Prior to the TRT meeting we solicited questions from the public and although the minutes have not been prepared or approved, we're going to provide answers to your questions.

Q.
What is the status of replacing those “returning” TRT members
A.
The TRT serves at the pleasure of the Field Manager. Since the former Field Manager has moved to another position, his final statement stands in place. His statement was that until a new permanent Manager is named and in place, it was his wish that for continuity, the TRT remain in place. The new Field Manager will make any new decisions when so placed.

Q.
Regarding enforcement of the sound and spark arrestors.
A.
The Sheriff’s Dept and the BLM have been trained in the use of sound meters. In addition, they have scientific probes rather than “coat hangers” to measure the openings in the spark arrester screens. They will be enforcing the law as written however it was implied that flagrant violators will be their target. If someone voluntarily submits to a sound test via a ranger, they will not be cited if they fail. If you’re tested and pass, get the name of the officer that tested you. Should you be asked to submit to another test that day, provide the name of the officer that tested you and he will radio the other officer for the results. No form of proof of testing can be issued to the user.
Sound and spark arrester tickets carry a fine of approx. 50 to 75 dollars but with court expenses can reach $150.00. If the ticket is written by a BLM ranger, most likely the money will return to the BLM, if written by a Sheriff, most likely the money will return to the County of Imperial
The sound meter is acceptable by the State of California and the Federal Govt. and must undergo periodic testing for accuracy. The law applies to manufactured ATV’s and motorcycles.
For example, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha etc.
A “homemade” vehicle is exempt as are sandrails.
If you’re cited for the above laws, you will be given a reasonable amount of time to ride directly to your camp. They have no intentions of making you push your ride and walk back. “”“Some”“ consideration “”“May”“” be given under extenuating circumstances but each will be judged on its merits. At this time, no area will be solely targeted. Spark arresters are marked with an approval stamp at the time of manufacturer however other circumstances may be present so the Rangers or Sheriff’s will judge each case on its merits.
The screen must be present inside the spark arrester, no distance was given.

Q.
Osborne Overlook Command Incident Center.
A.
The command incident center will move from Osborne to the Ranger Station located at Gecko Rd. and Highway 78. The command incident center will be active on the 6 major holidays. Halloween, Thanksgiving, New Years, MLK, Presidents Day and Easter.


Q.
How much jurisdiction does the Sheriff have at the dunes
A.
The dunes are located within the confines of Imperial County. The Sheriff’s have jurisdiction. During command incidents, a BLM employee is named as the Incident Commander. The Sheriff’s share in the command.

Q.
What hours and days will they be operating their incident center
A.
This information is not available.

Q.
How do we share concerns about the Imperial Co. Sheriff’s
A.
By calling The Sheriff Dept's toll free number.(800) 452-2051

Q.
How many attended the last MLK trash cleanup
A.
BLM didn’t have that answer so it was provided by Vicki Warren of Duners, Approximately 2,500 attended.

Q.
Will Comp hill remained closed
A.
Comp will remained closed during the 6 major weekends.
Provisions are in place via the Board of Supervisors to lift that ban if the situation clears up.

Q.
Will Central parking be manning posts on a 24/7 basis
A.
This information is not available.

Q.
Has any consideration been given to turning Gecko Rd into a one way road during peak entrances and exits and if so, will a “pass” lane be created for those that have passes in their possession.
A.
The one way road was considered but rejected due to traffic either exiting or entering during those hours. A pass lane will be honored for those that have a pass once they reach the ranger in attendance.

Q.
Why are there no signs along Highway 78 indicating closures.
A.
A sign is in place indicating the Comp. Hill curfew and has recently been refurbished to indicate the Holiday weekends on which the curfew will be in effect.

Q.
Why do I need 2 passes, one for Dumont and one for Glamis
A.
Funding is the issue. No mechanism is in place to distribute the collected fee’s and each office is responsible for the establishment and management of their Fee Demo area.

Q.
How come the El Centro Office isn’t actively soliciting funding from Congress.
A.
The El Centro office, by Dept. Mandate can “only” submit their budget request to the State Office. They are not internally allowed to solicit Congressional funding.

