Off-road survey shows agreement

By Bill Harlan, Journal Staff Writer | Wednesday, March 22, 2006

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An informal survey of off-roading enthusiasts and non-off-roaders suggests some agreement between the two groups on the future of the sport in Black Hills National Forest.

The U.S. Forest Service's "User Needs Assessment Survey" for off-roading drew 559 responses, national forest spokesman Tom Willem said Wednesday.

"This was not a scientific survey," Willem cautioned. "This was a questionnaire to elicit trends."

The trends, however, suggest general support for restricting off-highway vehicles, or OHVs, to designated trails.

Currently, off-roading is allowed anywhere in Black Hills National Forest unless expressly prohibited, but last year, Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth directed all national forests to develop regulations to restrict off-roading to designated trails and areas.

In the survey, 59 percent of "OHV users" said they would favor such a trail system, and 67 percent of "non-OHV users" favor new restrictions.

Bosworth did not offer additional money to pay for such trails, but in the survey, 82 percent of OHV users and an identical 82 percent of non-OHV users said they would support user fees to pay for trails in the Black Hills.

Both groups also ranked "trail maintenance" as the No. 1 priority for off-roading in the Black Hills.

The survey asked respondents whether they agreed - on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) - whether off-roading should be on existing roads and trails. OHV users averaged 3.75, and non-OHV users averaged 3.76.

But the groups did differ on some questions.

Non-OHV users ranked "law enforcement" as the fourth-highest priority. Among OHV users, it ranked 10th.

Non-OHV users were more likely to favor keeping off-roading trails away from "sensitive wildlife and botanical areas," and OHV users were more likely to favor a trail system that included "technical challenges" and "areas where OHVs can travel cross-country."

Among the 559 respondents, 348 described themselves as OHV users, and 241 were non-OHV users. The average age of respondents was 48, Willem said, and 75 percent were male.

Willem presented the results of the survey Wednesday afternoon at a meeting of the Black Hills National Forest Advisory Board - a federally chartered panel of volunteers who advise the Forest Service.

Last May, the board created a Travel Management Subcommittee to study ways to regulate the sport, which is growing fast here. "The Black Hills National Forest is an OHV destination," Willem said.

The off-roading subcommittee held public meetings last year to gather opinions. The off-roading survey, still available online, was part of the effort.

This summer, the subcommittee will make recommendations to the forest advisory board on how to change off-roading rules in the Black Hills, how to structure a trail system and even how to pay for it. The subcommittee also is expected to recommend state legislation that would be needed for South Dakota to operate the trail system and collect fees to pay for it. (The state currently operates snowmobile trails in Black Hills National Forest.)

The forest advisory board will consider the subcommittee's recommendations, then make its own recommendations to the Forest Service.

Board chairman Tom Blair said public meetings last year revealed more disagreement between OHV users and non-OHV users than the survey, which he said, "goes a little bit against the grain."

The off-roading subcommittee was formed, in part, because of complaints about damage caused by all-terrain vehicles in several sensitive areas, but Blair said ATV riders and other off-roaders were in the majority at last year's public meetings.

The Forest Service chief's directive, however, means major rule changes are likely for the Black Hills no matter what the subcommittee or the advisory board recommends.

Bosworth wants new rules in place within four years, but Black Hills National Forest supervisor Craig Bobzien, who attended Wednesday's meeting, said he wants new rules and a trail system "sooner rather than later."

Still, the Forest Service's long, formal process of proposing and adopting rule changes likely will take years, not months.

Willem said there would be many more opportunities for public comment. "There's a lot to consider in this process," he said.

Contact Bill Harlan at 394-8424 or bill.harlan@rapidcityjournal.com

Black Hills 'travel management' online

Information about upcoming rule changes for off-roading in the Black Hills is available at http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/blackhills/. Click on "Black Hills National Forest Advisory Board Information." Then click on "Travel Management Subcommittee." The "User Needs Assessment Survey" is available as an Adobe Acrobat file.