The hearing for a stay or temporary injunction of the Moab Labyrinth Canyon/Gemini Bridges Travel Management Plan was held on February 21before the Honorable Dale A. Kimball in Salt Lake City. The OHV community turned out in force to observe the hearing, which Judge Kimball mentioned that it was good to see so many concerned citizens turn out to fill his courtroom.

This hearing was for the Federal lawsuit filed by BlueRibbon Coalition, Patrick McKay, and Colorado Off Highway Trail Defenders against BLM. The judge allowed SUWA to act as an intervenor in the case. Plaintiffs were represented by Matt Miller and Nate Curisi with Texas Public Policy Group, defendants were represented by Paul Turcke and Steve Bloch. Final prehearing briefs from both attorneys are attached if you’d like to read them.

To qualify for an injunction, four elements must be proven:

• That Plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the merits. Matt Miller presented four counts for violations and the reasons that plaintiff was likely to prevail on all 4 of them. It is only necessary for the Plaintiff to prevail on one of the counts.
• That Plaintiffs will suffer irreparable harm if relief is not granted. Substantial focus, including questions from Judge Kimball, surrounded the impact of BLM’s intent to “obliterate” the trails in their plan. Another focus was that some of the arguments in the 4 counts were constitutional violations, which automatically qualify them as being irreparable.
• That the Plan was arbitrary and capricious in it’s evaluation and implementation. BLM is required to take a “hard look” at the impacts from implementation of the plan, and cannot consider factors not intended by Congress. Many examples of infractions occurred including improper analysis of science and the failure of BLM to respond to significant and relevant comments, including the impact to recreation, including Elderly and Disabled users. Another important example was the inclusion of user conflicts citing noise without any precise definition of what noise levels were acceptable or unacceptable.
• That relief is not adverse to the public interest and that plaintiff’s injuries outweigh any alleged damage to defendants. Since the current TMP has been in effect for 15 years, delaying the effective date of the new plan will not result in any new harms to BLM, while without relief, the many users, including those that are elderly or handicapped, are deprived of the opportunity to enjoy these areas is both substantial and irreparable. One of the largest Off Road Events in the world, Easter Jeep Safari, had 9% of it’s historic trails closed by this Plan. In addition, public interest has been demonstrated by both the volume of public comments, and efforts by Federal and Utah legislators who have introduced legislation to overturn this Plan.

So what does this mean? Judge Kimball closed the hearing after about 2 hours of arguments and will issue his ruling in “short order.” Judge Kimball has a reputation for a strong understanding of land use issues in the 10^th Circuit, and also for issuing rulings quickly, so we hope to see his ruling in a short period of time. It should be noted that this Injunction Hearing is only the first step in this effort, regardless of this ruling, the Federal Lawsuit will still be heard at a later date.

I am not an attorney, but my lay opinion was that Matt Miller did a much more persuasive job than Turcke and Bloch, and Judge Kimball’s questions seemed to bolster Miller’s presentation, while they seemed more critical of BLM’s arguments.

I’ve learned that nobody can predict the outcome of any court hearing, but I’m both optimistic about our potential for success in this first step and proud and grateful of the actions taken by BlueRibbon, Patrick McKay, and Colorado Offroad Trail Defenders for standing up for our rights. Please make sure you let them know that you support them too.

Join and Support Utah Public Lands Alliance

Join and Support BlueRibbon Coalition

UPLA, BlueRibbon Coalition, SLOREX, and At Your Leisure are cosponsoring a Workshop to be more effective in preserving access to our Public Lands. We need you to invest 3 hours to learn how you can make a difference.

Even though motorized OHV has always had a strong relationship with BLM and Forest Service staff, and been quick to volunteer to complete projects on public lands, we have been at a disadvantage in Travel Management Planning because we have not been as effectively engaged as our opponents. If we fail to improve our strategies,  these closures will expand to affect every outdoor recreationist. Equestrians, campers, rock climbers, base jumpers, snowmobilers, hunters, fishermen, boaters, and mountain bikers will all be affected as more public lands are designated as wilderness, areas with wilderness character, or Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) The elimination of roads and dispersed camping areas will limit access to staging and parking areas, making your favorite areas further and further from accessible roads. Even those clamoring for more wilderness experiences will have much longer treks to get to their favorite areas, a weekend trip now will become a week long trip in the future. Cyclists, rock climbers and canyoneers are currently facing rulings that propose elimination of e-bikes and fixed anchors in National Parks. As remote areas are more limited with accessibility, injuries and rescue attempts will increase and be even more expensive, resulting in further restrictions or closure.

In Utah, there are 25 Travel Management Areas on BLM’s calendar for development or reevaluation of current plans. More are in store for Forest Service and National Monuments.

The importance of understanding the NEPA process, and being able to proactively and effectively participate in the process has never been greater, and we must become smarter and more effective at working together to influence the NEPA process.

