Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
I have been pondering over this proposed scoping letter since I 1st laid eyes on it in June. The Forest service pretty much closed every trail that was not thru to open dunes and you also wanted everyone to tell you the Forest Service which trails we as riders wanted left open and to be specific, I see one problem with that, you the Forest Service didn’t give us the tools, i.e. trail numbers or names to correlate to the trails we (riders) want left open.
I / we as OHV riders feel that you the Forest Service caused these trail to exist, and now you want to close them, the Forest Service planted a very aggressive noxious weed (European Beach grass) and you also planted shore pines for stabilization, that you have let literally almost swallow up the open dunes and nearly put an endangered bird into extinction (snowy plover) and now you are having to mechanically remove the beach grass to open up nesting spots.
I /we as riders feel we should have everything opened back up to us that was available in 1972. The only areas that should be closed off completely in the NORTH riding area should be the 5 native tree islands and the rest should be opened back up, to help the Forest Service eradicate the Scotch broom also a noxious weed and the European beach grass. The Middle riding area should have all the existing trails left open thru the Native forested areas, and all the area to the south of the 3rd parking lot be left opened up again to help the Forest Service eradicate 2 noxious weeds. The South riding area should again be left completely opened up except for the native forested areas (leave existing trails open) and to also have all the areas that you have listed as wetland remove from wetland status as to they were not originally wetlands, but due to the mismanagement of the Forest Service they are now non native wetlands.
My conclusion is the Forest service NEEDS to do their job of enforcement, instead of closing off areas saying that we the riders don’t follow the rules, we as riders do follow most of the rules, except for a few bad apples and it is up to the Forest Service to educate or fine those particular bad apples instead of doing nothing, which has been the case. We as riders want all trails left open, and for the Forest Service to finally manage the dunes not mismanage them.
Sincerely,
my info went here
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Letter 5
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
My family and others ride these 103 miles of “user created” trails that you are proposing to close, these would not be user created trails if the Forest Service had not planted these area for stabilizing the dunes, we would still have open dunes, but now that you the Forest Service have provided use riders with this unique opportunity you the Forest service is wanting to take it away because of a select few environmentalist shame on you.
The mushrooms are another issue this is a recreation area not an agricultural commercial business, and yet you the Forest Service have provided a commercial business opportunity to mushroom pickers that really only happened because you the Forest Service wanted to stabilize the dunes.
Name
Address
Your Comments
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
My family and others ride these 103 miles of “user created” trails that you are proposing to close, these would not be user created trails if the Forest Service had not planted these area for stabilizing the dunes, we would still have open dunes, but now that you the Forest Service have provided use riders with this unique opportunity you the Forest service is wanting to take it away because of a select few environmentalist shame on you.
The mushrooms are another issue this is a recreation area not an agricultural commercial business, and yet you the Forest Service have provided a commercial business opportunity to mushroom pickers that really only happened because you the Forest Service wanted to stabilize the dunes.
Name
Address
Your Comments
Letter 4
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
With all the letters that you have posted at the staging areas nowhere does it mention anything about closing 103 miles of trails, what you do say is your opening up 287 acres of NON useable riding area. Why don’t you come clean and put in writing exactly what you the Forest Service is doing and that is to eventually close the dunes to OHV, well most of us are noting going to let that happen.
These trails need to be left open for OHVer’s to try and do what the Forest Service has failed to do for many years and that is to control a noxious & invasive species that the Forest Service had planted to stabilize open dunes, well now these open dunes are just about extinct.
I along with 1000’s of OHVer’s hope you the Forest Service does the right thing and scrap this proposal that’s on the table and start over and go back to the 1979 plan or even better lets go back to 1972 and open the dunes all up.
Name
Address
your comments
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
With all the letters that you have posted at the staging areas nowhere does it mention anything about closing 103 miles of trails, what you do say is your opening up 287 acres of NON useable riding area. Why don’t you come clean and put in writing exactly what you the Forest Service is doing and that is to eventually close the dunes to OHV, well most of us are noting going to let that happen.
These trails need to be left open for OHVer’s to try and do what the Forest Service has failed to do for many years and that is to control a noxious & invasive species that the Forest Service had planted to stabilize open dunes, well now these open dunes are just about extinct.
I along with 1000’s of OHVer’s hope you the Forest Service does the right thing and scrap this proposal that’s on the table and start over and go back to the 1979 plan or even better lets go back to 1972 and open the dunes all up.
Name
Address
your comments
Lettter 3
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor File code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
The trails within the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area) need to stay as trails, if you were to close off 103 miles of trails that many families enjoy at the slower pace when teaching the kids how to ride. This would put more riders into a smaller concentrated place with higher speeds; higher speeds plus new riders would/will cause more injuries.
The Forest Service is saying that they are giving us OHVer’s 287 acres, well how much of that 287 acres is ride able maybe 10% due to all the overgrown vegetation that we were not allowed to ride due to you mismanagement/ hidden agenda of the 1994 plan.
These are the #’s off of your own website
10 (A) – Non-Motorized Undeveloped – 7,830 acres (27%)
10 (B) – Off-Road Vehicle Open – 5,930 acres (21%)
10 (C) – ORV on Designated Routes – 4,455 acres (15%)
This is very misleading…we have approx.3.92 miles of designated routes thru this area which is NO more than 5 acres, so in reality 4,450 ACRES CLOSED to OHV riding
10 (D) – Developed Corridors – 1,050 acres (4%)
Another bogus number maybe 500 acres is more like it
10 (E) – Snowy Plover Habitat – 1,010 acres (3%)
10 (F) – Plant, Fish and Wildlife Habitat – 3,120 acres (11%)
10 (G) – Wetlands Emphasis – 2,540 acres (9%)
10(F) & 10(G) continue to grow into larger acreage every year due to the winter rains
10 (H) – Wildlife and Fish Viewing – 315 acres (1%)
10 (J) – Recommended Wild and Scenic River – 1,090 acres (4%)
10 (K) – Research Natural Area – 1,190 acres (4%)
10 (L) – Noise Control Buffer – 370 acres (1%)
So by calculations
OHVer’s ride able area (acres) 6,435
Closed to OHV use (acres) 22,415
And you are wanting to take away another 103 miles of trails…NOT GOOD
Name
Address
Your Comment
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor File code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
The trails within the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area) need to stay as trails, if you were to close off 103 miles of trails that many families enjoy at the slower pace when teaching the kids how to ride. This would put more riders into a smaller concentrated place with higher speeds; higher speeds plus new riders would/will cause more injuries.
