When and Where:

Tuesday, July 18th at 6:30 p.m.
       at the Parkway Plaza Hotel 123 West E Street, Casper

Wednesday, July 19th at 7p.m.
       at the Cody Holiday Inn, 1701 Sheridan Ave., Cody

Wednesday, August 9th at 7p.m.
       at the Best Western Tower West, Gillette

Thursday, August 10th at 7p.m.
       at the Western Wyoming College, Room 1302,
       (accessible at the main college entrance), Rock Springs

Friday, August 11th at 7p.m.
       at the Lander Community Center, Lander

Background:

This meeting is extremely important because this is the first national process undertaken by any federal agency regarding ORVs. The BLM is working on crafting a national strategy to get a handle on the problem of dirt bikes and other ORVs abusing our land. And it's about time! Throughout Wyoming dirt bikes and other ORVs are wreaking havoc on our public lands. They are a menace to wildlife, they eliminate quiet trails and cause rapid soil erosion. The popularity of these motorized thrill craft is rapidly increasing and they are running amuck across our public lands. We need some balance with reasonable restrictions! We are not asking for a ban on motorized recreation, just some reasonable restrictions. Presently 97.5% of BLM Land in Wyoming is open to ORVs in some way. This is unbalanced and unfair to other uses. We don't let dirt bikes race around our backyards, why should they be allowed to go anywhere and everywhere on our public lands, a treasure for ALL US citizens.

TAKE ACTION!

Attend the meeting and let your voice be heard!
You Can Use These Talking Points:

• Ask the BLM to adopt a "CLOSED unless posted OPEN" policy, which would allow ORV use only on roads and routes designated and posted as "open". The BLM should post signs letting motorized users know where they ARE allowed to go. The BLM should designate routes as open only after a study determines that the routes will not cause adverse environmental impacts.
  
  
• Ask the BLM to limit ORV travel to designated routes and close all unauthorized or "existing" routes. In most cases, existing - or unauthorized -- routes are created by ORVs illegally tearing into areas and creating new scars. The damage these vehicles inflict on the land, streams, and creeks is staggering, and it's getting worse every day. More and more unauthorized routes are carved out of the land every year - many in ecologically sensitive areas. This is not a problem of access, but excess.
  
  
• Ask the BLM to enforce existing regulations. There are laws regulating ORV use and abuse. The problem is that they are not enforced. The BLM needs to stop building new ORV routes, start maintaining designated routes, and start restoring environmentally damaging routes to non-motorized use. Ask the BLM to redirect funds away from new trail construction, and apply money where it is desperately needed - to monitoring, enforcement and restoration.
  
  
• Ask the BLM to prohibit ORV use in legislatively or administratively proposed wilderness areas, inventoried roadless areas, and in Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs). Some places we already know should be closed and free from the damage, noise and pollution of dirt bikes and other off road vehicles. These backcountry areas provide unique opportunities of quiet and beauty that are getting harder and harder to find. In some places, off-road vehicles have made it impossible for Wyoming residents to enjoy the splendor of these special places.

If you cannot attend the meeting--Write a quick note!
ATTN: OHV Comment Manager, Bureau of Land Management
1849 C St. NW LSB 406-C
Washington, DC 20240

Send comments online!
www.blm.gov/ohv/mailer.htm

Be sure to include the above talking points! Hurry!!
Comments due by Aug. 31!

Come on out and let your voice be part of the solution!!

For more information, please contact:
Biodiversity Associates-- Jeff Kessler 307.742.7978, e-mail: jkessler@igc.org
The Sierra Club-- Liz Howell 307.672.0425, e-mail: liz.howell@sierraclub.org
The Wilderness Society--TJ Brown, (303) 650-5818 x111, e-mail: tj_brown@tws.org

For More information on the growing threat of ORVs check out: www.wilderness.org/standbylands/orv/

Your quick note can make a difference for Wyoming's wildlands!!