A Cronkite News Service Weekend Special
Off-highway vehicle programs will depend on buy-in from riders
With BC-CNS-OHV-Programs
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By DEANNA DENT
Cronkite News Service
PHOENIX _ “I told you to get outta here,” the ATV rider says, flinging his helmet to the ground and storming toward two men handing out maps of official off-roading trails. “I come out for a ride and you guys are out here closing the place down.”
“Whoa, whoa,” one of the men replies, holding his ground. “We’re just here trying to talk to people about responsible riding.”
A state law taking effect Jan. 1 will require off-highway vehicle owners to a pay a registration fee that will fund more law enforcement and allow officials to mark legal trails, among other provisions. The National Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, meanwhile, are coordinating on rules to force riders to stick to designated trails on federal land.
In the end, however, saving Arizona’s open spaces from improper OHV use could come down to encounters such as this one, a role-playing exercise for volunteers who will counsel riders as part of the OHV Ambassadors program.
“I believe the onus is on the people that are out there and the people that are riding,” said Jim Harken, an Arizona Game and Fish Department spokesman who played the angry rider in the exercise. “They’re the ones that are ultimately going to make it happen.”
The use of all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes and other vehicles has soared along with Arizona’s population. A 2002 Arizona State University study found that roughly one-fifth of Arizonans considered themselves off-highway vehicle enthusiasts, spending an average of 25.4 days per year using their vehicles.
“It’s important to have some sort of management of off-road vehicles because they’re devastating the environment,” said Sandy Bahr, a community outreach coordinator with the Grand Canyon chapter of the Sierra Club.
OHV riders will see a big change come Jan. 1, when a state law shepherded by Rep. Jerry P. Weiers, R-Glendale, will require them to purchase a decal to register their vehicles. The cost has yet to be set, but it’s been estimated at around $23 annually and is expected to raise around $7 million a year to help manage OHV use.
Weiers said the legislation likely will be the most important of his career because of the need to control damage caused by irresponsible OHV riders. Even with the law’s provisions, he said it will take decades, if not centuries, for the desert to recover, if it ever does.
Supported by a broad coalition including environmental, OHV and hunting groups, the law will require riders to stick to designated trails and will make certain types of riding illegal, including damaging wildlife habitats, property or cultural or natural resources.
Weiers said educating riders is key to making the law work.
“They have to understand where they can and can’t ride,” he said.
While state officials get ready to enforce Arizona’s law, the National Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management are working with members of the public to develop travel-management rules governing OHV riding and other recreational uses. Those rules will lead to maps of where riders can and can’t use OHVs on federal land.
The Forest Service’s maps are due in December 2009; the BLM’s are expected in 2012. The Prescott and Coronado national forests already have their maps in place and are requiring riders to stick to designated trails or face fines.
“It is not closing the trails; it is to stop this rampant go-anywhere-you-want-to,” said Ruth Doyle, a landscape architect and assistant for the Forest Service’s Southwest Region.
While the federal plan will give rangers a stronger hand because they will be able to direct OHV users to legal trails and better enforce rules on illegal use, riders will need to become more responsible for their actions, said Debbie Becker, a ranger in the Tonto National Forest, which is close to Phoenix and popular with OHV riders.
“It’s unmanaged recreation, and people don’t realize it has to be stopped for the desert to continue to thrive,” Becker said.
According to Jim Harken, the Game and Fish spokesman, that’s where the OHV Ambassadors program comes in. It has volunteers, many of them OHV enthusiasts, working on state and federal land to educate about responsible riding and encourage riders to use official trails.
“They are going to be a great first line of defense when it comes to this issue,” Harken said. “They’ll be the ones out there talking to users, getting them the information. It’s an invaluable partnership.”
OHV Ambassadors originated with a Forest Service ranger but now is overseen by Arizona State Parks with support from federal and state agencies.
“We have to work together; otherwise, this isn’t going to work,” Harken said.
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Web Links:
_ OHV Ambassadors: www.ohvambassadors.com
_ Arizona Game & Fish: www.azgfd.gov
_ Arizona State Parks: www.azstateparks.com
_ National Forest Service, Southwest: www.fs.fed.us/r3
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PHOTOS:
Click thumbnails to see full-resolution images and download; caption information is in the file under File>File Info.
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLES: Jim Harken, center, a public information officer for hte Arizona Game and Fish Department, gives two men an earful during a role-playing exercise that was part of training volunteers to educate off-highway vehicle operators about riding responsibly. Officials say the key to cutting down on environmental damage from illegal OHV use is getting operators to embrace the reasons they should remain on trails. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Deanna Dent)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLES: Jon Young, a Bureau of Land Management law enforcement ranger, speaks at a training session in Phoenix for those who will volunteer in the OHV Ambassador program. A collaboration between state and federal agencies, the ambassador program will have volunteers handing out maps and educating off-highway vehicle users about responsible riding. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Deanna Dent)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLES: The Tonto National Forest near Sycamore Creek northeast of Phoenix shows damage and erosion from illegal off-highway vehicle use. Officials say the key to cutting down on environmental damage from illegal OHV use is getting operators to embrace the reasons they should remain on trails. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Deanna Dent)