Danville - 04/21 - CORVA - comments to the Forest Service

[Gui]

We're looking for representatives from local clubs both 4wd and ATV/ MC to join us for a meeting this Tuesday in Danville with CORVA.

 

A few good men a women that will bring the info back to their club and run with it.

 

Can anyone from NCLR Make it?

 

Details:

 

Please accept this invitation and pass it along to any 4wd clubs or MC/ ATV clubs or individuals in the Bay Area that may want to come.

 

The CCJeepers will be holding a special meeting on Tues. April 21st with guest speaker Amy Granat from CORVA. Amy will offer suggestions and training on how to write good comments to the Forest Service regarding the Draft EIS and trail designation. If a few representatives from your club can attend please join us. We have seating for about 40

 

 

Contra Costa Jeepers

Mtg April 21st 2009 at 7:00 pm

Monte Vista High School

3131 Stone Valley Road, Danville, CA

RM # 806

 

Directions;

Take freeway 680 to Stone Valley Road exit in Alamo.

Proceed East on Stone Valley Road approx 2 miles to the stop light at MVHS and turn right into the parking lot.

The meeting will be in the first "portable" straight in front of you.

 

Just bring a notepad and the willingness to bring this information back to your club to make comments. The CCJeepers will provide refreshments.

Please RSVP to jeff@teammello.com if you plan to come so we can make seating arrangements, if you are last minute please call Jeff Mello at 925-785-8894

 

Thank you,

 

Gui

[LandRonB]

Gui,

 

I might be able to make it. After work (work load permitting), I can head over to Danville.

 

PM me w/your cell so I can say hello to you during the meeting. I will be driving a white Range Rover Classic w/NCLR sticker.

 

Ron

 

_ _ _ _ _

 

For interested in knowing CORVA, California Off-Road Vehicle Assn, here's their website: http://www.corva.org/who_we_are.html

[Gui]

Ron, that is great, just pm'ed my cell, hope to see you there!

 

Gui

[Gui]

Ron, thank you again for coming last night and representing NCLRC! Please help continue spreading the word and everyone can make a difference. As many People are unaware of what is happening behind the curtains, it is important to let people know what is being taken for them and that they can definitely do something about it. The time to act is now. With Forest service designation being pushed forward with organized extremist greenies, we are losing trail access at an alarming rate by groups that are exploiting the system and counting on strong financial backing to meet their purposes. It is time for us to unite and not let this happen!

 

Thanks again!

 

Gui

[LandRonB]

Thanks GUI for the invite. Glad I came, and NCLR club was present to share this to other NCLR members.

 

_ _ _

 

Attention NCLR Members,

 

It was an eye opener for me (I am sure for others here) on what's going on in our OHV community, and our beloved public trails/land managed by the Forest Service (FS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

 

Confirms to me our continued awareness and support (starts with you and me) are badly needed - details way below.

 

First a bit of background (explanation @ 10,000 ft level), as most of you know we have the Forest Service:http://www.fs.fed.us/ and Bureau of Land Management (BLM): http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/Recreation/recreation_national.html to plan and management access to our forest and public lands.

 

Their websites have good PR stuff or talking points about keeping trails open for these agencies but you really need to know what's going on behind the pretty websites, and at the local level.

 

Org chart connects the Forest Service to the Department of Agriculture in Washing DC. Our current Chief Forest Service is Abigail R Kimbell in Washington. BLM org chart is connected all the way to Washington DC. Mike Pool is the current BLM Director in Washington.

 

Both of these agencies have a Travel Management Program with directives to protect forest resources while providing a challenging and diverse road and motorized trail system for access to the National Forest and a variety of recreation opportunities. Makes sense since recreation support both local e.g. cafes in Georgetown near the Rubicon, national economies and private industries e.g. need mud tires for your trip....where do you buy them from.

 

Keep these directives in mind as you read thru this, and what's actually happening in contrast!

 

The Forest Service and BLM rolls down authority to the Local, State or Regional division areas. For example, the Forest Service has 10 regions. California, Hawaii and Guam belong to the Pacific Southwest Region (Region 5), and Randy Moore heads our region in Vallejo, CA, (707) 562-9000.

 

In California, the following Forest Districts reports to Region 5:

Angeles National Forest

Cleveland National Forest

Eldorado National Forest

Inyo National Forest

Klamath National Forest

Lake Tahoe Basin Management Area

Lassen National Forest

Los Padres National Forest

Mendocino National Forest

Modoc National Forest

Plumas National Forest

San Bernardino National Forest

Sequoia National Forest

Shasta-Trinity National Forest

Sierra National Forest

Six Rivers National Forest

Stanislaus National Forest

Tahoe National Forest

 

We take our NCLR trips to several of these forest.

 

Each Forest District conducts their own Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to looks at various ways of accomplishing the "Travel Management Program" directed by their respected Forest Service Region (California belongs to Region 5) and Forest Service HQ in Washington DC. BLM has something similar (visit BLM for more details). Then submitted to the division for approval.

 

The BLM and especially FS is hitting ea of our national forest one by one w/recent DEIS, and closing trails recommended in the DEIS (many instances closing our favorite trails w/o sound reasons, misrepresentation of data or not fact based).

