ALERT: San Juan Public Lands Draft Land Management Plan and DEIS

SAWS Action Alert

Comment Deadline: March 12, 2008

Comments on the Proposed San Juan Land Management may be submitted through the following means (at this time SAWS has not been able to obtain a valid email address to submit your comments, but the website link below does allow you the option to attach a formatted email response):

Via Website at: http://ocs.fortlewis.edu/forestPlan/comments_07/comments.asp

By FAX to: 916-456-6724

By mail to:
┬á┬á┬á San Juan Plan Revision
┬á┬á┬á P.O. Box 162909
┬á┬á┬á Sacramento, CA 95816-2909

Reference information: http://ocs.fortlewis.edu/forestplan/DEIS/

Colorado SAWS Members,

This is a very important SAWS Action Alert for snowmobilers who come to Southwest Colorado to snowmobile on San Juan Public Lands. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management are updating the Land Management Plan. The final results of this plan could have a very adverse affect on the areas where snowmobilers will be allowed to recreate in the not too distant future. Snowmobilers need to stand up for their rights to recreate on these public lands.

SAWS strongly encourages you to send a detailed comment letter indicating that you support Alternative A (No action) and explain why you support this alternative. Alternative A would leave all currently allowed riding areas open. Snowmobilers will lose nearly 500,000*┬áacres currently open to snowmobile use if Alternative B (the preferred alternative) is implemented. That is a┬áreduction of 481,985 acres open to snowmobile use or more than 36%.

*This figure is based on 1,329,159 acres┬áopen┬áto Over-Snow use┬áversus 847,174 acres open to Over-Snow use in the preferred alternative B.

SAWS is requesting that you not only submit a comment letter on this DLMP and DEIS, but that you also reply to this email and provide SAWS with detailed information on the areas that you ride that must remain open.

Here is a link that explains in detail the differences between the four provided alternatives and explains what will remain open to Over-Snow travel with each alternative:
http://ocs.fortlewis.edu/forestPlan/DEIS/pdf/Vol1%20Ch2%20ALTERNATIVES.pdf

Note: Alt A Over-Snow map can be found on page 26 in the above link. Alt┬áB Over-Snow map is on page 31. Alt┬áC Over-Snow map is on page 36. Alt┬áD Over-Snow map is on page 41.

Map link to snowmobile closures proposed in alternative B:
http://www.snowmobile-alliance.org/07/misc/San_Juan_maps.pdf

SAWS does not support any of the proposed closures, but we need specific detailed information from our members who recreate on these public lands so that we can send out an updated alert in February to ALL of our SAWS members across the western United States with more detailed information to allow snowmobilers to provides comments that are not familiar with this area. Just stating that you support Alternative A will not be enough without providing more detailed information and the reasons why you feel these areas need to remain open.

Contact your friends and riding partners and attend one of the meetings described below this alert. I have attended several previous meetings in the early scoping stages of this planning process. The San Juan Citizens Alliance (anti-snowmobilers) have shown up at the previous meetings in large numbers. We must make our concerns be known or we will have to live with the end results.

Thank you all for your interest in and dedication to protecting YOUR right to ride.

William Hall
Snowmobile Alliance of Western States

Protecting the right to ride for the owners of 303,604 registered snowmobiles (2005) in the western United States.

Permission is granted to┬ádistribute this information in whole or in part, as long as Snowmobile Alliance of Western States (SAWS) is acknowledged as the source.┬áIf you┬áare not yet a member of SAWS and you would like receive these alerts, please sign up on our web site at: http://www.snowmobile-alliance.org/

2008 Public Meeting Schedule

http://ocs.fortlewis.edu/forestplan/2008_publicMeetings.asp

During the comment period we will hold public meetings to assist the people with understanding the documents and submitting comments.┬á Continuing with the Community Study Group meeting format that was used in 2005-06, public meetings will be held at the following locations and dates:

January 16th, 2008 Cortez Holiday Inn/Koko’s Conference Center
6:30┬¡ – 8:30 pm 2121 East Main
Cortez, Colorado

January 23, 2008 Durango Community Recreation Center
6:30┬¡ – 8:30 pm 2700 Main Avenue
Durango, Colorado

January 29, 2008 Pagosa Springs Community Center
6:30┬¡ – 8:30 pm 451 Hot Springs Blvd.
Pagosa Springs, Colorado

January 31, 2008 Silverton Town Hall
6:30┬¡ – 8:30 pm 1360 Greene Street
Silverton, Colorado

February 6, 2008 Rico Town Hall
6:30┬¡ – 8:30 pm 2 North Commercial
Rico, Colorado

Community Study Group members and all interested publics are encouraged to attend one of the meetings.┬á The content at each meeting will include:

A review of the organization of the documents to help readers navigate them;
Information about how to give comment; and
Discussion about how the 2005-06 Study Group meetings (and overall public scoping comments) have been used to shape the DEIS alternatives and plan direction.┬á

In addition to the above information, each meeting will be tailored to focus on the San Juan Public Lands most closely associated with each community (e.g., the Cortez meeting will be tailored to focus on the direction related to the Dolores).