Attempted Hijack of Colorado OHV Program Underway!

[Senator]

Attempted Hijack of Colorado OHV Program Underway!! IMMEDIATE ACTION NECESSARY!

July 14th, 2010

According to documents obtained by the Colorado Off-Highway Vehicle Coalition, the rabidly anti-OHV Colorado Mountain Club and their lobbyist are working with two members of the Colorado Parks Board in an attempt to radically change the Colorado's OHV Program – completely behind closed doors and without the knowledge of Department staff or the citizens who purchase OHV registrations.

We have posted the COHVCO alert with links to all the documents here: COHVCO Action Alert - BRC Land Use Update

COHVCO discovered this secret effort just in time. The Parks Board is set to make a key decision on review of the OHV program in two days, on July 16, 2010.

We need you to send an email to the Parks Board TODAY.

Instructions below. Please do it now.

Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208-237-1008 ext 102

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Situation: The Colorado Mountain Club is trying to push through changes to the OHV program. Changes could be voted on at a July 16 meeting of the Parks Board.

What you need to do: If possible, please attend the meeting at the Red Lion Inn, 3200 S. Parker Road in Aurora, CO. The OHV issue will be addressed at 10:05 am. (Please arrive by 8:00am.)

If you can't attend the meeting, please send an email to Dean Winstanley, Colorado State Parks Executive Director. A sample email is below.

The email address is: trails@state.co.us

__________________________________________________ ________

A possible letter or to give you ideas...

Dear Mr. Winstanley and members of the Parks Board;

I am a resident of Colorado, and I own vehicles registered under the Colorado Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) Program.

As a participant in the OHV program I have a vested interest in how the OHV Program is administered. I have read emails obtained by the Colorado Off Highway Vehicle Coalition, and I urge you delay making any changes to the OHV Subcommittee at this time.

I urge the Parks Board to review the emails and determine if any inappropriate or improper relationships exist between Laurie Mathews and Jim Prybil and the Colorado Mountain Club and/or the lobbyist for Responsible Trails America (Scott Chase).

Regarding the proposed changes to the OHV Subcommittee I would like the Parks Board to consider the following comments:

It is NOT correct to say that “everyone should have a say in how OHV grants are managed.”

Everyone has a say in where we can ride our OHVs. That is via the federal land management planning process. This is an open and public process, with full opportunity for the Colorado Mountain Club and their representatives, as well as any other citizen or citizens group to review and comment on the development of Travel Management Plans. The federal land planning process gives full opportunity to review the environmental analysis and even appeal any decisions made.

Everyone does not have a say in how the OHV program funds are spent. The Parks Board is required to implement the program in a way that is consistent with the legislation that established the program. The OHV grant Subcommittee was established so that those paying the fee may have a say in how the funds are spent.

I want to emphasize again that the Legislative Audit Committee found no problems whatsoever with the OHV program. The US Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have repeatedly cited our program as model for the rest of the country, fair and environmentally balanced. Of the nearly 700 OHV grants processed over the past 19 years only 3 have been controversial and the existing recommendations now address that by asking the simple question about potential controversy.

The Colorado Mountain Club and others say that OHV use is undergoing rapid expansion and claim such use causes a growing amount of resource damage and conflict with other users. These claims lack the proper perspective and are out of context. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) are in the process of implementing regulations specifically designed to address the impacts of increased motorized use. The regulations require limiting all vehicle use to designated roads, trails and areas. The designation process mandates public involvement, thorough environmental analysis, as well as ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the OHV infrastructure. Many BLM offices in Colorado are in the process of implementing recently completed travel plans. The Forest Service is expected to complete the travel planning process by the end of this year.

It is important for the Board to consider that the OHV subcommittee was formed to provide active user group participation in the grant process. The subcommittee is not supposed to be well balanced in the manner the outgoing Director is proposing. The OHV subcommittee is designed to provide OHV user group (those paying the fee) input into the Parks' OHV grant process (how the funds are to be spent).

I appreciate the Parks Boards' role in active and effective management of OHV recreation in Colorado. I respectfully ask that you look in to improper relationships between Laurie Mathews and Jim Prybil and the Colorado Mountain Club and/or the lobbyist for Responsible Trails America (Scott Chase).

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