Crowdog Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 Press release from BLM: For Immediate Release: March 24, 2005 CA-CDD-05-35 Contact: Doran Sanchez (951) 697-5220 or Jan Bedrosian (916) 978-4616 Imperial Dunes Plan Approved The Imperial Sand Dunes, one of the most popular recreation sites in the country with more than 1.2 million visitors annually, has a new land use plan balancing off-highway vehicle (OHV) use with protection of wilderness and threatened plant and wildlife species, and emphasizing a family-oriented safety and law enforcement program. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) State Director Mike Pool said he today signed a record of decision (ROD) approving a new Recreation Area Management Plan (RAMP) that will guide management of the 160,000-acre Dunes for the next 15 years. "I am very pleased to be able to finalize this five-year cooperative planning effort and move management of the Dunes forward into a new, progressive era." The ROD is available online at www.ca.blm.gov. Pool said the key feature of the RAMP is "zoning" the entire Dunes into eight distinct management areas, each designed to emphasize varying levels of OHV use or environmental protection. These areas range from no vehicle use in the 26,202-acre North Algodones Dunes Wilderness Area to intensive OHV use in the 21,225-acre Gecko Management Area. In the middle is the 33,329-acre Adaptive Management Area (AMA), which will mostly replace temporary closures covering 49,300 acres put in place at the Dunes in 2000 due to a court-approved settlement. OHV use will be allowed in the AMA, but restricted to permit holders only (after completing a short environmental education course onsite), limited to no more than 525 vehicles a day, not open to overnight camping (dawn to dusk use only), and only open during certain parts of the year (October 15 to March 31). Pool said due to a recent court order, as well seasonal factors, regulatory requirements, and necessary on-the-ground work as specified in the ROD, BLM must leave the temporary closures in effect until at least October 15, 2005, the opening of the new use season. This timing will allow for pending legal challenges from both environmental and OHV groups to be heard by a Federal Court in San Francisco and a ruling issued. Unless the Court rules otherwise, BLM's approved ROD states that the existing temporary closures in four separate areas, including the area covered by the AMA, will be lifted and replaced by the management direction in the plan. BLM will keep the public informed on the litigation status and how it may affect the area's availability for OHV use. The AMA will be scientifically monitored to determine impacts of OHV use on the Peirson's milk-vetch, listed as threatened by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). To gather baseline data, BLM initiated an intensive monitoring effort in spring 2004 and Pool said the second year field work is already underway. Pool noted the RAMP is in full compliance with the Endangered Species Act. The FWS determined the RAMP posed "no jeopardy" to the listed milk-vetch or desert tortoise, nor "adversely modified" critical habitat in a January 2005 Biological Opinion. The opinion included numerous terms and conditions that are clearly reflected in the RAMP. The RAMP and its dozens of individual planned actions, including improvements to visitor facilities, construction of an interpretive area, development of education programs, and law enforcement, monitoring, and maintenance activities, will be implemented gradually, with some actions completed immediately and some adjusted over time, based on visitation, available funding, monitoring data, visitor compliance, and other factors. "Many of these visitor services and improvements will be directly supported by the recreation fees paid for by visitors who enjoy the Dunes," Pool said. "The only exception is the environmental monitoring that is paid for directly from Congressionally appropriated funds by law. As in past years, we will consult and coordinate with the Dunes' Technical Review Team (TRT), made up of volunteers, on how best to spend the recreation fee funds." "We have all come a long way in the last five years to restore civility, ensure a high quality recreation experience, and protect sensitive resources at the Dunes," Pool said. "The TRT has contributed greatly to this positive effort, and we have appreciated the excellent cooperation and support from Imperial County, our other law enforcement partners, and user groups such as the American Sand Association, the Off-Road Business Assn., the California Off-Highway Vehicle Assn., California Four-Wheel Drive, and others. "We are also very encouraged with the new, recently formed, United Desert Gateway Partnership