Advertisement
Write or Email Parks / Join BFC this Saturday. This will be the first time ATVs are allowed in an Ohio State Park. Please write or email Ohio Division of Parks and let them know that you do not want ATVs disrupting the beauty, tranquility, and hiking opportunities Burr Oak has to offer.
Hike Burr Oak – this Saturday:
Join BFC on a pet-friendly hike of Burr Oak this Saturday, April 14. See the link for details. Buckeye Hike
Write to:
Email
Glen Cobb
Acting Chief of Division of Parks and Recreation,
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
2045 Morse Rd, C-3
Columbus, OH 43229-6693
Talking Points:
The Ohio Division of Parks is planning to break ground on new ATV trail construction in Burr Oak State Park as early as this summer. The planned ATV trail would run adjacent to or over several existing hiking trails. Up to 12 of the best miles of the Buckeye Trail, North Country National Scenic Trail, American Discovery Trail and other non-motorized trails are at stake.
· This would be the first time ATV's would be allowed in an Ohio State Park.
· The impact would be competitive, incompatible, and antagonistic to all other forms of recreation and would interfere with existing hiking trails.
· ODNR Division of Parks and Recreation does not believe that formal public commenting would be required.
· There is a sense of urgency to begin and complete the project without an assessment of long term impacts.
· Motorized recreation is a significant source of environmental degradation. The list of harmful impacts associated with ATV trails and ATV use is extensive, and includes: habitat fragmentation and loss, road kills, increased wildlife disturbance and stress, air and noise pollution, soil erosion, invasion of exotic and noxious weeds, soil compaction, damage to native vegetation, decreased water quality, increased water sedimentation & cloudiness, and altered water flow patterns.
· It is possible to drive within a mile of more than 80% of all land within the contiguous United States, and only 3% of the contiguous U.S. is located more than 3 miles from the nearest road. Moreover, while Ohio ranks 7th in the nation in population, it ranks a miserable 47th in public lands available per capita. Increasing habitat fragmentation on what little public land Ohioans have would be an unfortunate development for wildlife, biodiversity, and passive recreational enjoyment.
· ATV use almost always comes with a significant risk of illegal off-trail riding and illegal trail creation. ATV users have created tens of thousands of illegal roads on public lands; the US Forest Service estimates that there are more than sixty thousand miles of “unplanned or illegal roads” on national forests alone, many created by ATV users. According to a survey performed for a coalition of ATV advocacy groups, over two-thirds of Colorado’s adult ATV users ride off-trail at least occasionally, and 15 to 20% frequently ride off-trail illegally.
· Ohio’s 2008 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) shows that only a small minority of the Ohio public, 7.5% of households, reported APV usage (with 2.9% reporting ATV use on public land). By contrast. 68.2% of households reported participating in non-motorized trail activities. The significant noise pollution and wildlife disturbances caused by motorized recreation render it incompatible with, and detrimental to, passive forms of recreational enjoyment, such as hiking, photography, bird watching, and quiet contemplation. In other words, ATV recreation often comes at the expense of the very forms of outdoor recreation most enjoyed by most of the Ohio public.
Hike Burr Oak – this Saturday:
Join BFC on a pet-friendly hike of Burr Oak this Saturday, April 14. See the link for details. Buckeye Hike
Write to:
Glen Cobb
Acting Chief of Division of Parks and Recreation,
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
2045 Morse Rd, C-3
Columbus, OH 43229-6693
Talking Points:
The Ohio Division of Parks is planning to break ground on new ATV trail construction in Burr Oak State Park as early as this summer. The planned ATV trail would run adjacent to or over several existing hiking trails. Up to 12 of the best miles of the Buckeye Trail, North Country National Scenic Trail, American Discovery Trail and other non-motorized trails are at stake.
· This would be the first time ATV's would be allowed in an Ohio State Park.
· The impact would be competitive, incompatible, and antagonistic to all other forms of recreation and would interfere with existing hiking trails.
· ODNR Division of Parks and Recreation does not believe that formal public commenting would be required.
· There is a sense of urgency to begin and complete the project without an assessment of long term impacts.
· Motorized recreation is a significant source of environmental degradation. The list of harmful impacts associated with ATV trails and ATV use is extensive, and includes: habitat fragmentation and loss, road kills, increased wildlife disturbance and stress, air and noise pollution, soil erosion, invasion of exotic and noxious weeds, soil compaction, damage to native vegetation, decreased water quality, increased water sedimentation & cloudiness, and altered water flow patterns.
· It is possible to drive within a mile of more than 80% of all land within the contiguous United States, and only 3% of the contiguous U.S. is located more than 3 miles from the nearest road. Moreover, while Ohio ranks 7th in the nation in population, it ranks a miserable 47th in public lands available per capita. Increasing habitat fragmentation on what little public land Ohioans have would be an unfortunate development for wildlife, biodiversity, and passive recreational enjoyment.
· ATV use almost always comes with a significant risk of illegal off-trail riding and illegal trail creation. ATV users have created tens of thousands of illegal roads on public lands; the US Forest Service estimates that there are more than sixty thousand miles of “unplanned or illegal roads” on national forests alone, many created by ATV users. According to a survey performed for a coalition of ATV advocacy groups, over two-thirds of Colorado’s adult ATV users ride off-trail at least occasionally, and 15 to 20% frequently ride off-trail illegally.
· Ohio’s 2008 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) shows that only a small minority of the Ohio public, 7.5% of households, reported APV usage (with 2.9% reporting ATV use on public land). By contrast. 68.2% of households reported participating in non-motorized trail activities. The significant noise pollution and wildlife disturbances caused by motorized recreation render it incompatible with, and detrimental to, passive forms of recreational enjoyment, such as hiking, photography, bird watching, and quiet contemplation. In other words, ATV recreation often comes at the expense of the very forms of outdoor recreation most enjoyed by most of the Ohio public.