The Forest Service is saying that they are giving us OHVer’s 287 acres, well how much of that 287 acres is ride able maybe 10% due to all the overgrown vegetation that we were not allowed to ride due to you mismanagement/ hidden agenda of the 1994 plan.
These are the #’s off of your own website
10 (A) – Non-Motorized Undeveloped – 7,830 acres (27%)
10 (B) – Off-Road Vehicle Open – 5,930 acres (21%)
10 (C) – ORV on Designated Routes – 4,455 acres (15%)
This is very misleading…we have approx.3.92 miles of designated routes thru this area which is NO more than 5 acres, so in reality 4,450 ACRES CLOSED to OHV riding
10 (D) – Developed Corridors – 1,050 acres (4%)
Another bogus number maybe 500 acres is more like it
10 (E) – Snowy Plover Habitat – 1,010 acres (3%)
10 (F) – Plant, Fish and Wildlife Habitat – 3,120 acres (11%)
10 (G) – Wetlands Emphasis – 2,540 acres (9%)
10(F) & 10(G) continue to grow into larger acreage every year due to the winter rains
10 (H) – Wildlife and Fish Viewing – 315 acres (1%)
10 (J) – Recommended Wild and Scenic River – 1,090 acres (4%)
10 (K) – Research Natural Area – 1,190 acres (4%)
10 (L) – Noise Control Buffer – 370 acres (1%)
So by calculations
OHVer’s ride able area (acres) 6,435
Closed to OHV use (acres) 22,415
And you are wanting to take away another 103 miles of trails…NOT GOOD
Name
Address
Your Comment
Letter 2
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor File code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation area
It has come to my attention that the Forest Service is proposing to close 103 miles of trails within the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area) also referred to as “user created trails.” The reason these trails exist today is because of mis-management from the Forest Service. These areas/trails that you are proposing to close only exist because of the Forest Service wanting to stabilize the sand from movement by introduction of a very aggressive European beach grass plus you have also let a noxious weed (scotch broom) take over the dunes.
The best way and the most economical way to control these invasive species are to let OHVers continue to travel these areas/ trails. Just look at the areas that you have closed off and how the invasive species have run rampant to the north of South Jetty road to the Siuslaw River.
Please reconsider the proposal that the Forest Service has put on the table and start off with a new one, that doesn’t have a hidden environmentalist agenda.
Name
Address
your comment
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor File code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation area
It has come to my attention that the Forest Service is proposing to close 103 miles of trails within the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area) also referred to as “user created trails.” The reason these trails exist today is because of mis-management from the Forest Service. These areas/trails that you are proposing to close only exist because of the Forest Service wanting to stabilize the sand from movement by introduction of a very aggressive European beach grass plus you have also let a noxious weed (scotch broom) take over the dunes.
The best way and the most economical way to control these invasive species are to let OHVers continue to travel these areas/ trails. Just look at the areas that you have closed off and how the invasive species have run rampant to the north of South Jetty road to the Siuslaw River.
Please reconsider the proposal that the Forest Service has put on the table and start off with a new one, that doesn’t have a hidden environmentalist agenda.
Name
Address
your comment
Letter 1
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
Regarding the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes Recreation National Recreation Area) our family wants to see ALL trails, including the “user created trails”, kept open. We have been riding these dunes for several decades and have seen the loss of open dunes due to areas being closed and now they are covered with beach grass & scotch broom.
I have just recently seen the pictures from 1960 before these dunes became ODNRA and have seen how much open sand we had at that time, and what we have as of today, within the next 60 years we will have NO open sand.
Forest Service please do the right thing and go back to the table and come back with a better proposal, this is OUR PUBLIC LANDS to use.
Name
Address
your comment
Siuslaw National Forest Service Supervisor file code 1950
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area
Regarding the ODNRA (Oregon Dunes Recreation National Recreation Area) our family wants to see ALL trails, including the “user created trails”, kept open. We have been riding these dunes for several decades and have seen the loss of open dunes due to areas being closed and now they are covered with beach grass & scotch broom.
I have just recently seen the pictures from 1960 before these dunes became ODNRA and have seen how much open sand we had at that time, and what we have as of today, within the next 60 years we will have NO open sand.
Forest Service please do the right thing and go back to the table and come back with a better proposal, this is OUR PUBLIC LANDS to use.
Name
Address
your comment
Saturday, July 30, 2011
another great letter..
