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Earlier this year, the American Recreation Coalition (ARC) and the National Forest Foundation (with support from the American Petroleum Institute, the US Forest Service, Tread Lightly and Yamaha) held a series of "Recreation Forums". The process was tightly controlled and designed to advance the ARC's wreckreation agenda.
As a follow-up, the ARC, in conjunction with the BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC), Americans for Responsible Recreation Access (ARRA) and other wise-use / motorized interest groups now seek to elaborate upon the gains resulting from those forums.
Pasted below is an article from the current edition of BlueRibbon Magazine. It explains what, specifically, these motorized recreation groups seek to achieve as a consequence of those Recreation Forums.
 Please note the use of the "kids in the outdoors" messaging in this BRC article. The "Kids" message (in all it's permutations -- inner city, obese, diabetic, Richard Louv, nature-deficient, etc. -- is a winner and is now used in everything originating from the recreation industry, from motorized user groups and, of course, from their partners, the federal land management agencies. Unfortunately, it's also used by a few conservation groups.
Finally, I'd like to draw attention to the Forest Access Strategy (FAS) described below and state emphatically that this is NOT, as the article claims, new. Following the BRC article is a 10 year old ARC document that clearly set the stage for "managed recreation", "travel management planning", and FAS.
Scott
--- begin quoted ---
GROUPS HOPEFUL RECREATION FORUMS WILL BENEFIT RECREATIONAL ACCESS
A diverse coalition of recreation and conservation groups met with key
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Forest Service (FS) and
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) officials in an effort to begin
the process of converting the ideas and concerns emerging from the
regional and national Recreation Forums into action.
Among the organizations participating in the effort are the National
Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF), BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC), Americans
for Responsible Recreation Access (ARRA), the Motorcycle Industry
Council (MIC) and the American Recreation Coalition (ARC). The
discussions concluded with a session with Agriculture Under Secretary
for Natural Resources and the Environment Mark Rey.
Two major topics were addressed. One concerns access across private
lands to reach public lands for recreational uses. Estimates are that
access to between 20 million and 30 million acres of national forest
lands are significantly impeded by the need to cross private lands for
convenient access. In many instances, the access problem is new or
newly exacerbated, as private land use patterns change and new owners
restrict access by recreationists.
The effort identified specific opportunities to address this segment of
access concerns through pending legislation -- the 2007 Farm Bill. In
its conservation title, the Farm Bill has a variety of programs to
compensate private landowners for providing wildlife habitat and other
conservation goals. Under provisions recommended by the U.S. Department
of Agriculture to the Congress, selection of lands for inclusion in
several of these programs could, for the first time, give preference to
landowners agreeing to allow public access. The recreation groups
indicated to the USDA officials their interest in making public access
a direct program goal for the conservation title and announced its
plans to seek departmental support.
The second topic concerned the concept of a regional trails cooperative
linking public and private landowners. Under the plan, landowners would
identify a trail system and create a non-profit entity to develop,
maintain and administer such a trail system, including issuance of
trail passes. Landowners would benefit through some agreed upon
improvements -- perhaps including fencing and bridges, insulation from
liability (including responsibility for initial defense costs),
trespass and vandalism enforcement (supplementing local sheriff and
federal law enforcement efforts) and an ability to offer visitor
services, including campsites and food. The group expressed the need
for expedited permitting and other support from FS offices and for a
combination of technical and legal assistance from USDA.
The delegation also presented a concept of a new Forest Access Strategy
(FAS), which showcases a new vision for a network of roads and trails
and other transportation efforts that will meet public desires for
access to the lands and waters that can sustain a strong link between
Americans and the outdoors -- and especially kids and the outdoors. The
new FAS would ensure access to key recreation infrastructure such as
campgrounds and trailheads, wildlife viewing sites and access points to
lakes, rivers and streams.
The groups explained that the new strategy would likely be based upon
routes in the current 400,000-mile system but would not be limited to
those routes, since many were constructed to serve commodity uses now
curtailed. The delegation told USDA and FS officials that the FAS would
enable the Congress to consider ways to meet the fiscal needs of access
to and within the forests, perhaps incorporating expansion of the
Recreational Trails Program and the National Scenic Byways program.
The Forest Service is already engaged in a similar effort, utilizing
the DOT Volpe Center to develop a new transportation strategy. The
Volpe Center work is likely to be reflected in a USDA submission to the
DOT later this year, as that department begins crafting a successor to
the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A
Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). The delegation agreed to continue
meetings with USDA and FS on this topic over the next six weeks and to
inform agency leaders about any Congressional response to the proposal.
--Questions and comments about this article should be addressed to the
BlueRibbon Coalition, 208-232-207; Email:
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FROM THE ARC 1998:
Forest Roads Initiative Lauded
Washington, D.C. — Plans by the Forest Service to develop a new
transportation policy for the forest road system were lauded today by
American Recreation Coalition (ARC) President Derrick Crandall, who
said the plan is "an important first step in helping to improve and
maintain the essential network of roads that provide access to the
outdoor recreation opportunities that Americans love." Calling the
action "a very positive move on the part of the Forest Service,"
Crandall issued the following statement:
"Skiers, hikers, fishermen, campers and all outdoor recreation
enthusiasts have a vital stake in this effort. The Forest Service has
created a great opportunity to deliver a transportation system which
will serve Americans into the next century.
"ARC applauds the Forest Service's idea to reduce the environmental
impacts of roads that are causing stream sedimentation, habitat
degradation, and other adverse ecological consequences. ARC also agrees
with the Forest Service that any new roads should be considered
cautiously and only built where it makes sense to have roads.
"Right now we have a 400,000 mile network of forest roads that was
built primarily for timber but now services recreational demand. But
many of these roads have been poorly maintained and can't support
today's volume of nearly one billion recreational visitors annually,
particularly for safety and signage considerations. In fact, a large
portion of our national forests are now also inaccessible because of
poor roads.
"ARC is counting on the Administration and the Congress to provide the
funding to upgrade the roads necessary to provide needed access to our
forests. Timing is right. Congress is at work on the reauthorization of
ISTEA (the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act) and it can
assure the national forest transportation system we need by making
funds available out of the Highway Trust Fund.
"In addition, the Forest Service has a tremendous opportunity to
convert some nonessential roads to trails. This could generate tens of
thousands of miles of new, high-quality trails that can be enjoyed by
all outdoor enthusiasts."
The American Recreation Coalition, a federation of more than 100
recreation- related associations and corporations, provides a unified
voice for recreation interests to ensure their full and active
participation in government policy-making.
-30-
#1-98
(January 22, 1998)
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