with the Chambers of Commerce for El Centro, Brawley, and Yuma," he stated. "These communities have embraced the Imperial Sand Dunes as a high quality tourist destination designed to promote family-based recreation opportunities." The Dunes RAMP was initiated in 2001 with public scoping of issues, followed by publication of a draft RAMP and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in March 2002. More than 7,339 individuals, organizations, and government entities provided written and oral comments. A proposed RAMP and final EIS were published in May 2003 and the public was given an opportunity to protest to BLM's Director. Receipt of the FWS Biological Opinion, a recent court ruling, and resolution of those protests allowed for issuance of the ROD. "We thank the thousands of people who gave us comments and advice on the Dunes RAMP. While we couldn't satisfy every point of view, the wide range of opinions helped us achieve a fair balance in management prescriptions evident in this dynamic and innovative plan," he stated. For more information contact the BLM's El Centro Field Office at (760) 337-4400. -BLM- Press Release from ASA: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE American Sand Association PMB 108 1911 Foothill Blvd La Verne, CA 91750 CONTACT: Grant George, ASA President Bob Mason, ASA Chairman of the Board The American Sand Association (ASA) today learned that the Record of Decision (ROD) that implements the new Recreation Management Plan at the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area has been signed by the CA State BLM Director Mike Pool. The ASA is pleased that the ROD has been approved. However, this changes little on the ground as far as the users are concerned until pending legal issues are resolved, which is contrary to what the ASA had understood would happen once the ROD was signed. Quote
SDD Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 Doesn't mean the closure areas are open yet so keep out until they implament the RAMP and get everything setup.... I dune with Jerry Seaver and from what he says is don't get your hopes just yet. It might be sometime next year before they open up the closure areas to persons with permits. Quote
Ultimateduner Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 I'm a member of the Asa, they told dunes would reopen this summer. Quote
Cotton eyed Joe Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 Doesn't mean the closure areas are open yet so keep out until they implament the RAMP and get everything setup.... I dune with Jerry Seaver and from what he says is don't get your hopes just yet. It might be sometime next year before they open up the closure areas to persons with permits. 344779[/snapback] Good luck with that. It just wrenches my guts to read the words "dune" and "closure" together in the same sentence. Dont kill the bugs or the weeds, but go ahead and starve your wife to death. Quote
sheeweet Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 (edited) Good luck with that. It just wrenches my guts to read the words "dune" and "closure" together in the same sentence. but go ahead and starve your wife to death. 344809[/snapback] KNOW FUCKING SHIT!!! What the hell? They are gouls I tell you, GOULS!! Edited March 25, 2005 by sheeweet Quote
Crowdog Posted March 25, 2005 Author Report Posted March 25, 2005 Environmentalists oppose plan for Imperial Sand Dunes 11:08 PM PST on Thursday, March 24, 2005 By STEVE MOORE and PAUL DeCARLO / The Press-EnterpriseA federal agency says its new plan regulating how land is used in the popular Imperial Sand Dunes area will balance off-road use with the need to protect the wilderness and threatened plant and animal species. On Thursday, the Bureau of Land Management announced a Recreation Area Management Plan for the 160,000-acre area in Imperial County. The dunes draw more than 1.2 million visitors annually. "I am very pleased to be able to finalize this five-year cooperative planning effort and move management of the Dunes forward into a new, progressive era," BLM State Director Mike Pool said in a press release. But environmentalists criticized the plan, calling it "flawed." They predicted it will not withstand legal challenges. "We're not trying to close the whole place down," Daniel R. Patterson, desert ecologist for the Center for Biological Diversity, said by phone. "These dunes have dozens of endemic species unique to that environment. "If the habitat is not protected, those species could be wiped out," he said. A joint press release from the Center, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and Sierra Club said "intensive" off-roading harms the dunes. Environmentalists said the BLM plan would be "devastating" to dozens of rare and imperiled species, including Peirson's