Riding ATV`s at these dunes has been a person hobby of mine since I was very young. They have had a huge impact on my entire life. What these people need to understand is that to us riders, this is not just a sport but a lifestyle choice. Most of my most fond childhood memories are that of which were made at the Oregon Dunes with my family, and in my adulthood the fond memories I have with friends. Many of whom I would have not had the amazing opportunity of knowing if it weren't for meeting them at the Dunes of riding trips, or sharing the unique love for riding ATV's. The sand makes riding the fun experience it is. If they are to take away a majority of this space, this sand that we love every spec of... Then they are taking away the one thing that means the most to so many people! If they were to go through w/this it would not only make many people disappointed and saddened but I believe it could also have many serious affects as well. One for example being (Taking into considering this is a hobby of thousands of people) taking away a majority of where we ride would confine all these ATV`s and motorcycle`s (not to exclude those who choose playing in the Sand with Vehical`s other than those previously mentioned, via side by sides, etc..) into a much more concentrated area. This would cause many saftey issues. The saftey issues would not stop at that. There are many different types of riders. Ranging anywhere between Vetran riders who like the adrenaline of going fast and doing hard climbs, to beginners such as CHILDREN (Due to this being a lovely family sport). These trails they are talking about closeing off, some of them have way less traffic which make it perfect to take your children or even anyone else who would just like a relaxing slow paced (FUN!) ride or to teach a beginner how to ride. All this by doing so not having to put them out where the possibility of them being hurt could be hire. Now imagine if people didnt have that right. Would they like to put their children into a high concentrated high traffic environment where due to so many people around and so many things going on an accident could very well happen? I don't think so. PLEASE see that to US this is like any other hobby.. You like golfing, great, how about someone takes away half your course... You like bowling? How about we shut down half the lanes. Fishing? Lets close down half the river. You're talking about taking away something we LOVE. You're taking away our lifestyle. You're taking away our happiness. PLEASE do not do this!!! Everyone has that something in their life that they can go to, to escape a bad week at work, a special place they have and make a tradition with their family's to vacation at, or just the one place they can truely kick back, relaxing, fully enjoy themselves and be able to have fun!! Serving the people!? I REALLY hope you decide to do just that. Whether or not you care about riding or not I hope you can see how many people are truley passionate about this lifestyle and how much you doing this would absolutly break thousands of peoples hearts. I am urging you, PLEASE make the right decision.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
more comments to copy, edit or add your own verbage to
Mr. Ingersoll,
Hey, I know you are probably receiving a lot of emails and this may not get read, but I thought I should at least try.
My family and I ride the dunes several times a year. It is a lot of fun; and it brings revenue to those communities that we ride at. With gas, food, firewood, and even the occasional liquor store purchase :) We usually spend 200-300$ every time we go. And it is one expense that we haven't cut out because of our budget because of the fun that the entire family has.
We used to ride the Joshua Lane Dunes in Florence, but those were closed. My two kids 9 and 10 were crushed when this happened. The adults are pretty upset to, it just seems like a waste to not be able to have some sort of accesses to them. Can it be opened as a day use park, and we will pay you to use it?
Now I hear talk of closing more dunes? I just don't understand. Isn't that part of living here in beautiful Oregon. To be able to leave town and drive a few hours and ride the sand, play in the ocean, and camp out with friends and family. Riding ATV's is a true passion for people here in Oregon, and we are really hoping that there can be some compromise on why the trails and dunes need to be closed. People will pay to ride, so charge, charge, charge! Oregon can make some money and people can continue to ride and have a break from life.
Thanks for taking the time out to read this.
Sincerely,
Angie Cox
Hey, I know you are probably receiving a lot of emails and this may not get read, but I thought I should at least try.
My family and I ride the dunes several times a year. It is a lot of fun; and it brings revenue to those communities that we ride at. With gas, food, firewood, and even the occasional liquor store purchase :) We usually spend 200-300$ every time we go. And it is one expense that we haven't cut out because of our budget because of the fun that the entire family has.
We used to ride the Joshua Lane Dunes in Florence, but those were closed. My two kids 9 and 10 were crushed when this happened. The adults are pretty upset to, it just seems like a waste to not be able to have some sort of accesses to them. Can it be opened as a day use park, and we will pay you to use it?
Now I hear talk of closing more dunes? I just don't understand. Isn't that part of living here in beautiful Oregon. To be able to leave town and drive a few hours and ride the sand, play in the ocean, and camp out with friends and family. Riding ATV's is a true passion for people here in Oregon, and we are really hoping that there can be some compromise on why the trails and dunes need to be closed. People will pay to ride, so charge, charge, charge! Oregon can make some money and people can continue to ride and have a break from life.
Thanks for taking the time out to read this.
Sincerely,
Angie Cox
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
history of the 1972 to date
Comments on recent events in the Oregon Dunes
The 1972 ODNRA Act
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev7_007083.pdf
1994 Dunes Management Plan
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev7_007084.pdf
This is in response to the June 9, 2011 ODNRA Scoping letter. First off I’d like to thank the Forest Service for pushing this process though public involvement, even though this was already a signed decision. I’ve read through the proposed actions and I feel that there are some excellent changes to the original 10c lands base. With that said I’d like to highlight some other issues that haven’t been addressed with the proposed action.
On March 23, 1972 Congress passed the Act declaring the ODNRA into existence, this act was signed by President Nixon on the 24th. I read through this document and noticed some fairly strong language in Section 12 about an Advisory Council being established by the Secretary of Agriculture. It was fairly specific about the make-up of this council and it appears that they wanted a local body to assist the Forest Service with the direction of these lands. I’ve have spent several hours trying to find any meeting minutes or notes. I question why this council was never established.
Another thing I’d like to point out is how out of date the current plan is. The plan states that it is to be revised every 10 years but no more than 15 years between revisions. This plan is over 17 years old and the 10c designated trails has not been implemented. I ask why now? There are far more important goals outlined within this plan such as an active vegetation management plan implementation. The plan lists this as a higher priority and specifically identifies more funding to accomplish removal of beach grass, scotch broom, and plantations. Remember before the plantations and invasive vegetation these areas were open sand riding areas and not trails; so I question the validity of calling these trails now, instead of dunes where OHV traffic has benefited the ecosystem by hindering the establishment of invasive vegetation.
There is also some other issues with the plan; it seems that the land designations aren’t consistent from one area to the next. There are two similar invasive vegetation created wetland areas one in the north and one in the south that that are listed under two separate land designations, while being very similar. Maybe this is because during the process of this plan the land base was evaluated by aerial photo interpretation instead of being verified on the ground. That would also be why the majority of 10c lands are plantation, beach grass, or other invasive vegetated lands and not globally significant plant communities. In fact OHV traffic will slow the invasive vegetation from overtaking more open sand lands.
