quote:
Voice: Whatever happened to managing the land?
A small army of police quiets unruly off-roaders at the Algodones Dunes but fails to enforce illegal off-roading in closed conservation areas.
The Bush administration drains public lands of rangers for riot control, yet avoids a solution by failing to set carrying capacities to limit crowds. Despite environmental damage and extreme financial and staff demands, the Interior Department wants to roll back protections and open more areas to off-roading.
With all the emphasis on off-roaders, what ever happened to land management?
DANIEL R. PATTERSON
Desert ecologist
Center for Biological Diversity
Idyllwild