United Four Wheel Drive Associations
An International Organization

Category: Press Releases
Date: Mar 24 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

State and National Recreation Groups Push Federal Agency to Deny Rulemaking Petition

The Colorado Association of Four Wheel Drive Clubs, BlueRibbon Coalition, Colorado Off Highway Vehicle Coalition, and the United Four Wheel Drive Associations sent a strong message to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Umcompahgre Field Office, in Colorado pushing the BLM to deny a rulemaking petition to prohibit Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) use. A copy of the recreation letter requesting denial of the petition is available at http://www.ufwda.org/pdfs/BLM_UncompahgreOffice_CNE_Petition_Response.pdf

The petition was filed with the BLM by the Center for Native Ecosystems (CNE) along with five other environmental organizations, including the Wildlands Center for Preventing Roads. The purpose of the petition, on its face, was to eliminate open off-road vehicle (ORV) use from areas that are composed of Mancos shale in the Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area, BLM-managed land immediately adjacent to the south of the National Conservation Area (The Flat Top - Peach Valley Area), the North Delta open ORV area, and any other areas where the Uncompahgre Field Office allows open ORV use that are on Mancos shale.

Most notably, the petition also requests immediate closure of the areas to OHV use without public comment prior to rulemaking.

It is also noteworthy that the petition was sent by some of the same environmental groups that have thus far been unsuccessful in closing other areas open to OHV use either through similar rulemaking or litigation, noted Carla Boucher, attorney for United Four Wheel Drive Associations and co-author of the letter requesting denial of the petition.

Our goal was threefold:

* ensure that the BLM plainly understood the need to respond to rulemaking petitions generally – it is not good business practice to simply ignore rulemaking petitions in the hopes they go away whether the petitions originate with anti-access groups or with recreation organizations or others

* to deny this particular rulemaking petition as it was without merit

* to offer the agency assurances that recent case law prohibits CNE and other similar-minded groups from attempting to coerce agency action through rulemaking with threat of litigation when such rulemaking is clearly within the discretion of the agency.

Utilizing a unified approach in our correspondence with the BLM sent a clear message that we are coordinating our time, resources, and litigation strategy, concluded Boucher.

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United Four Wheel Drive Associations (UFWDA) is the leading representative for four wheel drive enthusiasts. UFWDA is a group of individuals, clubs, state, regional, provincial and national associations and businesses in the United States and around the world; our members span the globe from the U.S. and Canada, New Zealand, Australia, England, Japan, South Africa, and Iceland. If you would like more information on how you can be a part of this effort contact United Four Wheel Drive Associations today at 14525 SW Millikan Way #22622, Beaverton, OR 97005-2343, 1-800-448-3932 or visit www.ufwda.org.

Carla Boucher, Attorney
United Four Wheel Drive Associations
P.O. Box 15696
Chesapeake, VA 23328
(757) 546-7969