To sum this up the Forest Service should seriously be looking at rewriting a management plan with the input of and advisory council before any implementation of trail closure. I think that the closures will cause more ecological damage than the existing situation. The Forest Service should be working with the State of Oregon to come to some sort of agreement about the obliteration of the foredune and filling in the wetlands so that the natural sand migration can once again continue. OHVs are a very small impact to the dunes ecosystem, the real threat is the invasive vegetation and plantations that were planted in the area during the jetty and town construction. The sad thing is that even if the Forest Service closed the ODNRA 100% to OHV use it won’t matter in the next 20 years anyway if there are no measures taken to control the vegetation and reestablish the natural processes of this ecosystem.
The OHV user group is willing and able to assist with whatever is needed to stop this invasion and help return the dunes to their natural state. The forest Service needs to repair the relationship with this group caused from the 94 Dunes plan with education and support
The 1972 ODNRA Act
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev7_007083.pdf
1994 Dunes Management Plan
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev7_007084.pdf
This is in response to the June 9, 2011 ODNRA Scoping letter. First off I’d like to thank the Forest Service for pushing this process though public involvement, even though this was already a signed decision. I’ve read through the proposed actions and I feel that there are some excellent changes to the original 10c lands base. With that said I’d like to highlight some other issues that haven’t been addressed with the proposed action.
On March 23, 1972 Congress passed the Act declaring the ODNRA into existence, this act was signed by President Nixon on the 24th. I read through this document and noticed some fairly strong language in Section 12 about an Advisory Council being established by the Secretary of Agriculture. It was fairly specific about the make-up of this council and it appears that they wanted a local body to assist the Forest Service with the direction of these lands. I’ve have spent several hours trying to find any meeting minutes or notes. I question why this council was never established.
Another thing I’d like to point out is how out of date the current plan is. The plan states that it is to be revised every 10 years but no more than 15 years between revisions. This plan is over 17 years old and the 10c designated trails has not been implemented. I ask why now? There are far more important goals outlined within this plan such as an active vegetation management plan implementation. The plan lists this as a higher priority and specifically identifies more funding to accomplish removal of beach grass, scotch broom, and plantations. Remember before the plantations and invasive vegetation these areas were open sand riding areas and not trails; so I question the validity of calling these trails now, instead of dunes where OHV traffic has benefited the ecosystem by hindering the establishment of invasive vegetation.
There is also some other issues with the plan; it seems that the land designations aren’t consistent from one area to the next. There are two similar invasive vegetation created wetland areas one in the north and one in the south that that are listed under two separate land designations, while being very similar. Maybe this is because during the process of this plan the land base was evaluated by aerial photo interpretation instead of being verified on the ground. That would also be why the majority of 10c lands are plantation, beach grass, or other invasive vegetated lands and not globally significant plant communities. In fact OHV traffic will slow the invasive vegetation from overtaking more open sand lands.
To sum this up the Forest Service should seriously be looking at rewriting a management plan with the input of and advisory council before any implementation of trail closure. I think that the closures will cause more ecological damage than the existing situation. The Forest Service should be working with the State of Oregon to come to some sort of agreement about the obliteration of the foredune and filling in the wetlands so that the natural sand migration can once again continue. OHVs are a very small impact to the dunes ecosystem, the real threat is the invasive vegetation and plantations that were planted in the area during the jetty and town construction. The sad thing is that even if the Forest Service closed the ODNRA 100% to OHV use it won’t matter in the next 20 years anyway if there are no measures taken to control the vegetation and reestablish the natural processes of this ecosystem.
The OHV user group is willing and able to assist with whatever is needed to stop this invasion and help return the dunes to their natural state. The forest Service needs to repair the relationship with this group caused from the 94 Dunes plan with education and support
Saturday, July 9, 2011
more comments
In all the decades that area has been open for ATV / OHV access, go to it even just a couple of weeks after a MAJOR weekend of riding and it's hard to tell people have even been there.
Next, what a way to help an area that has already been in recession for over 20 years...no joke, OHV /ATV tourism is a huge help to a struggling economy of Oregon coastlands.
Next, what a way to help an area that has already been in recession for over 20 years...no joke, OHV /ATV tourism is a huge help to a struggling economy of Oregon coastlands.
more comments
Manage Definition: The organization and coordination of the activities of an enterprise in accordance with certain policies and in achievement of defined objectives. There are generations to come the should have the opportunity to enjoy all that this state has to offer. We once were an abundant state with lots to use and share. Now we are becoming a lock it up and preserve it state. Only to rot and decay and become a hazard to everyone. I say USE IT - not lose it!!!
more comments to copy, edit or add your own verbage to
THE ROUTES UNDER CONSIDERATION ARE AMONG THE ONLY REASONS WE AS A FAMILY COME TO THE OREGON DUNES TO CAMP AND RECREATE WITH MOTORIZED USE. tHE DEMANDS FOR THESE TYPES OF ACCESS ARE GROWING AS SEEN IN ATV/UTV SALES. NO OTHER TYPE OF USAGE IS GROWING AS FAST IN THE AREAS OF SALES AND USE. THIS MAKES ADDING ADDITIONAL CLOSURES A WRONG HEADED APPROACH TO SERVING THE DEMANDS AND CHOICE EXPECTATIONS OF THE TAX PAYING PUBLIC. KEEP THESE ROUTES/TRAILS OPEN AND PLEASE INCLUDE ME IN ANY FUTURE SOPA'S. THANK YOU.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Another letter
The 10 trails that are noted for proposed use are Banshee Hill and a combination of nine trails into one beach trail. This will constrict all OHV traffic into only open areas and these designated trails. Trail use is the major part of the attraction to the ONDRA and eliminating them will cause further damage to tourism and the economy of the coastal towns. More than half of the ONDRA has been put aside for environmental uses and closed areas to protect habitat. Don't let this proposal pass.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Here's some more wording you can copy
Please do not adopt this aggressive plan. My family loves Oregon and the public lands available to us. Riding the dunes is a family activity that we all enjoy and we are responsible riders that respect the laws and land. We also bring our money into the areas we ride in, from camping fees, fuel, groceries, restaurants and other services and goods. If we are unable to fully utilize the dunes, we may be forced to seek dunes in other states, even though we would much rather our money stay within Oregon.
