The effort to remove access for Off Highway Vehicle Use is not just a movement, it is an all out assault plan that is well orchestrated between Extreme Environmental Groups and Top Management at the BLM and Secretary of the Interior.

To win a war, you must fight on several fronts simultaneously with different strategies and resources. Here’s a brief recap of what’s being done in Utah.

BlueRibbon Coalition serves as our early alert system to keep us abreast of the latest in developments. Many times actions taken in other states are precursors to what we will see next in Utah. BlueRibbon will fight for us in the courts, a very recent example of that is the Federal lawsuits to reverse the Labyrinth Canyon Travel Management Plan. Everyone should be a member of BlueRibbon Coalition, and when submitting comments on land actions, submit them personally and through BlueRibbon by copying them at landuse@sharetrails.org

Utah Public Lands Alliance is focused on preserving access for ALL User groups in Utah and surrounding areas. UPLA hired our first employee recently, Rose Winn, as our Natural Resource Consultant to help us craft both professional comments and provide training for our members. UPLA has been working very closely with BlueRibbon Coalition to develop a comprehensive strategy to take preemptive action against closure efforts. We are focusing on using the same rules that SUWA has employed for years to achieve their success to our favor. To score points in a game, you must have a strong offense strategy, we can’t just play defense..

UPLA recognizes that we have many great employees at BLM and Forest Service that we’ve been working with for years to improve, protect, and preserve our public lands, and we want to enhance and grow those relationships. One of our immediate focuses is to educate our members and subscribers on how to be more effective in commenting, which will influence more favorable decisions initially by Land Managers, and provide a basis for legal action when it’s needed. If you live or recreate in Utah, you should join and support Utah Public Lands Alliance.

Your local Clubs and other User Groups-It’s important that you join and support your local clubs and organizations. They are the glue that holds the fabric of the OHV and related user groups together. Many OHV members are also users of public lands in other activities such as hunting, fighting, equestrian, mountain biking and many others. Share your concerns with these groups as well about overreaches by the Federal Government, go to their meetings to explain yourself. If you need help preparing, reach out to UPLA or BlueRibbon for assistance.

State of Utah-Our State is fighting back hard against overreaches by the Federal Government with several factions of government:

Utah Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office (PLPCO) is the agency that is leading the administrative fight in keeping access to our public lands. They have been fighting for our RS2477 roads for years, but have also now turned their attention to include B and D Class Roads in the fight. PLPCO was also the first to produce intelligible maps for the San Rafael Swell Travel Management Plan.

Legislative-We were fortunate to have both Utah Senator David Hinkins and Speaker of the House Mike Schultz visit with us at the Big Ride on evening. The focus of the 2024 legislative session was on taking back control of our state from the Federal Government. Of particular note were 2 bills (H.B. 471 and S.B. 57 passed and signed by the Governor that will test the limits of the 10^th Amendment in the powers granted by the US Constitution to the Federal Government, with the remaining rights being the jurisdiction of the State.

County Governments-County governments are very important in our fight, and counties with public lands, especially with OHV access have gotten very involved in the fight. Reach out to your local County Commissioners and let them know why public access is so important.

Judicial-The State of Utah currently has more lawsuits filed against the Federal Government than at any other time in our history, and this aggressiveness will accelerate as we move ahead. In addition, the state is seeking to build a coalition with other Western States to fight together against these overreaches. With the Supreme Court balance we now have, this is the best opportunity we’ve ever had to reign in the expanding bureaucracy of our Federal Government.

Together, We Can Win

But We Can’t Do It Without You!

This is not a single skirmish, we must get and stay engaged for the long haul. We have broad support from many organizations and government agencies, but we can’t really make a difference without your personal support and involvement.  Let’s all Join the Fight to Win and Don’t Give Up!

The tragic loss of 317 miles of roads and 120 dispersed campsites in Moab should serve as a call to action for all of us, and if we don’t rally to make a difference, it is likely the losses that lie ahead may be even worse. We have always been more concerned with losses laid out in Alternative C, but Moab’s Decision was much closer to Alternative B. Future decisions will definitely address the recreation aspects of the routes, but becoming more important are the resource impacts of each trail. We need to shift our focus to comment on the routes you love by taking note of the Resource Impacts that BLM has determined for each route. I’ll provide a link where you can find the BLM Route Reports with this information below.

Once again this will be going out again and riding the trails and documenting your findings with substantive comments.  We are working on a consolidated reporting tool to help draft your comments,  but more on that later.

So What is a Substantive Comment? A substantive comment identifies an issue you have with the document, says why it’s a problem, and offers other factual and unbiased information for BLM (or Forest Service) to consider. Substantive comments must be answered by the BLM, nonsubstantive comments are ignored.

Here are some qualities of what makes a substantive comment:

• References document pages, chapters or sections and uses objective information.
• Uses facts to question the adequacy, accuracy, methodology, or assumptions of the analysis.
• Presents traditional or ecological knowledge.
• Proposes a reasonable new alternative or revision to the alternatives presented.
• Identifies a passage in the document that is unclear or wrong.

Here’s some tips for making a substantive comment:

• Include any knowledge, experience, or evidence as it relates to your observations and comments.
• Provide GPS readings or landmarks, if possible, when referring to specific locations
• Present new information
• Share issues relevant to the environmental analysis.
• Suggest alternatives to the proposed project and the reasons why they should be considered.
• Avoid comments like “I do (or don’t like this”
• Remember that identifical comments are treated as one comment, including form letters. If you use a form letter, paste your personal comments at the very beginning of the form letter to make them stand out. Changed comments in the body of a form letter are likely to be overlooked.