Q.
Do I need to hang my pass on my mirror and run the risk of having it stolen.
A.
Passes must be visible however, the Rangers will not issue a citation to a vehicle. They will return and issue a citation to the owner.

Q.
How often are passes reported to be stolen.
A.
During last season only a very few people reported that their pass was stolen but none of them wanted to file a formal report.

Q.
Visitors are looking for an alternative to the window hangers. Is it
possible that maybe the passes could be offered in the form of a window
sticker???
A.
Yes, but we have had discussions on this subject in the past
and it was decided to use window hangers so that both visitors and enforcement officers could see the pass. It seems that several people have reported that vehicles did not have a pass and the visibility of the pass creates less problems. If we go to a permanent sticker then visitors would not be able to use different primary vehicles when they come to the dunes with out buying another permit

Q.
Are there any provisions for a person who's pass was stolen other
than re-purchasing the pass at full price?
A.
No, not at this time.

Q.
What are the long term consequences both financially and from a safety
issue to have the berms created by riders who create their own closed race track, knocked down on a regular basis. Or, from a safety issue, Not knocking them down???
A.
The long term financial consequences are, of course, the equipment cost and labor to continually knock these down. If we wanted to keep them all down it would take a full time person during most of the season ( If you are talking for the whole dunes). This would be a substantial commitment of labor, equipment, and Fee money.
We, the BLM receive no funding for this activity. Currently, we knock a few down a season, as time and money permit. For instance, when we are doing pad, or road work and the berm track is on the site, we will grade the rea to the previous slope. If we were to do more of this type of work that is not on currently maintained sites, the cost would include,
environmental studies (NEPA documentation / labor for xxxxologists to visit the site and complete NEPA docs), equipment, and labor. Since we are running on a tight budget, funding for it would have to come from something else being cut or decreased (i.e. trash, toilets. EMS, L.E., etc.). My best estimate for making this a priority job for the BLM would be 75-100k per season.

This was a very long meeting with a lot of excellent topics covered. (9:00am to 4:45pm) It will take us a few days to get the draft minutes out. Please stay tuned.

Thanks!

Thanks for your efforts!! And the information...

WOW Glen, awesome info, thanks!

I still have a couple of questions about sound. Is there somewhere else I can ask/e-mail or do I have to wait for the next meeting?

My questions are:
Is there going to be any effort on the BLM's part to educate dune users that this law is state wide?

Does every LEO vehicle carry sound testing equipment?

Which specific sound meter are they using?

I'd like to see a copy of the specific procedure they use for testing for excessive sound.

Would also like to read the law and know the exact wording of this sound law. I'd imagine there's somewhere on the net that has this?

Mike, Go to

http://ohv.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=23037


Then scroll to bottom and download..

so if there looking to sound test us what is the most noise our bikes can make...? and then do all aftermaket ppips not pass or ?,,,,what kinda of pips and silencers well pass? i have white bros. and fmf......

They said that they are going to mainly target outrageously loud machines. Ask yourself, "Is mine outrageously loud compared to most other bikes in my class?"

If you investigate the link above you can find a page with some sound test data for each manufacturer with certain pipes etc....

The loudest they can be is either 101 db or 96 db depending on year manufactured. How loud is that? Well I dont know but those are the limits.

Just carry a bag of foam ear plugs around with you and pass them out to anyone, including the rangers, if they complain.

Mike, The draft minutes will have links that should give you answers to most if not all of your questions. This is a very complex issue and there is just no way we could get it all. I think we must have spent about 15 - 20 minutes on it. (That's a long time considering all of the other topics we covered yesterday)

Glenn I have a couple of question,

Did the topic of a reduced price 2nd vehicle pass ever come up.

I was at the MLK cleanup and i counted about 500 people, where did the other 2000 people come from and how come the blm didnt' know the answer.

If we call the sherrifs to complain what happens with our complaint

if the sherrifs have jurisdiction does that mean that they can enforce any laws at the dunes

if the blm knocks down the berms and spends the money, what services will be cut to pay for the knockdown

thanks