 

Current DEIS was issued for Stanislaus, and next is the Sierra National Forest (scheduled May 1).

 

The focus of the meeting yesterday was not to go over the org chart or FS/BLM organization. I researched the above information last night after the meeting for reference. Figured good information to know if you are interested how our local FS and BLM are connected, and where they get their marching orders and also understand the acronyms you will hear often used e.g. DEIS = Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

 

The meeting last night was about our trails, our passion/loved for recreation (off-road), what's going in our OHV Community and BLM/FS, and most importantly how to write good comments to the Forest Service regarding the DEIS and trail designation, and how can ea of us help (see 3 ways below).

 

Amy Granat from CORVA (California Off-Road Vehicle Association) was the guest speaker. she shared with us the grassroots efforts that's going on, and what can we do to help.

 

If you don't have time to read my notes here at this time; this clip from "Trails in Trouble" sums it all:

 

http://www.trailsintrouble.org/

 

It's an easy out for the Forest Service or BLM to simply close trails vs maintain them especially in a budget crisis. And easier for them to side with the Sierra Club with its own grassroots efforts, political power, and funds to hire lawyers to get the FS and BLM's attention. We can do the same (see below re: what can we do to help).

 

We spend a lot of money on our Land Rovers (as do with Toyota, Jeeps or other OHV make/brand owners). It's up to you and me to help keep our trails open, and sustain our beloved recreation now and generations to come.

 

There are national and local organizations or clubs out there with missions to help keep our public trails/lands or specific trails e.g. Friends of the Rubicon. They fight our fight.

 

CORVA "Comments Project" fights our fight also but on a different angle or playing field that gets the FS and BLM attention by /auditing/validating facts stated on the DEIS, and errors found - request corrections that are detrimental to the future of our public trails/lands (using professionals and lawyers to write/speak the legalize way).

 

Each DEIS issued by the Forest Service District will dictates the current and future use of our. It is open for public comments for a short period of time and the finalized and implemented.

 

CORVA's "Comments Project" is the watch dog. For example, OHV use of our forest trail was blamed for the decline in the Bears in one of the DEIS issued, and therefore should be banned. Yet no concrete data or evidence provided.

 

Another example DEIS implemented without the second eye or review of the actual users (although too late now since it's closed) is Clear Creek:

 

http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/hollister/clear_creek_management_area.html. Recently found out that the data used to seal the faith of this OHV was misrepresented.

 

How can ea of us help with the Comments Project:

 

1) Citizens Letters

 

Send your comments how you and your family will miss the trail, connect your vehicle to the trail in a positive way and share your experience. Be honest.

 

2) "Workshop Comments"

 

Take DEIS, go thru a section or all, and identify any flaws and share that with the particular FS.

 

3) "Professional Comments"

 

If you don't have time to write a letter or go thru a section of the DEIS, CORVA's "Comments Project" was created to be the watch dog and hire professionals to audit/validate DEIS, but it cost money to hire professionals.

 

The Sierra Club does it, and we "OHV Users" can even the play field by hiring professional writers and lawyers to get to the point, and get BLM and FS attention by using appropriate legal responses, proper documents, protocols, processes, timelines, and right jargon - stuff that gets the FS and BLM attention.

 

Believe it cost about $4000 raised from donations on the last "Comments Project" to audit/respond to the El Dorado National Forest DEIS. Been effective so far.

 

Current DEIS is for the Stanislaus National Forest (if you enjoy e.g. Blue Lakes trips, you should be aware what's in the DEIS and get involved). Comments period is over but CORVA is asking to extend the period and working diligently to audit the DEIS.

 

Next (to be released by FS on May 1) is the Sierra National Forest (if you enjoy e.g. Shaver Lake Bald Mountain, you should be aware and get involved).

 

I will get more information on: 1) where to send your citizens letters, 2) or when DEIS are released and where to down load this if interested in going thru it/find questionable statements, 3) or where to send denotation's to Corva's Comments Project.

 

Get involved in one or all three.

 

As a club member, CORVA is accepting club members for $30 annual membership. Not to expensive.

 

And ea of us can be involved by sharing your findings and passion (grassroots efforts) to others in the 4x4 community and outside our 4x4 community who enjoy access to public lands/trails e.g. fisherman, hunters, hikers, boaters...

 

Hope you guys/gals feel the same way as I do with helping keep our public trails/lands open, and wanting to help either by one of the actions or all of the above.

 

More on this later.... Happy Trail Folks (and hope we keep them open). Back to work for me but open trails in mind.

 

Cheers!

[Gui]

Ron! Thank you for putting this together! Very well organized, and I know I could not have done better, hehe! If you do not mind, I would like to pass your info around, please let me know if that is ok.

 

Thanks again!

[LandRonB]

No problem buddy; I just updated my post above w/spell check; feel free to further spell check and make changes needed.

 

Let's keep in touch.

 

Ron

 

Ron! Thank you for putting this together! Very well organized, and I know I could not have done better, hehe! If you do not mind, I would like to pass your info around, please let me know if that is ok.

 

Thanks again!