Here is a list of comments that are not deemed substantive and won’t be answered

• Stating that you want your comment recorded as “substantive.”
• Crafting an emotionally compelling story without facts
• Stating only that you agree or disagree with a policy, resource decision, analysis finding, or presented alternative.
• Asking vague or open-ended questions
• Commenting on unrelated projects.

Here’s a couple good examples of substantive comments (fictitious, for example only)

Route SS1024 (Route Report Page 60) is identified for closure in Alternative B.C. This is an important connector route as listed in the Report, and leads to many activities including camping. to enable a loop route, rather than only an in and out trail. In and Out trails are far less desirable for users and the extra traffic resulting on In and Out Roads causing more of the negative impacts identified in the Route Report.

Crosses Washes or within 100 meters of an intermittent stream are listed as Resource impacts, but travel in the desert almost always involves crossing multiple washes and intermittent streams, that is the natural drainage system of the desert. Why are these crossings more impactful than others? Please clarify the potential negative impacts associated with vehicles crossing dry washes or streams.

 There are 8 Special Status Species listed in the report, but we observed none of these on our most recent trip. What mitigations have you considered to minimize these concerns; would seasonal closures minimize the impact on the species? Additionally, what mitigations have you considered for the PFYC Class 5 area of the trail? Can it be rerouted around the area of concern? Attached is a GPX file of the route we took, along with selected photos.

I disagree with closing Route SS1024 because it is the only way I have to access my private land.

Question? So What Should I Do?

1. Select an Area that has routes that are marked on the map as targeted for closure in Alternative B. Write down the route numbers.
2. Go to the BLM Route Report, for the Swell you can find it here. Just use the Search Bar on the webpage to find the Route Report for your trail, generally they will be about 4 pages long. Print it out, and try to understand what their resource concerns are. How do you determine what things mean in the Route Report? Google should be able to give you answers to abbreviations in the report. For example, I googled “What is PFYC Class 5?” and “What are abbreviation T E S T in BLM route reports for negative impacts” and it gave me all the answers.
3. Schedule time to go out and run the trail. Take your route report. Look for areas or conditions mentioned in the Route Report. Take photos along the route, especially noting any possible resource impacts they may have cited and think about alternatives when you’re on the trail.
4. When you get home, write your comments on the route. Be as specific as you can. 2 or 3 paragraphs on a route is an ideal length, include photos and gpx tracks. Videos are not recommended because of the large file size. If Archeological or Paleontology is listed, you won’t get a specific answer as to where that concern is located, but you can ask questions about possible mitigations around the concern such as rerouting the trail, informational signing, barriers to narrow trail to prevent stopping, etc. It is ok to mention how long you’ve been using the trail, with whom, etc, but this should be like the dessert to your meal, maybe delightful to you, but shouldn’t be the main course.
5. Submit Your Comments if the comment period is open. We will give you more details on how to copy us on your comments, please stand by on this until we work out the details. If the comment period is not open, get them ready to submit right after your ride while it’s clear in your mind. Again, stay tuned for more information on this.

Summary When you look at the comments required for one route, it seems like a lot, but when put in the scope of things, it might take you 20-30 minutes to write a good comment. Compare that to the fun you had running the trail, the people you enjoyed the company of on the trail, the overnight camping you did, and being able to enjoy this trail for generations to come and I hope you’ll agree it’s a good investment of your time. Please do your research and get out there and help save our trails!

Rose Winn Personal Profile

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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UPLA has always been proud of the fact that we are an all volunteer organization with no paid employees. Our fight to keep our public lands accessible has increased dramatically in both intensity and complexity, and for this reason the Board of Trustees will soon launch a search to hire a Public Policy Director to lead our efforts in a deep understanding of public land issues, staying informed on proposals being considered, and developing policy statements and comments that represent a balance of all outdoor recreational users.

We are still fine tuning our job description and finalizing our strategy, but following is a draft version.

if you know of someone that might be qualified and interested, please email Loren Campbell.

Public Policy Director Job Description 120523 Draft

Grants for OHV Recreation open February 1 and close on April 2, 2024

Utah takes great pride in its extensive off-highway vehicle (OHV) trail system, spanning over 80,000 miles and covering various trail networks throughout the state. This remarkable achievement is made possible through collaboration with city, county, nonprofit, state, tribal, and federal partners. Among these vast trails, approximately 1,200 miles are groomed complexes, forming Utah’s 13 snowmobile complexes.

During the 2018 General Session, the state introduced House Bill 143, sponsored by Representative Michael Noel and Senator Evan Vickers. This bill brought about crucial changes to the registration process and uniform statewide fees for ATVs and UTVs, certain motorcycles, and street-legal OHVs. These modifications paved the way for the OHV Program to establish an innovative funding source through grants. Among these grants, the OHV Recreation Grant (OHVR) stands tall, consisting of the following categories:

• Trail Work
• Access Protection
• Education
• Search and Rescue
• Snowmobile
• OHV Tourism
• OHV Land Acquisition

The state website has all the information about the various grants that are available. Grants & Planning – Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation.

OHV Program Guide ’24