Here's another one that you can add to, edit and add your own touch
OHV's provide huge revenue for states through licensing, events and fuel taxes ect, Revenue for highways, local economies and other programs that are vital to our state's budgets. It is time that the people in the OHV community also benefit from these funds in the form of Land and Trail Management, not closure. To me, Management means working for the betterment and enjoyment of the people who use and largely pay for these lands, not legal fees to stop frivilous law suits generated by groups that don't have any interest in usng the land. In economic times lke this, I think that tax payer monies could be more effective by expanding responsible land use programs and Land Management technics.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Here's another one that you can add to, edit and add your own touch
The closure is a crime, in a time of need and economic crisis camping and riding are a couple of the cheapest ways to go on vacation. With the closure of the trails those members of our family who cannot ride well enough to go out in bigger dunes are robbed of the experience in the dunes that they most enjoy and in the end we will stop going if not everyone can have fun.The money that is brought in to surrounding businesses is irreplaceable and the dunes should be exploited in a way to help the community instead of being closed. There are so many more options
another letter to copy, edit and add your own touches
RE: 10C Designated Routes Project #34220
Dear Siuslaw National Forest District Planners,
I am writing you today to voice my concern and strong opposition to closures and reductions in OHV recreational opportunities the Siuslaw National Forest Supervisor’s Office has proposed for many areas under their jurisdiction. Specifically, we strenuously object to further restrictions being placed upon OHV recreational access and activities at the ODNRA.
Although my family resides in California we have many relatives in the Coos Bay and Florence areas who have informed us of the recent proposals made by the NFS, which have the potential of closing over 100 miles of trail, basically the entire trail system. Closing existing trails is not a solution!
Our family and relatives are avid OHV enthusiast so during the riding season we spend several weeks visiting them and most of our time in the vicinity of Florence. Our relatives there have a modest home so we usually stay in local motels and dine frequently at the nearby restaurants so as not to inconvenience them. We often all gather and camp in the much improved facilities at both the North and South locations of the ODNRA, spending our time away from camp with our ATVs and Side-by-Side UTVs enjoying the opportunities and beauty that the dunes there provide.
While camping we frequent many of the nearby local business for various supplies and dining needs. We are concerned that local businesses are not being adequately represented or considered in the decision process, many local Legislators aren’t even aware of the planning process you have undertaken. It is important that the entire community be represented and have their voices heard in all aspects of this proposal. We fear that given the current economic climate our Nation faces your decisions may negatively impact the very sector that is capable of helping to turn around this financial crisis. It is the wrong place and time to reduce the tourism and local visitation attributable to the Dunes by further restricting the areas available for OHV use.
Lost in your current proposal is the issue of those whose mobility is impaired, including Veterans like myself who incurred disabilities while serving our country and the elderly who cannot walk into or nearby most of the Dune areas.
We in the OHV Community generally support the idea of travel being limited to designated roads, trails and areas. We are also in support of a thorough environmental review and analysis during the route designation process, as well as ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the OHV infrastructure. In many cases we have voluntarily taxed ourselves in order to provide funds to agencies so they can actively and effectively accomplish these tasks. What our family and the OHV community in general cannot support is being presented with Alternatives that fail to adequately address the need to provide for motorized recreation. Our methods of travel are a legitimate use of National Forest lands.
There are many local groups willing to step up and volunteer their time to assist the NFS in performing trail maintenance and cleanup. They are willing to be self enforcing in issues such as OHV noise reduction, remaining within allowed OHV boundaries, safety compliance, education of bad actors and a host of other matters which are currently a cause of concern.
The OHV Community would in turn like to point out that these Dunes are not National Parks or Wilderness Study Areas, they are lands administered by the Siuslaw National Forest Service as a National Recreation Area and should be managed as such.
Regarding management of this National Recreation Area and the possible missed opportunities for OHV access, we would like to suggest that your agency address any legitimate maintenance, resource and environmental concerns by incorporating a training protocol into your travel plan that would train agency staff on how to effectively manage volunteer programs, apply for grants, use the challenge cost share program and learn about and apply for other funding sources.
The Siuslaw National Forest needs to provide information and educational opportunities for users so that their expectations and understanding of the area’s uses are clear. If there is an obvious opportunity to re-direct a hiking or equestrian trail where it may coincide with an established motorized route then we believe there could be an opportunity to enhance the experience for all parties concerned.
OHV use continues to increase in popularity with the American public and National Forest visitors. There is a need to provide for this legal and popular activity. Motorized use is a legitimate use of public lands yet the agency is proposing significant closures.
The agency has responded to the increase in motorized uses by proposing drastic reductions in that use, this is totally unacceptable.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
FYI . . . sent it here too!
Comments-pacificnorthwest-siuslaw-ce...oast@fs.fed.us
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Forest Supervisor
Dear Siuslaw National Forest District Planners,
I am writing you today to voice my concern and strong opposition to closures and reductions in OHV recreational opportunities the Siuslaw National Forest Supervisor’s Office has proposed for many areas under their jurisdiction. Specifically, we strenuously object to further restrictions being placed upon OHV recreational access and activities at the ODNRA.
Although my family resides in California we have many relatives in the Coos Bay and Florence areas who have informed us of the recent proposals made by the NFS, which have the potential of closing over 100 miles of trail, basically the entire trail system. Closing existing trails is not a solution!
