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Motorized restrictions to begin on Sawtooth National Forest 6/16/2008 KETCHUM (AP) Officials with the 2.1-million acre Sawtooth National Forest in central and southern Idaho say they could have a hard time enforcing new rules that eliminate cross-country motorized travel on unauthorized routes. “Historically it has been an issue,” Ketchum District Ranger Kurt Nelson told the Idaho Mountain Express. As of June 13, off-trail motorized travel is restricted, barring riders from striking out cross-country. Forest Service officials say the rules are needed to protect the land from an increasing number of off-highway riders, who they say have left hundreds of miles of unauthorized “user-created” trails. The national forest worked with user groups to pick out the most popular routes, then tried to balance other concerns, such as the effects the vehicles have on the landscape and wildlife habitat. Other considerations included whether the routes could be easily maintained, and if they met Forest Service standards, such as not being overly steep. The Sawtooth National Forest is made up of the Ketchum, Fairfield and Minidoka ranger districts. Until now, all have allowed unrestricted motorized travel, though the rugged terrain in some areas restricted that ability. These changes are intended to stop the creation of more user-created routes, officials say, and eliminate many that exist, evident in hundreds of miles of scarred hillsides, ridge lines and creek bottoms. The Minidoka District in southern Idaho in particular has seen more user-created routes. ATV registrations in the region have increased 71 percent between 2001 and 2005, to 11,953, according to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation (IDPR). The IDPR also said that 132,000 off-road recreational vehicles were registered in the state in 2007, compared to 81,000 in 2003. The Idaho Conservation League and Idaho chapter of The Wilderness Society filed a joint appeal in April over the new forest rules, arguing that motorized users were given too much say in drafting them. Jane Kollmeyer, Sawtooth National Forest supervisor, denied the appeal earlier this month. The groups have not said whether they’ll attempt additional action. Nelson said forest officials hope to have a new travel map available July 4 that shows which roads and trails are open for motorized use. Roads not open will be allowed to be reclaimed by nature, Nelson said. |
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