our national forest managers need your support and thoughtful assistance

In today's world of radical environmentalism, thoughtful Americans need to step forward and offer their support and assistance to the staff of the United States Forest Service. I have recently attended a number of National Forest Meetings and am writing this article to encourage all snowmobilers to participate in the updating of the US Forest Service Management Plans. Many forests are just now beginning to identify issues and assessing the needs of the forests.

You may ask why it is important to get involved with Forest Planning. If you attend one of the meetings, you will see individuals in the room attempting to influence Forest Service policy, and understand the need for participation. You will encounter Sierra Club members that suggest driving an SUV is a betrayal of the United States fighting forces overseas since they consume fossil fuel and are not as efficient as a small vehicle.

You should be aware that there is a small percentage of Forest Service employees that have their own agenda. At a meeting recently in the United States Congress, the US Forest Service was forced to admit it had drastically mislead the United States Congress and the general public about the number of visitors to National Forests. The Forest Service had been reporting that 920 million visitors visited National Forests in the year 2000. The actual number was 209 million. The Forest Service argued back then, that this was most likely a dyslexic-like mishap and was VERY inadvertent. Most likely, according to members of Congress, the USFS purposely padded the figure to advance the agenda of Michael Dombeck (then Forest Service Chief). Mr. Dombeck's goals meant a sharp shift away from traditional recreational use and toward extreme preservation. When looking at visitation numbers, please ask for documents and substantiate the information being presented by outside groups.

The Forest Service continues to deal with the efforts to expand roadless areas and delay clearing brush and small trees that have fueled the catastrophic wildfires throughout the United States. The Forest Service has reported that over 30% of all of their plans to clear brush and remove small trees in order to slow down catastrophic fires have been delayed by lawsuits brought on by environmental groups. T

he continued effort to establish 60 million new acres of roadless area throughout the United States has a tremendous impact on (a) fire control, (b) timber for low income housing, (c) open feeding areas for wildlife, (d) access roads for fire fighting equipment in our forests. (60 million acres is approximately 3 times the size of the state of South Carolina, so we are talking about a large piece of property.) Those of us that spend time in the woods know that the clearings and trails that are developed throughout the forests are used as fire breaks. They are also used as avenues for wildlife movement and trails for recreationalists - both non-motorized and motorized users, and as ingress and egress for fire fighting equipment men and women. These avenues are needed!
The forest service managers continue to be pushed to add additional wilderness. We believe it is important that people understand that wilderness lands will be closed to all but the very heartiest of hiker.

There are no maintained paths, vehicles, or mountain bikes allowed in wilderness. Individuals are not allowed to use chain saws and or wheelbarrows in designated wilderness. Less than 3% of all recreation on forest service lands is used as a wilderness experience. We have plenty of wilderness areas already established in the United States for that very small percentage of outdoor enthusiasts that wish for a wilderness experience. There are many areas throughout the country that are not designated wilderness that offer exactly the same experience to wilderness hikers if they have good enough hiking shoes.

Studies are presently being conducted on the air pollution caused by the out of control fires in the western US. We know that the pollution caused by the forest fires is huge. The EPA Findings (if they are published) on how much air pollution was caused by the fires will be interesting - to say the least.
Snowmobilers know all too well that in order to effectively manage our forests, we need pathways and trails kept open throughout those forests to be used for entrance and exit for fire fighters as well as recreationists and outdoor enthusiasts. Snowmobilers also know that trees grow old, die and must be removed. The removal of dead or dying trees and thinning of trees throughout the forests not only improves the health of the forest, but improves the health of the wildlife that calls the forest their home.

So, while attending a Forest Service meeting, listen carefully to the agenda being promoted by some of the environmental groups around the table and watch carefully for representatives from the Earth Liberation Front. The Earth Liberation Front proudly states that they spike trees at various heights to prevent logging. This driving of spikes in the trees threatens the safety not only of the logger but certainly the mill worker as well.

Yes, the USFS has their hands full with many different interest groups - some of which are radical and have every intention of shutting down the forests to all of us. The Forest Service employees need our thoughtful help and input into the system. We enjoy the forests year around and in order to continue to do so, we need to show our support at the meetings. I encourage any snowmobile clubs that have any part of their trail system near or adjoining a National Forest to assign a number of club members to visit their forest service office and participate in their continuing management update. I also encourage every state association to have at least one US Forest Service contact on their Board of Directors and support them attending Forest Service meetings throughout the year.