Our family and relatives are avid OHV enthusiast so during the riding season we spend several weeks visiting them and most of our time in the vicinity of Florence. Our relatives there have a modest home so we usually stay in local motels and dine frequently at the nearby restaurants so as not to inconvenience them. We often all gather and camp in the much improved facilities at both the North and South locations of the ODNRA, spending our time away from camp with our ATVs and Side-by-Side UTVs enjoying the opportunities and beauty that the dunes there provide.
While camping we frequent many of the nearby local business for various supplies and dining needs. We are concerned that local businesses are not being adequately represented or considered in the decision process, many local Legislators aren’t even aware of the planning process you have undertaken. It is important that the entire community be represented and have their voices heard in all aspects of this proposal. We fear that given the current economic climate our Nation faces your decisions may negatively impact the very sector that is capable of helping to turn around this financial crisis. It is the wrong place and time to reduce the tourism and local visitation attributable to the Dunes by further restricting the areas available for OHV use.
Lost in your current proposal is the issue of those whose mobility is impaired, including Veterans like myself who incurred disabilities while serving our country and the elderly who cannot walk into or nearby most of the Dune areas.
We in the OHV Community generally support the idea of travel being limited to designated roads, trails and areas. We are also in support of a thorough environmental review and analysis during the route designation process, as well as ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the OHV infrastructure. In many cases we have voluntarily taxed ourselves in order to provide funds to agencies so they can actively and effectively accomplish these tasks. What our family and the OHV community in general cannot support is being presented with Alternatives that fail to adequately address the need to provide for motorized recreation. Our methods of travel are a legitimate use of National Forest lands.
There are many local groups willing to step up and volunteer their time to assist the NFS in performing trail maintenance and cleanup. They are willing to be self enforcing in issues such as OHV noise reduction, remaining within allowed OHV boundaries, safety compliance, education of bad actors and a host of other matters which are currently a cause of concern.
The OHV Community would in turn like to point out that these Dunes are not National Parks or Wilderness Study Areas, they are lands administered by the Siuslaw National Forest Service as a National Recreation Area and should be managed as such.
Regarding management of this National Recreation Area and the possible missed opportunities for OHV access, we would like to suggest that your agency address any legitimate maintenance, resource and environmental concerns by incorporating a training protocol into your travel plan that would train agency staff on how to effectively manage volunteer programs, apply for grants, use the challenge cost share program and learn about and apply for other funding sources.
The Siuslaw National Forest needs to provide information and educational opportunities for users so that their expectations and understanding of the area’s uses are clear. If there is an obvious opportunity to re-direct a hiking or equestrian trail where it may coincide with an established motorized route then we believe there could be an opportunity to enhance the experience for all parties concerned.
OHV use continues to increase in popularity with the American public and National Forest visitors. There is a need to provide for this legal and popular activity. Motorized use is a legitimate use of public lands yet the agency is proposing significant closures.
The agency has responded to the increase in motorized uses by proposing drastic reductions in that use, this is totally unacceptable.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
FYI . . . sent it here too!
Comments-pacificnorthwest-siuslaw-ce...oast@fs.fed.us
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Forest Supervisor
Monday, June 27, 2011
Letter to Jerry Ingersoll
Send comments to email below
Comments-pacificnorthwest-siuslaw-centralcoast@fs.fed.us
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Forest Supervisor
Project 34220
Designating motorized vehicle routes in the 10C Management Area of the Oregon Dunes NRA
The Forest Service has been working on this plan since 1990 and then updated it with the new 1994 Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area Plan and again doing a update for 2012. Since that time the ODNRA has more than twice as many users and you are shrinking the area in which we have available to ride.
Take a look at the 1960 photo that was shown at these 10c meetings and the photos that the Forest Service is showing now and you can see for yourself how much open sand has been smoothed out by noxious weeds ie. scotch broom & beach grass. Every time you close an area the more dunes we lose, eventually there will be no more Sand Dunes within the ODNRA. Each year following the winter rains and the water recedes in the deflation plain we also lose more open riding area.
The Forest Service has plans to take away 103 miles of trails that they say are user created, at least half were created well before the 1990 or 1994 plan, all of those trails should be allowed to stay as user created trails.
The motto of the Forest Service is “Caring for the Land and serving the people”
The people you are serving are NOT the OHV user.
Name
Address
Phone # optional
You may copy my letter or use part of it and add your own ideas and thoughts and what closing the trails & the dunes means to your family
Barbara
Comments-pacificnorthwest-siuslaw-centralcoast@fs.fed.us
Mr. Jerry Ingersoll
Forest Supervisor
Project 34220
Designating motorized vehicle routes in the 10C Management Area of the Oregon Dunes NRA
The Forest Service has been working on this plan since 1990 and then updated it with the new 1994 Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area Plan and again doing a update for 2012. Since that time the ODNRA has more than twice as many users and you are shrinking the area in which we have available to ride.
Take a look at the 1960 photo that was shown at these 10c meetings and the photos that the Forest Service is showing now and you can see for yourself how much open sand has been smoothed out by noxious weeds ie. scotch broom & beach grass. Every time you close an area the more dunes we lose, eventually there will be no more Sand Dunes within the ODNRA. Each year following the winter rains and the water recedes in the deflation plain we also lose more open riding area.
The Forest Service has plans to take away 103 miles of trails that they say are user created, at least half were created well before the 1990 or 1994 plan, all of those trails should be allowed to stay as user created trails.
The motto of the Forest Service is “Caring for the Land and serving the people”
The people you are serving are NOT the OHV user.