Utah Public Lands Alliance, BlueRibbon Coalition, Salt Lake Off Road Expo, and At Your Leisure are cosponsoring a workshop on February 29 to help us all understand how we can make a difference. Our workshop presenter will be Tammy Pike, a retired BLM Travel Management Planner, who is a renowned expert in the NEPA process. Her experience spans 30 years, the last 25 focused on trails, off highway vehicles and travel management planning while both conserving our natural resources AND providing the best recreational opportunities for the public to enjoy now and in the future. She has won countless awards from not only BLM, but the Forest Service, Arizona State Land Department, and many OHV and other recreational groups.  She earned a National Customer Service Award from BLM, one of the highest possible commendations.

Tammy will help us develop a strategy to communicate clearly in the NEPA process at all levels to get our views considered in the process. We believe she is the best person to teach us how to restore balance to a system that has been heavily weighted against us. Making comments is a critical step in influencing final outcomes, and she will teach us how to make comments that are both substantive and effective. Questions and answers are an invaluable part of any discussion, because it allows you to ask your questions  and get answers from an expert. We have a full hour at the end of the program allocated just to your questions and answers where she will be joined by panelists Ben Burr and Simone Griffen from BlueRibbon Coalition, as well as Rose Winn, our new UPLA Public Policy Consultant.

For us to change the tide, we must all come together, and we must start acting as Big As We Are. If you really care about making a difference in keeping our lands accessible, make plans to attend this workshop the day prior to SLOREX opening.

What:            NEPA Comments Training Workshop

Where:          Mountain America Expo Center, 9575 State Street, Sandy UT

When:           February 29 1:30 -4:30

Space is limited, RSVP and submit questions and topics you would like included in the presentation.

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February 20, 2024 Update-I met with Matt Preston, Deputy Utah State Director for BLM to discuss upcoming Travel Management Planning (TMP) for Utah. We went over each of the following 5 areas that I spoke to Dave Jacobson about, and some general considerations in the planning process. Matt indicated that the primary objective for BLM planning is resource management, and that comes from the very top of our government. While recreation will remain an important factor in decisions, increasing weight is being placed on decisions for ways to protect and/or mitigate effects on the environment. Matt has already setup contacts for me with the next 2 Travel Management Area (TMA) project managers, and I will be getting more information from them within the coming days.

He also explained that for the SUWA Settlement TMPs, there is an extra step in the process where they will release Preliminary Alternatives before the Draft EA. This will include a map of the tentative routes for each alternative. This will give us an important tool to begin the process of doing detailed evaluation of all the routes. The Preliminary Alternatives for the San Rafael Swell were released today. You can view the four alternatives by clicking here. We will ask for better maps on our calls in the coming days. There are over 2,000 miles of routes in the Swell, and a lot of lots slated for closure in Alternatives B and C. This will require a lot of concerted effort to begin the process of surveying the trails and preparing comments. This will be the test bed of our process to accomplish this.

The general descriptions for the various alternatives can be described as the following:

• A=No Changes to Current Plan
• B=Conservation focused, largest OHV closures or restrictions
• C=Balanced alternative between OHV and Conservation
• D=OHV Focused Alternative, little closures and perhaps some additions

The Preliminary Alternatives will proceed the release of the Draft EA, so we will have more time to prepare our research.

I asked him about the general direction of BLM in their Alternative decision, and he said that we should expect to see less reliance on BLM selecting an Alternative, but rather a route by route analysis and decision on each route individually. This will require us to take a much wider focus on routes, including an additional focus on B alternative routes. You should stay tuned on some new tools UPLA is working on to assist us in this process.

I met with Dave Jacobson on February 5, the newly appointed Travel Management Plan Manager for Utah. I wanted to get an updated listing of all of the TMPs and RMPs coming down the pike so we can get ahead of them. There are 24 TMPs in Utah, and one more RMP to come in the Grand Staircase. Here’s the map that shows each area.Utah TMP and Field Office Map

Here’s the breakdown of Plans around the corner.

1. Priority List of TMPs coming and expected next date for comments and estimated final date
   1. San Rafael Swell (Price)-Comments should reopen around March 1, with Final by November 2024
   2. Bears Ears (Monticello)-Comments should open February 2024, Final by end of 2024
   3. Henry Mountains & Freemont Gorge (Richfield)-Comments should open around May 2024, with Final by November 2024
   4. Trail Canyon (Kanab)-Comments should open in April 2024 with Final end of 2024
   5. Delores River (Moab)-Very small, it will go fast, expect final January 2025

Start running trails on this Priority List, record the tracks, take photos, and put together your stories about what the trail means to you. We will address each TMP separately as we get information.

One other request that Dave thought would be very helpful is to volunteer to your local BLM office to take them out on a field trip so they can see the land, how we use it, and how we take care of it. It is suggested you contact your local District Field Manager or you can email Dave Jacobson and he will arrange some staff to join you. This will be a great way to get to know your local managers.