The Corporate Takeover of Nature
what's wrong with "fee-demo?"

Major changes are occurring in the ways our forests and public lands are managed. The decades old policy of catering to destructive forest practices is giving way to a user-pay concept that will be applied to recreation.

What's wrong with promoting Recreation over logging? Isn't that the solution to the devastation inflicted on our forests by years of overly intensive resource extraction? If what was meant by Recreation were a simple walk in the woods, or a reflective enjoyment of nature, then Recreation might indeed be the solution. However, the kind of Recreation now being promoted is very different. It is Industrialized, Commercialized, and heavily Motorized. It is NOT a panacea. It is not an environmentally acceptable alternative to logging. It is big business coming to our National Forests, promoting equipment-intensive play where nature is little more than a scenic backdrop and proving ground for the latest and priciest toy.

No single statement more clearly expresses the importance recreation will play in the future of the US Forest Service than the following quote by Chief of the Forest Service, Michael Dombeck; "Rarely is recreation and tourism on federal lands understood as a revenue generator. Instead it has been perceived as an amenity - something extra that we are privileged to enjoy. Fortunately, that's beginning to change."

To turn recreation into a profitable commodity, a "revenue generator" public lands managers must first develop definable "products" and then market those products to "customers" who are willing to pay for them. Traditional low impact uses of public lands, such as hiking, fishing, wildlife viewing, cross country skiing, and mountaineering are difficult to turn into high margin recreational products. To make recreation truly profitable will necessitate a major investment in construction of large numbers of resorts, marinas, ski areas, RV campgrounds, motor-cross centers and other attractions capable of significant revenue generation. The USFS and their private partners will cooperatively construct these new facilities.

This, at least, is the intention of the American Recreation Coalition (ARC), the lobby group of the motorized recreation industry. ARC is an influential force in shaping federal public land policy in America today because ARC and its corporate sponsors can help the federal agencies overcome the unrelenting budget cuts being inflicted upon them. Budget cuts mandated by the very same Congressmen who are cheering on efforts to commercialize, privatize and motorize our public lands.

The current Demonstration Recreation Fee Program (commonly called Fee-Demo') is ARC's first step in bringing "Industrial Strength Recreation" to public lands. Charging modest fees for the use of rustic campgrounds and for a few other developed facilities on public lands are well established traditions and are not opposed by the Sierra Club. 'Fee-Demo", however, is the first time that fees are being imposed for basic access and for the simple enjoyment of our public lands.

ARC and its members -- real estate and resort developers, motorized equipment manufacturers and user groups, public lands concessionaires, petroleum companies, theme park operators, hotel and motel associations and other commercial interests -- have pushed since thc 1970s to have Congress pass enabling recreation user fee legislation. After years of trying, in 1996 they succeeded in getting Fee-Demo authorized -- without Congressional debate -- by the anti-environmentalist controlled 104th Congress. Then in October of 1998, at the specific behest of ARC, Congress extended Fee-Demo until the year 2004 by attaching one more anti-environmental rider to the Omnibus Appropriations Bill.

Fee-demo exists primarily to accustom the public to the concept of "Pay-To-Play". Fee-Demo is not succeeding in generating revenues as its promoters claim. It has failed to produce 'supplemental' revenues in any but a few isolated instances. In fiscal year 1997, Fee-Demo grossed just $18 million for the USFS, nationwide Of this, fully 53% was spent on overhead, implementation and enforcement of the Fee-Demo program itself. Yet, Congress, spurred on by ARC, continues to cut budgets of federal agencies in a deliberate attempt to force these agencies to seek alternative funding. User-Fees, Access-Fees, Entry-Fees and private-public partnerships arc the intended outcome of these budget cuts.

The Fee-Demo program is not just a benign effort to fund needed programs, but is the leading edge of the motorized recreation industry's attempts to transform public land recreation into commercial products. Of these, the most dangerous "product" is perhaps motorized recreation. Fee-Demo is widely supported by the motorized recreation community because the Pay-To-Play concept will assure their continued access to public lands. Motor-sports groups such as the American Motorcyclist Association, United Four Wheel Drive Association and the Personal Watercraft Industries Association support Fee-Demo, but not only because they are members of the ARC. These groups count on their users being able to buy access to public lands. In the future, federal agencies will find it increasingly difficult to say no to additional snowmobiling, ORVing, ATVing, dirt biking or riding of personal watercraft, because to do so would be to cut their own revenue source.

Increased motorized recreation will increase demand for more places to use their recreational machines: additional roads and motorized trails. Allowing motorized recreation to become a revenue generation tool of federal land managers is perhaps the single largest threat facing our quiet trails still lakes, open deserts and unprotected roadless forest areas. Reliance on user fees and private funding would take away the independence of federal land managers, forcing them to promote more of the high-impact uses that provide most revenue--and at the same time, cause the most environmental degradation. It would sharply reduce their future ability to focus on crucial non-recreational restoration efforts -- of watersheds and fish habitat, of damaged forests, and of endangered ecosystems

For these reasons and more, the Sierra Club has adopted a national policy that opposes the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program on all federal lands, except those managed as National Parks, National Monuments and National Historic Sites. The Sierra Club believes the solution is in convincing Congress to end the Fee-Demo program and to provide adequate levels of funding to the Forest Service, BLM and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. With adequate funding, these agencies would not be thrown to the mercy of for-profit corporations or forced to up facilities into revenue generating attractions.

How You Can Help:

1] Actively oppose all public lands access fee programs. Even if you feel such access fees would pay for much-needed services -- such as getting those rangers out there - consider that the precedent thus set may win the battle, but lose the war.

2] Help convince Congress to restore public funding for recreation. Tell your legislators that our public lands I don't exist to provide business opportunities! We will no longer put up with paying for playing. tell them, no fee, keep it free. We already pay taxes. Every Sierra Club member should write your legislators!

For more information contact:

Scott Silver,  Executive Director,  Wild Wilderness  (541) 385-5261
and also,  Fee-Demo Issues Coordinator,  Oregon Chapter Sierra Club Conservation Committee

or contact:

Vicky Hoover, Chair, Sierra Club California/Nevada Regional Wilderness Committee (415) 977-5527
David Czamanske, Chair, Pasadena Group Angeles Chapter Sierra Club (626) 458-8646