By SAWS
Headquartered
in Boise, ID, the Winter Wildlands Alliance (WWA), a group dedicated to "human
powered" winter recreation and strongly opposed to snowmobile use, recently
failed to persuade the Forest Service to require snowmobiles be addressed in
all National Forest Travel Management Plans. Things didn't go their way and now
they have turned their attention and deep pockets towards the courts.
As
written, the 2005 Travel Management rule states that each National Forest can
choose not to include snowmobiles as a separate use designation in its Travel
Management Plan. WWA claims that the Forest Service is violating Presidential
Executive orders 11644 and 11989 (1972 Nixon and 1977 Carter), which deal with
off-road vehicles on public lands. WWA maintains that snowmobiles "must" be
managed in every forest's Travel Management Plan. In other words, snowmobile
use must be labeled with a designation. These designations would include
wording such as, "no change," "small changes, pro-motorized," "neutral," and
"big changes, pro-non-motorized."
This would
result in Forest Travel Plans across the country being rewritten and rehashed
out and in our current political climate you can be sure that the end result
will definitely be additional net loss of snowmobile acreage in many forests. If
this precedence is established in Idaho
it will spread like wildfire nationwide.
The Idaho
State Snowmobile Association (ISSA), in conjunction with the American Council
of Snowmobile Associations (ACSA), has decided to intervene in this lawsuit.
SAWS has offered to be listed on the lawsuit as an intervener as well. This
lawsuit has the potential to reach the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals before it's
satisfied. This fight will cost ISSA a large amount of money to defend. SAWS
will be contributing $5,000 to ISSA's Snowmobile Defense Fund.
The most
beneficial way you can help at this time is to make a donation to ISSA. All
funds received will be put towards this fight. Keep in mind that even though
this issue is originating in Idaho,
it affects ALL snowmobilers, in EVERY national forest. Checks
may be made out to ISSA, and sent to:
Royal Kingsley
Idaho State Snowmobile Association
Snowmobile Defense Fund / Winter Wildlands Intervention
10400 Overland Road #384
Boise, ID 83709
Further
reading:
Idaho State Snowmobile Association
(ISSA):
http://www.idahosnow.org/idaho-state-snowmobile-association-news?mode=PostView&bmi=802327
American
Council of Snowmobile Associations (ACSA):
http://snowmobilers.org/press_release_article.asp?prid=122
Idaho Recreation Council
(IRC):
http://www.id-rc.org/news/the-winter-wildlands-alliance-is-at-it-again
Island Park newspaper article:
http://www.idahosnow.org/idaho-state-snowmobile-association-news?mode=PostView&bmi=801864
Courthouse News:
http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/12/02/41894.htm
Winter
Wildlands:
http://www.winterwildlands.org/news/archive/Groups_Petition_Forest_Service_to_Remove_Snowmobile_Exemption.pdf