milk-vetch, the desert tortoise, the flat-tailed horned lizard, the burrowing owl and Andrew's dunes scarab beetle. The release also said the BLM plan will worsen air pollution and run off hikers, birdwatchers, photographers and keep away others. A key off-roading group praised the BLM plan in a press release, but said it changes little on the ground for the sport. "This is just one more step in a five-year journey to re-open areas that were unnecessarily closed," Vince Brunasso, founder and legal chairman of the American Sand Association, said in the release. BLM must leave temporary closures in effect until at least Oct. 15 while awaiting a court ruling in a lawsuit involving Peirson's milk-vetch, a member of the pea family that sprouts purple flowers in the spring. It was listed as threatened in 1998 under the Endangered Species Act. The BLM plan divides the Dunes into eight different management areas, emphasizing different levels of off-road use or environmental protection. They range from no vehicle use in the 26,202-acre North Algodones Dunes Wilderness area to "intensive" off-road use in the 21,225-acre Gecko Management area. In the middle is a 33,329-acre Adaptive Management Area that will mostly replace temporary closures. Those areas cover 49,300 acres and are due to a court-approved settlement, according to a BLM release. Off-road use would be allowed in the area, but with certain restrictions. Scientific monitoring will take place in the area to determine the impacts of off-roading on the Peirson's milk-vetch. Permits would be required and those applying would have to complete a short, onsite environmental education course. Only 525 vehicles a day would be allowed, no overnight camping and the area would only be open during certain parts of the year. The BLM plan also includes improved visitor facilities, building an interpretive center and maintenance activities -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Online at: http://www.pe.com/localnews/desert/stories...es25.586d8.html Quote
Crowdog Posted March 25, 2005 Author Report Posted March 25, 2005 BLM OKs sand dunes plan BY STAFF REPORTS Mar 25, 2005 The federal government approved a new plan for the Imperial Sand Dunes that divided 160,000 acres into eight areas, each with varying off-highway vehicle usage and environmental protection. The new plan will take effect in October pending the outcome of legal challenges in the federal court. Bureau of Land Management State Director Mike Pool approved a new Recreation Area Management Plan on Thursday that would regulate off-highway vehicles and environmental protection for the next 15 years. First drafted in 2002, RAMP zones the dunes into eight areas. The areas range from no vehicle use in the 26,202-acre North Algodones Dunes Wilderness Area to intensive OHV use in the 21,225 Gecko Management Area. For months, environmentalists and off-highway enthusiasts have battled over a temporary closure of 49,300 acres. Environmentalists state that the closure protects threatened vegetation, particularly Pierson's Milk Vetch, and critics of the closure claim it hurts tourism dollars by limiting off-highway vehicle use. The closures have been in effect since 2000 due to a court-approved settlement. The new plan falls about 16,000-acres short of mimicking the temporary closure site by replacing the acres closed with an Adaptive Management Area. The AMA will cover 33,329 acres and require off-highway users to complete an environmental education course onsite and hold a permit. The area would be open from Oct. 15 through March 31, limited to no more than 525 vehicles a day, and overnight camping would be barred. A BLM press release states that RAMP is in full compliance with the Endangered Species Act and poses Quote
Crowdog Posted March 25, 2005 Author Report Posted March 25, 2005 The American Sand Association (ASA) today learned that the Record of Decision (ROD) that implements the new Recreation Management Plan at the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area has been signed by the CA State BLM Director Mike Pool. The ASA is pleased that the ROD has been approved. However, this changes little on the ground as far as the users are concerned until pending legal issues are resolved, which is contrary to what the ASA had understood would happen once the ROD was signed. Quote
SDD Posted March 25, 2005 Report Posted March 25, 2005 I'm a member of the Asa, they told dunes would reopen this summer. 344806[/snapback] Everyone should be a member of the ASA even if they don't ride the dunes... your riding area might be next up on the list! You get a discount card with your membership anyway so it will most likely pay the membership costs back and then some. Quote
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