are a great way to explore public lands, but their use on national forests and grasslands has exploded over the past 30 years. Revised management practices are needed now to respond to the demand.
• The Forest Service is dedicated to providing quality OHV recreational experiences on National Forest System managed lands while meeting its responsibility to manage and protect natural resources.
• As new OHV management policy and practices are considered, the Forest Service will actively seek to keep the public involved and informed.
• On the Stanislaus National Forest, as per the Forest Land and Resource Management Plan, as amended, cross country OHV use and creating your own routes is prohibited.
• Our goal is to have an OHV route system that is both manageable and sustainable for the Stanislaus National Forest. A 'manageable' OHV route system would be designed and located on the landscape such that routine maintenance - barring the impacts of unforeseen events such as wildfires or floods - would allow the trail system to be maintained annually in an acceptable condition. A 'sustainable' OHV route system would be an environmentally-sound route system that could be maintained in an acceptable condition throughout many consecutive years.
• We will be reviewing our existing OHV routes - our currently designated system plus the inventoried routes (including unclassified routes currently in use by OHVs) - and making adjustments to improve OHV routes through re-routes and/or additions, consolidation of routes to eliminate duplication, and closure of routes that are of greatest environmental concern. Over snow vehicle (OSV) routes are not included in this effort.
• The Stanislaus National Forest does have some currently designated OHV routes (Interface area on the Calaveras Ranger District, the Granite area on the Groveland Ranger District, and the Summit Ranger District). These areas/currently designated OHV routes will not be re-opened/re-considered in the current OHV Route Designation Process.
• The overall OHV Route Designation Process is a multi-year effort.
• The magnitude of the overall OHV Route Designation Project will require that public meetings/briefings be held every 3-4 months to keep the public informed and involved.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

• For National OHV management information, visit the following website: http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/. From this site, links are available to all National Forest websites.
• For California National Forest OHV management information (including the OHV Route Designation Guidebook for California Forests, June 2004), visit the following website: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/rwhr/ohv/route-designation.
• For OHV management on public lands administered by the Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management, contact Bill Haigh, Folsom Field Manager, at 916.985.4475.

CURRENT STATUS

To date we have:

• Completed an inventory of existing motorized trails and routes on the Forest (Step 1).
• Held a series of public meetings to collect information from the public regarding the accuracy of the inventory and to help the Forest define the proposed action (Step 3). At those meetings we presented our "discussion proposals" and accepted public comments.
• Reviewed the public comments received to date and are now ready to present the proposed action.

USDA Forest Service - Stanislaus National Forest
Last Modified: Monday, 04 August 2008 at 17:00:54 EDT