Home | News | Info | What We Do | BLM Facts | Directory | OHV Info

 
♦The Challenge
Burgeoning urban populations and increased OHV sales pose a challenge to land management agencies in the west. All land management agencies are experiencing this challenge to varying degrees, but this issue is especially challenging for the BLM with 23 million acres of public land to manage.

"Now more than ever, the public is turning to BLM-managed lands as a sanctuary from urban life. The extensive network of back-country roads and trails found on the 23-million acres of BLM lands in Utah are an invaluable asset. The tricky part, of course, is striking the proper balance of use and protection." --State Director Sally Wisely

♦The Solution
Recognizing a need to step up OHV management efforts, Utah BLM State Director Sally Wisely directed the development and implementation of A Management Approach to OHV Use on Public Land in Utah. In this management strategy, BLM outlines its OHV management goal as follows: to manage the use of OHVs in partnership with other federal and state land managing agencies, tribal governments, local governments, communities, and interest groups so as to protect public and resources, while providing opportunities for the safe use and enjoyment of OHVs in managed open areas and on designated roads and trails.

BLM’s strategy to meet this goal contains several key elements:

• Partnership Efforts – Use of partnerships to leverage resources
• Land Use Planning – Revising OHV prescriptions through planning
• Restrictive Orders – Use of restrictive orders to address problem areas
• Special emphasis on WSAs – Managing WSAs to ensure non-impairment

♦Partnerships
The BLM has been active in partnering with other agencies to manage off-highway vehicles. Several different efforts are ongoing in this arena:

►BLM/Emery County Law Enforcement Agreement

“The cooperative law enforcement agreement between the BLM and Emery County was a great way to double our law enforcement presence over night. What better way to demonstrate that we are working together to enhance resource protection and make this area a better, safer place for people to enjoy.” --Patrick Gubbins, Price Field Office Manager

►Natural Resources Coordinating Council Efforts (NRCC)
The NRCC is a collaborative body of natural resource managers and others with associated responsibilities who work together on various natural resource issues. Since off-highway vehicle management issues are common among all natural resource agencies, members of the NRCC group chose to establish an OHV Steering Committee and three teams to specifically work on OHV issues. Collectively they have numerous accomplishments.

►Partnering with User Groups
Working together is the key. Volunteers have proven to be an invaluable asset in helping the BLM accomplish its complex multiple-use mission. Part of that mission is management of off-highway vehicles and volunteers have risen to the occasion. Numerous individuals and groups have volunteered their time to build and install information kiosks, install direction signs, rehabilitate closed areas, and install fencing. BLM partners include scout groups, church groups, small businesses, non-profit organizations, as well as county, state, and federal government agencies.

♦Land Use Planning
Off-highway vehicles are a major issue in resource management planning (RMP) efforts. Utah has six land use planning efforts and one transportation plan underway. Currently, six of our eleven field offices (Price, Vernal, Richfield, Moab, Monticello, and Kanab) are conducting comprehensive planning efforts to develop new RMPs.

The Completion of BLM's RMPs will result in the following:
►Allocation of land into one of three land use categories
►Designation of routes that will lead to development of travel plans for a region
►Reduction in the number of acres in the “open to cross-country travel” category

More detailed specific planning information is found in the document titled Designating Off Highway Vehicle Routes in the Land Use Planning Process.

♦Restrictive Orders
During the past several years, the BLM has used restrictive orders in management of certain OHV areas. These restrictive orders have been implemented when and where needed to properly manage the resource. These areas include:

►Parunuweap Canyon WSA, Orderville Canyon WSA, North Fork Virgin River WSA
The BLM issued restrictions on motorized travel in Parunuweap Canyon, Orderville Canyon, and North Fork Virgin River BLM wilderness study areas (WSAs) near Kanab in August, 2000. The restriction was implemented to mitigate impacts to soils, vegetation, wildlife habitat and other resources from increasing off highway vehicle (OHV) use. This emergency travel order restricted motorized travel on public land in the three WSAs to only those routes and ways identified during the original wilderness inventory completed in 1980 and shown on the inventory maps.