Name
Address
Phone # optional
You may copy my letter or use part of it and add your own ideas and thoughts and what closing the trails & the dunes means to your family
Barbara
Monday, February 7, 2011
KCST Radio - The Forest Service 10-C Travel Management Plan Chat
These 4 audio clips feature Central Coast Ranger Pam Gardner and Sharon Stewart, both with the U.S. Forest Service, talking about the Oregon Dunes Recreation Area. The agency recently completed the public portion of a rulemaking process called the "designated routes" project. The ODNRA has been operating for years under the principal that all areas are open for off-highway riding unless specifically closed to vehicles. A rules change on a national level means they must now identify specific areas that are both open and closed to riding. Most of the historical areas will remain open for riding, but portions going through vegetated areas will have specific routes posted. Gardner and Stewart talked about the dunes and the rules process.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Interview Request
Daniel G Marting
Subject: dunes
I would just be interested in a verbal interview within the next two
weeks. If the weather permits on Presidents day I would love to shoot
some video of riding, family time at the dunes, and possibly some of
your thoughts about the proposed restriction. Just to let you know my
work will be published. As long as you are fine with that it could be a
nice opportunity to represent OHV users and voice some of your concerns
about more restrictions.
Dan,
You can call me anytime at the number below. I do believe it would be well worth your time to come out and feel it. The USFS has not managed the ODNRA well and have missed very important time lines and the basic charter of the ODNRA. We would not be where we are if they have had. They are underfunded and scared to death of a law suit so they manage by who is the loudest. The environmentalist has the loudest voice and by far the most money. This is our recreation, we have real jobs and not enough time or individual money to fight. We are hoping to change that and the STRD is a starting point.
It is a shame but no matter what else is said, in 50 to 75 years the only open sand will be where OHV rides. I will repeat this and it is backed up by so much research that it isn't funny anymore, THERE WILL BE NO MORE OPEN SAND IN THE ODNRA EXCEPT ON THE 25% THAT OHV RIDES ON. This is only one generation of people. I am 59 and I walked the dunes in 1957 and we drove a 2 wheel drive pickup right on the beach with no foredune. Please review this late 1960 Lassie movie and look at the open sand and when you come out I will show you what it looks like now. Scary is not the word for it and the USFS continues to let it happen. Their answer is there is no money to bring bull dozers in to rip out the grass and that has to be done over and over again. Giving the current national financial situation there will never be money available for this type of losing project. Even if they do, the grass will grow back unless something else keeps it out. OHV does this but they refuse to "officially" recognize it. The USFS agrees with me verbally that we do help. They did an experiment at Ten Mile where they bull dozed about 40 acres. The beach grass grew back almost immediately. They put sighs up and ask us to ride in it and guess what, we helped keep the grass off. What a concept....This was NEVER published. They manage forest, not open sand and they simply cannot or are unwilling to make the tough decisions and fight the environmentalist. If they look at the original 1972 charter there was supposed to be a group to oversee the ODNRA and that has never happen. If it had, the highly destructive European Beach grass, that the USFS planted to begin with, would not be what it is today. All we have seen is more and more closures and that has allowed more and more open sand to be overgrown and destroyed. We need to start today, not continue to chew our nails and hope this will go away. Closing more dunes with the 10C process is simply not the direction we need to go for a health dune system.
Everything is upside down and I can show you over and over areas that were clearly open sand; now is forest and wetlands. Huge swaths of ONDRA is now under seasonal water in the deflation plane. This type of environment promotes growth and mutations. OH, golly we now have a "new species" we must protect. Lets close down more sand! Oh, by the way, this area is now WETLANDS and comes under another government agency... You can see where I am going with this. It never ends. The longer this goes on the quicker the true dunes i.e. open sand dies. This is happening exponentially now. The attached and the movie clearly show old vs. new.
Now they have allowed commercial farming to be more important than recreation which is the mushroom industry on tree plantations the USFS planted in 1960's over open sand. I cannot imagine this. Isn’t this the Oregon Dunes RECREATION Area? In the 1994 plan they even say that mushrooms should not be the priority. During this 10C process which the USFS started to begin with, mushrooms ruled over and over again. For the life of me, I cannot understand that. Recreational picking, yes, commercial farming I cannot. From my understanding, there is over a million dollars in mushrooms sold to Japan per year out of the ODNRA alone. That is great and I wish them well and tell them to go for it. But the USFS is locking out over HALF of the northern dunes for the endeavor. I only asked for a few trails through this area and that, I am sure, will be pooh-poohed.
The 1994 plan was made in a vacuum and we are now living with the consequences. They have this deal about trails. It is a joke. All this area before 1960 was open sand. There are NO trails in open sand. They are so focused on forest and plants that they cannot see the forest for the trees. I will say that this last 10C work group was NOT made in a vacuum and they did a tremendous effort to get everything on the table. Hurrah and I thank them for their efforts. Maybe that huge ship is trying to slow down and make a turn. I can only hope.
I say all of this, but the OHV community is also conservationalist as well. We are family and we want the land to be kept pristine so we can use it, not lock it up. We want this for our kids and our kid's kids. We love the forest and open sand as much as anybody. We just choose to ride through it rather than hike which only the young can do especially in sand. If there was no other forest in the world then I can see stronger rules but this is a tip of the iceberg on how much forest there is. That is why this was set aside for Recreation, not farming or other uses. I truly do feel that OHV, horse riders, hikers and anybody else should be able to enjoy this wonderful treasure with minimum conflicts. There needs to be separation. We do need to protect certain areas like the dunes close to rivers, sand islands, snowy plovers and native animals. We also have to do our part with the noise we make. Shame on us. We need Law enforcement to help. I volunteer with the Dunes Patrol and have asked Sheriff Rodney Roberts if I can help and he agrees. I hope to ride with them this summer to do sound checks and enforce the 93 db.
Environmentalist do not like to hear this naked truth. It is time they did. It is time to truly understand that the ODNRA is a very special place and big enough for everybody. The trails we ride on ARE keeping the non-native plants at bay. We cannot kill big swaths of unwanted non-native plants but again we can help manage the mess.
