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Illustration by Jerry
Russell |
Stop the ATV Invasion!
Is it “extremism” to keep all-terrrain vehicles out
of the Forest Preserve? Richard Earle, who speaks for those who
ride the four-wheel ATVs, thinks so.
Why can’t hikers and campers and other “passive”
users co-exist peacefully with responsible ATVers? he wonders. Isn’t
our state Forest Preserve big enough to accommodate all uses?
The answer to both questions is “No.” Only about 1%
of public land in the eastern United States is off-limits to motorized
recreation. Every imaginable off-road motor vehicle, from dirt bikes
to dune buggies, has invaded our public domain. And now, in the
name of fairness and balance, ATV riders want a green light to tear
through the “forever wild” state lands of the Adirondacks.
Talk about extremism!
The Adirondack Forest Preserve is one of the last peaceful places
of significant size in the East, a refuge for both people and wildlife
that has remained largely free of the smell and sound of motors.
But even this haven is under assault from disruptive jet skis and
from ever bigger, faster, more powerful motorboats and snow machines.
One letter writer reminded us that “the burgeoning growth
of ATVs is similar to that which started in the 1960s with snowmobiles,
leading to a system of trails in the Forest Preserve based on some
tenuous conclusions.”
However questionable their legal status, snowmobiles are clearly
here to stay. And yes, they do contribute to some local economies.
(Fortunately, the mileage of snowmobile trails in the Preserve was
capped at 1,031 miles by the State Land Master Plan in 1972.) Now
the big push has begun to open the Preserve to ATVs. It is a move
that must be firmly resisted.
ATV riding is a motor-sport that conflicts with every traditional
use of these state lands. In terms of noise, speed, pollution and
environmental degradation, all-terrain vehicles are utterly incompatible
with the purpose of the Preserve, which received supposedly ironclad
protection from New York state in 1895.
In 1930, Harold Hinman, a state appellate judge, reaffirmed the
sanctity of this refuge. Referring to the constitutional decree
that it “must be forever kept as wild forest lands,”
Hinman ruled that “the uses of the Preserve must not be inconsistent
with preserving these lands in their wild state.”
Was this an extremist lock-up of public lands for a few elitist
tree-huggers? Hardly. Here’s Judge Hinman again: “Hunting,
fishing, tramping, mountain climbing, snowshoeing, skiing or skating
finds an ideal setting in nature’s wilderness. [The Forest
Preserve] is essentially a quiet and healthful retreat from the
turmoil and artificialities of a busy urban life.” And he
didn’t even mention picnicking, camping, birding, animal tracking,
photographing, painting, writing poetry, or just lying under a pine
tree and looking up at the clouds.
To allow any further erosion of the natural tranquility of the Preserve
would be an extreme and irresponsible act. Simply stated: ATVs do
not belong here. They must be kept out of our Forest Preserve for
the same reason, as another letter-writer noted, that they would
not be allowed in a church. Both places are sanctuaries.
The unit-management planning process currently under way provides
an excellent vehicle (non-motorized!) for protecting our Forest
Preserve against such abuse. We’ll keep you posted.
Richard Beamish, Publisher
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