Fwd: [Fwd: Alert: National Road Closures]

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Folks, we are in serious trouble! Especially if we sit on our hands and
let this happen. If you love four wheelin', then
READ BELOW!!
This should make things easier to understand.
      This will cost United a bundle to fight. If you are not a member
of United, please consider joining to help with this fight and of course
donations are very welcome. You can down load a form from the Web Site and
use your Visa or Master card if you wish.
Keep watching for Alan Lane's alerts and updates.

Preston Stevens
pstevens@domain.elided
United FWDA Director of Marketing 
United FWDA Web Site (http://www.ufwda.org)
Middle Atlantic Four Wheel Drive Association
Baltimore 4 Wheelers, Inc., Conservation/Land Use Director
1979 CJ7 Jeep

-

     
     Hello!
     
     Please read this! IT IS AN URGENT ISSUE.  
     The Forest Service is proposing 
     a major overhaul of the rules governing their road system.  To 
     summarize, they are intent on eliminating many, many of the primitive 
     roads that we use to recreate. These primitive roads would be actively 
     removed and reclaimed and the resulting areas declared "roadless".  
     You all know what that means.  
     
This is more or less the way that Mark Werkmeister stated it. It almost
over simplifies this issue. But, to go into any more detail would make
this an extremely long thread and none of you would read it. Read on
PLEASE!

Also, is the issue of Clinton's proposed change in what is a Roadless
area. Right now it must be an area 5,000 acres or larger. He proposes to
reduce it to 1,000 acres. That would make it even easier to shut us down
and fast.
     Please read all about this in the Forest Service's own words for 
     yourselves at:
     
     http://www.fs.fed.us/news/roads/
     
     This needs to be an absolute full court press, even much more 
     so than the one that 
     turned the RPA issue around several years ago.  There, we stood to
     lose over 6,000 miles of roads per year! As I previously stated, if      
     you have never been involved before, do it now! We need to take the 
     following message to our groups/clubs/friends/co-workers,etc:
     
     "If you only write ONE letter this year to protect your rights to 
     recreate as we have been, this is the issue to send a letter on."
     Do so by Feb. 27th. 
     
     Below is Mark's letter to the Forest Service. There you can get some
     ideas on what to write. You need not sound like a lawyer. A hand
     written letter is great, as long as it can be read. You can even call
     your Congressmen, fax, or e-mail them. Write, fax, or e-mail the
     Forest Service, don't call. Represent yourself as the concerned
citizen. Only have one person represent your club or association.
Otherwise, do not even mention your affiliations.  Make your letters
count! This is extremely serious!
     
     Save our roads!
     
     Mark & Preston
     ***************************************************
     February 6, 1998
     
     
     Gerald Coughlan, Acting Director
     Engineering Staff
     USDA Forest Service
     PO Box 96090
     Washington, DC 20090-6090
     
     
     
     Dear Mr. Coughlan:
     
     After reading the advanced notice of proposed rule making concerning 
     the Forest Service's transportation system, I would like to register 
     my total disgust at this appalling proposal.  The primitive roads in 
     the National Forests that the Forest Service proposes to eliminate (or 
     even refuses to acknowledge by referring to them as "ghost roads") are 
     absolutely integral to my recreational needs and the needs of millions 
     of Forest Service users.  These Class II roads that comprise the bulk 
     of the Forest Service road system are heavily used by four wheelers, 
     motorcyclists, hunters, fishermen, cross-country skiers, bicyclists, 
     hikers, ATVers, fire fighters, search and rescue, and many, many other 
     user groups to access, use, and enjoy our National Forests.  To 
     eliminate them, leaving only "safe and efficient" heavily traveled 
     roads would deprive millions of people their valid and existing form 
     of recreation.
     
     I would also like to register my disapproval for decreasing the 
     requirements of a "roadless area" from 5,000 to 1,000 acres and even 
     include "areas of low density road development" in the proposed 
     interim rule.  The 5,000 acre that was mandated under RARE II is 
     sufficient.  The proposed rules are vague and ambiguous and I fully 
     expect the Regional Foresters to use this new rule as an excuse to 
     undertake new inventories of "roadless" areas and other administrative 
     actions that further deprive users access to our Forests.
     
     Due to the huge impact on many of the Forest users, many of which 
     undoubtedly have not heard of or fully understood the impact of these 
     proposed rules, I strongly urge you to extend the comment period at 
     least an additional 60 days so that more Forest users may provide 
     input to the proposed changes.
     
     I would like to remind the Forest Service that closing access on any 
     routes, ways, roads, etc. that existed and were used by the public 
     prior to1976 constitutes a violation of property rights that were 
     conferred to the public by RS2477.  Any and all illegal closures will 
     be challenged in court by the wide range of public users who have 
     enjoyed these RS2477 rights of access for many years.  Let me repeat, 
     the Forest Service definitions of a "road" have absolutely no bearing 
     on the validity of these existing rights that were conferred by 
     Congress and repeatedly upheld by the courts of this land.
     
     Sincerely,
     
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