I also do not like to beat up on the USFS. They are good hardworking folks that are just as passionate. They just need to step up to the plate and finally come to grips with the mess they, through all the greatest intentions, created. This is truly the law of unintended consequences. It is now time to change the direction, bring balance back and all of us need to work together to try and save the true dunes.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2329504977213415012#
Jody Phillips
Subject: dunes
I would just be interested in a verbal interview within the next two
weeks. If the weather permits on Presidents day I would love to shoot
some video of riding, family time at the dunes, and possibly some of
your thoughts about the proposed restriction. Just to let you know my
work will be published. As long as you are fine with that it could be a
nice opportunity to represent OHV users and voice some of your concerns
about more restrictions.
Dan,
You can call me anytime at the number below. I do believe it would be well worth your time to come out and feel it. The USFS has not managed the ODNRA well and have missed very important time lines and the basic charter of the ODNRA. We would not be where we are if they have had. They are underfunded and scared to death of a law suit so they manage by who is the loudest. The environmentalist has the loudest voice and by far the most money. This is our recreation, we have real jobs and not enough time or individual money to fight. We are hoping to change that and the STRD is a starting point.
It is a shame but no matter what else is said, in 50 to 75 years the only open sand will be where OHV rides. I will repeat this and it is backed up by so much research that it isn't funny anymore, THERE WILL BE NO MORE OPEN SAND IN THE ODNRA EXCEPT ON THE 25% THAT OHV RIDES ON. This is only one generation of people. I am 59 and I walked the dunes in 1957 and we drove a 2 wheel drive pickup right on the beach with no foredune. Please review this late 1960 Lassie movie and look at the open sand and when you come out I will show you what it looks like now. Scary is not the word for it and the USFS continues to let it happen. Their answer is there is no money to bring bull dozers in to rip out the grass and that has to be done over and over again. Giving the current national financial situation there will never be money available for this type of losing project. Even if they do, the grass will grow back unless something else keeps it out. OHV does this but they refuse to "officially" recognize it. The USFS agrees with me verbally that we do help. They did an experiment at Ten Mile where they bull dozed about 40 acres. The beach grass grew back almost immediately. They put sighs up and ask us to ride in it and guess what, we helped keep the grass off. What a concept....This was NEVER published. They manage forest, not open sand and they simply cannot or are unwilling to make the tough decisions and fight the environmentalist. If they look at the original 1972 charter there was supposed to be a group to oversee the ODNRA and that has never happen. If it had, the highly destructive European Beach grass, that the USFS planted to begin with, would not be what it is today. All we have seen is more and more closures and that has allowed more and more open sand to be overgrown and destroyed. We need to start today, not continue to chew our nails and hope this will go away. Closing more dunes with the 10C process is simply not the direction we need to go for a health dune system.
Everything is upside down and I can show you over and over areas that were clearly open sand; now is forest and wetlands. Huge swaths of ONDRA is now under seasonal water in the deflation plane. This type of environment promotes growth and mutations. OH, golly we now have a "new species" we must protect. Lets close down more sand! Oh, by the way, this area is now WETLANDS and comes under another government agency... You can see where I am going with this. It never ends. The longer this goes on the quicker the true dunes i.e. open sand dies. This is happening exponentially now. The attached and the movie clearly show old vs. new.
Now they have allowed commercial farming to be more important than recreation which is the mushroom industry on tree plantations the USFS planted in 1960's over open sand. I cannot imagine this. Isn’t this the Oregon Dunes RECREATION Area? In the 1994 plan they even say that mushrooms should not be the priority. During this 10C process which the USFS started to begin with, mushrooms ruled over and over again. For the life of me, I cannot understand that. Recreational picking, yes, commercial farming I cannot. From my understanding, there is over a million dollars in mushrooms sold to Japan per year out of the ODNRA alone. That is great and I wish them well and tell them to go for it. But the USFS is locking out over HALF of the northern dunes for the endeavor. I only asked for a few trails through this area and that, I am sure, will be pooh-poohed.
The 1994 plan was made in a vacuum and we are now living with the consequences. They have this deal about trails. It is a joke. All this area before 1960 was open sand. There are NO trails in open sand. They are so focused on forest and plants that they cannot see the forest for the trees. I will say that this last 10C work group was NOT made in a vacuum and they did a tremendous effort to get everything on the table. Hurrah and I thank them for their efforts. Maybe that huge ship is trying to slow down and make a turn. I can only hope.
I say all of this, but the OHV community is also conservationalist as well. We are family and we want the land to be kept pristine so we can use it, not lock it up. We want this for our kids and our kid's kids. We love the forest and open sand as much as anybody. We just choose to ride through it rather than hike which only the young can do especially in sand. If there was no other forest in the world then I can see stronger rules but this is a tip of the iceberg on how much forest there is. That is why this was set aside for Recreation, not farming or other uses. I truly do feel that OHV, horse riders, hikers and anybody else should be able to enjoy this wonderful treasure with minimum conflicts. There needs to be separation. We do need to protect certain areas like the dunes close to rivers, sand islands, snowy plovers and native animals. We also have to do our part with the noise we make. Shame on us. We need Law enforcement to help. I volunteer with the Dunes Patrol and have asked Sheriff Rodney Roberts if I can help and he agrees. I hope to ride with them this summer to do sound checks and enforce the 93 db.
Environmentalist do not like to hear this naked truth. It is time they did. It is time to truly understand that the ODNRA is a very special place and big enough for everybody. The trails we ride on ARE keeping the non-native plants at bay. We cannot kill big swaths of unwanted non-native plants but again we can help manage the mess.
I also do not like to beat up on the USFS. They are good hardworking folks that are just as passionate. They just need to step up to the plate and finally come to grips with the mess they, through all the greatest intentions, created. This is truly the law of unintended consequences. It is now time to change the direction, bring balance back and all of us need to work together to try and save the true dunes.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2329504977213415012#
Jody Phillips
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