UPLA now has the most extensive collection of GPX tracks throughout Utah and surrounding areas. It’s hard to count, but it’s safe to say we literally have thousands of route tracks within Utah from many different sources. Recent additions to our collection include:

• Arapeen
• Bears Ears
• Bear Lake-Northern Utah/Idaho
• Canyonlands/Maze
• Great Western Trail-AZ, UT, WY, ID
• Hanksville/Torrey
• Paiute OHV Trails including Fremont and Pausaugant
• Vernal
• 360 Google Street View Trails that show you video of the trails

These tracks are available to Members by visiting Trail Maps – Utah Public Lands Alliance. If you’re not a Member yet, there’s a link to choose and activate a membership right away.

UPLA attends a lot of meetings and events where we are visible, but most of the work that UPLA does is behind the scenes. We’re constantly examining land management actions, court cases, social media, and the Federal Register to stay informed about proposed actions that may affect OHV recreation. This work is vitally important, not only to help influence the decisions that Land Managers make, but also to present enough facts to satisfy the elements of a claim for legal legal action.

UPLA does not engage directly in litigation, but instead trusts BlueRibbon Coalition to initiate and manage all legal claims to represent our interests as a Member, and they can do the same thing for you as a member of BlueRibbon Coalition, that’s why we strongly recommend you become a member of both UPLA and BlueRibbon. Join UPLA and BlueRibbon Coalition Here

Some of the work we have recently engaged in can be found at these links:

Rescission of Conservation and Landscape Health Rule November 10, 2025

Labyrinth Canyon Gemini Bridges Moab Revision Comments October 24, 2025

Recission of National Forest Roadless Rule Comments September 19, 2025

Marine Expansion Proposal in Johnson Valley OHV September 18, 2025

Marine Expansion Joint Letter with 5 OHV Groups September 12, 2025

Beas Lewis Flat Campground Expansion September 17, 2025

House Natural Resources Briefing Request on Volunteerism September 3, 2025

USDA NEPA Regulations Comments August 4, 2025

Department of Interior NEPA Regulations Comments August 4, 2025

Comments on Burdensome Federal Regulations June 4, 2025

All these comments have also been supplied to Utah Congressional Representatives, Federal Agency Officials, and Utah State Government officials. These important actions UPLA takes to preserve access to your public lands have only been possible by all three of the following:

• UPLA’s Natural Resources Consultant, Rose Winn
• Funding from the OHVR Grant program sponsored by the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation
• Your Membership and Generous Donations

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

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UPLA submitted very detailed comments supporting the rescission of the BLM Land Conservation and Health Rule which are published below. UPLA has been working for the past 2 years to prevent this rule from being implemented, and fortunately, the current Administration and BLM have addressed our concerns by proposing rescission of the rule.

Once again, extreme conservation groups have been pretty successful at painting a false narrative that this rule is largely inconsequential, but the truth is that it could be a death blow to restricting all motorized travel on BLM land. Please don’t make your decisions based on the flood of social media content, our opposition can outspend us, but don’t let them outsmart us. It’s worth your time to read to understand the real consequences of this rule.

Protecting your access for motorized recreation is what we do. please consider joining or making a donation today at www.UtahPLA.com/help

UPLA – BLM Rescission of Conservation and Landscape Health Rule – Comment

Protect Our Public Lands: Why You Should Comment by November 10

If you recreate, explore, or ride on America’s public lands, the Bureau of Land Management’s Public Lands Rule permanently changes what “multiple use” means — and not for the better. This rule undermines the foundation of balanced management that has guided the BLM for nearly fifty years. That’s why it’s critical to submit comments by November 10 urging the Department of Interior to withdraw the rule.

What the Rule Actually Does

The BLM claimed the Public Lands Rule simply “elevated conservation” alongside recreation, grazing, mining, and energy development. But in practice, the rule redefines “conservation” as a stand-alone multiple-use mandate — something Congress never authorized under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA).

Under FLPMA, multiple use means managing lands for the balanced combination of various uses — recreation, grazing, timber, minerals, and wildlife habitat — without prioritizing one use over another. Conservation has always been a management goal, not a use category with legal standing equal to all others. By rewriting that definition through regulation, the BLM effectively tipped the scale toward preservation at the expense of access and productivity.

The new rules defining the evaluation and implementation of Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) is another way to eliminate motorized access on the BLM lands. The establishment and reinforcement of Research Natural Areas as type of ACECs is another red flag to closing public lands for public use.

Even worse, the rule introduces a new mechanism — the “conservation lease.” These 10-year leases could be granted to private groups, corporations, or even foreign-funded entities, giving them effective control over large areas of BLM land. Lessees could dictate which activities occur — potentially excluding off-highway vehicle (OHV) use, overlanding, hunting, or grazing. There is no clear statutory authority for these leases, meaning the agency has invented a new land-management tool outside of congressional oversight.

Why It Threatens Access for Off-Roaders and Other Recreation Users

If you enjoy motorized or trail-based recreation, the danger is immediate:
– The rule repeatedly references “casual use recreation,” a term historically interpreted to mean non-motorized activity. Under conservation leases, that language could justify excluding OHV travel from huge areas of public land.
– By giving “conservation” equal status under multiple-use law, BLM can now justify closing routes or restricting vehicle access — not as temporary mitigation, but as a legally co-equal use priority.
– Conservation leases could overlap existing recreation areas, grazing allotments, or permitted events, effectively privatizing management decisions that have always been made through public planning.
– Because this new priority isn’t tied to Congress, it sets a precedent for future administrations to reshape land use without a single vote from elected officials.

Why Your Comment Matters

Public comments are the most direct way to tell the BLM that this rule violates both the spirit and the letter of FLPMA. Every individual comment builds the administrative record that courts, Congress, and policymakers will later review. If we fail to speak up, the record will suggest the public supports this dramatic reinterpretation of multiple use.

You can strengthen your comment by including these points:

1. Congress never defined “conservation” as a use under FLPMA; this rule unlawfully expands agency authority.
   2. Conservation leases privatize management of public lands and could exclude legitimate recreation activities.
   3. Motorized recreation is not “casual use,” and the rule’s terminology risks permanent closure of access routes.
   4. True multiple use means balance, not prioritization of one interest over others.
   5. The current rule has so many flaws and red flags that revising it should not be an option. Withdrawing or rescinding the rule completely is the only path to lawful, congressionally authorized management under FLPMA.

The Bottom Line

Our public lands belong to all of us — not to corporations, outside groups, or bureaucratic constructs that distort the meaning of multiple use. Defining “conservation” as a mandated use tilted public-lands policy toward exclusion and away from shared access. Combined with untested conservation leases, this rule could lock away millions of acres from the very citizens who fund, maintain, and steward them.

The current administration and the BLM have now recognized that the Public Lands Rule was a gross overstep in public lands management, and has proposed withdrawing the Rule established under the prior administration, but we need your comments supporting the withdrawal.

The deadline to make your voice heard is November 10. Submit your comment today and stand up for balanced management, open access, and the principle that public lands should remain public — for all responsible users.

2 Ways to Submit your Comments

1. Click on this link to submit your comments directly into Regulations.gov. You can also upload word or pdf documents directly on this page.

2. Go to BlueRibbon Coalition’s Comments page to learn more and submit comments there.

Everyone pulled together on this and it helps set the stage for the next fight 8n just a few days. Here are UPLA’s comments

UPLA – Labyrinth Rim-Gemini Bridges TMP (2025 Reassessment) – EA Comment