►Moquith Mountain WSA
In 1998, the BLM issued travel restrictions on off-highway vehicle (OHV) use in approximately 14,140 acres of the Moquith Mountain Wilderness Study Area (WSA) including some 800 acres within the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Areas within the WSA that remained open to vehicle use included designated routes within closed areas and approximately 700 acres within the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Five designated routes within the non sand dune portion of the WSA on Moquith Mountain also remained open.

►San Rafael Swell
An emergency travel order for portions of the San Rafael Swell was implemented in March 2000. Restricted areas included Muddy Creek, Sid’s Mountain/Sid’s Cabin, Devil’s Canyon, Crack Canyon, San Rafael Reef, Horseshoe Canyon and Mexican Mountain WSAs. Travel restrictions were implemented due to OHV-caused damage to soils, vegetation and other resources that were impairing wilderness values over extensive portions of the affected WSAs.

The closure affected motorized vehicle use on all public lands in Price Field Office WSAs with exception of the following four routes in Sid’s Mountain: 1) the wash bottom of Coal Wash, including the short dugway from the west which enters this wash, and North Fork Coal Wash south until it exits the WSA over "Fix-It-Pass", 2) the wash bottom of South Fork Coal Wash from its junction with the North Fork to and including the "Eva Conover" way, 3) the "Devil’s Racetrack" way, and 4) the Justensen Flat access way, including lower Eagle Canyon southeast from the junction of this way. These routes have remained open on a conditional basis.

►Box Elder County Order
On April 24, 2003, the BLM issued travel restrictions on five areas in Box Elder County. This order limited travel to designated routes in Devils Playground, Grouse Creek Mountains, Hogup Mountains, Pilot Mountains, and Wildcat Hills. These restrictions were implemented due to adverse effects from OHV use including proliferation of new routes, damage and destruction of vegetation, increased soil erosion, and a likelihood of damage to cultural resources. The U.S. District Court recently upheld BLM's authority to issue travel restriction orders to address resource impacts.

♦Wilderness Study Areas
The BLM currently manages 95 WSAs that total 3.3 million acres of public lands in Utah. The WSAs are currently managed under an Interim Management Policy for Lands Under Wilderness Review.

►Behind the Rocks
The BLM has been active in managing off-highway vehicles and OHV areas in WSAs are no exception. The Moab Field Office has placed 6 information kiosks that provide great detail on the Behind the Rocks WSA and the rules associated with it. Information includes camping opportunities, "Protect Your Privilege, Stay on the Trail" ethics messages, and detailed information about each trail. 97 carsonite-type boundary signs and travel route directional signs have been erected on the WSA boundary.

In addition to the signing program, the Behind the Rocks WSA is monitored on a consistent basis. BLM’s interim management plan requires at least one monitoring trip trip per month, with more trips made if conditions and use warrant. Since March, 2000, BLM employees and volunteers have undertaken 96 separate monitoring visits to Behind the Rocks WSA. In 2004, 25 monitoring trips were made. This level of monitoring and signing activity was in place before the lawsuit was filed.

►Sids Mountain
In 2003, the San Rafael Motorized Route Designation Plan was finalized. This plan integrated the WSA emergency closures that were established in 2000 by not designating any routes in WSA’s (except for the 4 routes in the Sids Mountain WSA, which are “conditionally” open). On these four routes that remain open, a plan was developed to monitor effects to wilderness character. The plan designated 663 miles of routes for OHV use and closed about 400 miles.

A big success story from the Sids Mountain area is the help that public land managers are receiving from volunteers. Volunteers are involved in many facets of public land management. With their help, work that wouldn’t otherwise be completed is getting done. The public benefits from the decreased cost of the project, and those that participate leave knowing they have done something of substance. It may be raking and seeding a disturbed area, setting a post that holds a trail marker, or building a fence to protect a sensitive site like a rock art panel, or endangered plant habitat. No matter what the project is, everyone benefits. Hundreds of hours have been contributed over the past few years and thousands more are needed over the next.
 

< Home | News | Info | What We Do | BLM Facts | Directory >

Created by Utah Bureau of  Land Management
Last Updated:  April 26, 2006

Webmaster