Date: September 30, 2005
To: All Enduro Riders within FTR,
SE&TRA & SERA
From: Tallahassee Trail Riders – Tallahassee, FL
Subject: CANCELLATION NOTICE –
Capital City Enduro & JR. Enduro
The Tallahassee Trail Riders regret to inform you that the 34th Annual
2005 Capital City Enduro and JR. Enduro scheduled for October 15/16,
2005 has been CANCELLED.
The court order recently released by a federal court (see News Release
from BRC below) suspends all national forest activity affecting not only
recreational events but many other activities on a national level.
Our local USFS District Ranger just this week notified TTR of this ruling.
After several discussions between TTR & the USFS, and the attorney’s
for the AMA and BRC on this issue…as well as conversations with
our own FTR officials (Jack Terrell & Dan George), TTR has decided it
best, under the time constraints given, to CANCEL our upcoming enduro.
We do expect this event to be rescheduled at a later time in the season.
TTR encourages all to write their congressmen expressing your views
on this decision, as well as the National Dept. of Agriculture/USFS personnel.
And we encourage you to join the AMA, BRC, FTR & other bodies fighting
this type of anti-access groups that try to prevent responsible recreation
on our public lands!
With deepest regrets,
Executive Officers
Tallahassee Trail Riders
BLUERIBBON COALITION, INC. (BRC)
NEWS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Brian Hawthorne
Phone: 208-237-1008 ext. 102
Date: September 29, 2005
ANTI-RECREATION LAWSUIT BANS FOREST ACTIVITIES
POCATELLO, ID (Sept. 29) – A recent order by a federal court prohibits
the U.S. Forest Service from using streamlined regulations to permit
many popular recreational activities as well as projects that reduce
hazardous fuels and improve wildlife habitat.
On July 2, 2005 the United States District Court for the Eastern District
of California issued an Order banning the use of Categorical Exclusions
(CEs). The ruling requires any forest project using a CE to include a
formal public notice, be available for public comment and give the public
the option of appealing the decision. The order applies to all decisions
made with a CE after July 7, 2005. It also applies nationwide.
The court order is a result of a lawsuit filed by the following anti-recreation
groups; the Earth Island Institute, Sequoia Forest Keeper, Heartwood,
Center for Biological Diversity, and the Sierra Club against a timber
project on the Sequoia National Forest.
A CE is a category of actions that do not have a significant effect
on the environment and therefore do not require an Environmental Assessment
(EA) or Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). CEs are allowed under the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). They simplify documentation
-- not eliminate it -- for those actions that clearly do not have a significant
effect on the environment. Such permitted activities include certain
off-road vehicle events, mountain bike tours and group outings for organizations
such as the Boy or Girl Scouts.
Brian Hawthorne, Public Lands Director for the BlueRibbon Coalition,
states, “I think the green groups have gone too far with their
anti-recreation agenda. They seek to create a virtual ‘analysis
paralysis’ in the Forest Service to advance their agenda. Sadly,
it is the responsible recreating public will suffer because of their
extreme positions.”
"I believe the American public will see this for what it is - radical
environmentalism run amok. If a project meets the specific and limited
criteria for Categorical Exclusion and cannot have a significant effect
on the environment, land managers should not be forced to complete an
unnecessarily lengthy and wasteful analysis. " Hawthorne added.
This decisions impact projects such as the Capitol Holiday Tree program,
which allows a tree from a different national forest to grace the lawn
of the U.S. Capitol throughout the holiday season—a proud tradition
for nearly 40 years. “Instead of approving such projects with a
streamlined permit using CEs, the agency must now enact a lengthy 135
day notice, comment, and appeal process,” Hawthorne said. “It’s
not just the mom and pop recreation clubs that get hurt, but great American
traditions like placing the Christmas tree on the White House lawn are
affected as well.”
Hawthorne noted that the ruling potentially affects hundreds of projects
throughout the country, including projects that will reduce hazardous
fuels and improve wildlife habitat. Hawthorne added; “The effects
of the decision are not yet completely understood and it will take some
time to fully assess a strategy of action. BRC remains committed to protecting
recreational access to public lands and will be watching the situation
closely.”
More info on the ruling: http://www.fs.fed.us/emc/applit/litigation.htm
The
BlueRibbon Coalition is a national recreation group that champions
responsible use of public and private lands, and encourages individual
environmental
stewardship. It represents over 10,000 individual members and 1,200 organization
and business members, for a combined total of over 600,000 recreationists
nationwide.
1-800-258-3742 — www.sharetrails.org |
