Imperial Dunes closure could be lifted soon

BY JAMES GILBERT
May 24, 2003

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Thousands of currently closed acres in the Imperial Sand Dunes could be re-opened to off-road vehicles within the next few months.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management on Friday released an Environmental Impact Statement which proposes lifting the temporary closure of 49,000 acres of the dunes, despite environmentalists' concerns about the impact off-roading could have on the desert tortoise and the purple-flowered milk vetch plant.

"A decision to re-open those area could come by the later part of this year, hopefully before October, which is when the busy season for the dunes begin," said BLM spokesperson Jan Bedrosian. "Right now it's important to realize those acres are still closed, until a final decision has been issued."

The director of the BLM will ultimately decide whether to reopen the land to off-road vehicles, based in part on public comments on a Recreation Area Management Plan that accompanies the EIS.

The final draft of the management plan, or RAMP, was also released Friday. An amendment to the California Desert Conservation Plan, the RAMP places some restrictions on off-roading on 33,000 of the 49,000 acres that would be reopened.

"In a sense it would be open to off-road vehicles, yet we did set a cap on the number of people who can go in there," Bedrosian said. "They will have to get a permit and undergo some environmental education before they enter the area. They also won't be allowed to stay overnight."

Bedrosian said as part of the bureau's regulatory process, the public will have 30 days to comment on the RAMP, beginning next Friday. The EIS must be published in the Federal Register by the Environmental Protection Agency before the comment period begins.

"We are essentially giving people a week head start of reviewing the plan before the public protest period begins," Bedrosian said.

News of the possible reopening did not sit well with environmentalists, who want to keep the areas closed.

Daniel Patterson, of the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, said environmentalists will now challenge the documents in court.

"We've been planning to file suit for over a year and have been very public about it," Patterson said. "This removes the current balanced management that protects about half of the dunes area."

The Bureau of Land Management imposed the closures three years ago as part of an agreement to settle a lawsuit by the Center, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and the Sierra Club.

The closures have been opposed by the off-roading community, local businesses and the Yuma County Chamber of Commerce, which estimates that as much as $13 million in revenues are generated by duners.

"The re-opening will do nothing but help the Yuma Economy," said Ken Rosevear, president of the Yuma County Chamber of Commerce.

The closures focus mostly on the central portion of the dunes north of Interstate 8, stretching from the northwestern border of Patton Valley to Brawley Slide Hill No. 3, a few miles south of Glamis, Calif.

Patton Valley remained open, but a smaller closure took effect in the northern Algodones Wilderness area, along with a 160-acre area closure south of I-8 about a mile from Buttercup Campground.

The dunes, about 15 miles west of Yuma in southeastern Imperial County, can draw as many as 200,000 off-roaders and visitors during the duning season, which takes place late October through Easter.

The restricted area covered in the RAMP will include the central southeast part of the dunes.

Bedrosian said the reason the agency included an adaptive management plan was that it had competing scientific data on how the milk vetch plant is impacted by off-road vehicle use.

"We have credible scientist on both sides who can't agree on the effects, so as the monitoring agency, we felt limiting use in the area is the best approach," Bedrosian said.

The RAMP's four-year monitoring program would allow the bureau to use data gathered on the plant to see if it is being impacted adversely and to make changes in its recreation plan.

It would also require the bureau, in order to meet conservation needs, to consult with the wildlife service in four years for the issuance of another biological opinion statement.
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James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854.





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