[Vision2020] LMT -- Everyone hears this tree fall

[Area Man (Dan C)]

Wayne,  

I agree there are those nutballs out there that give us responsible
motorized recreational users a bad name.  I would venture a guess that
the bulk of the abusers do NOT buy an off-road recreation sticker for
their vehicles (motorcycles, ATVs).

I would be totally in favor of PFI or BLP requiring some kind of access
permit to be filed with them to allow recreational use of their
property.  Whether it be fee based or not, doesn't matter.  I pay ten
bucks a year for that off road sticker to the State of Idaho, I could
swing a 5 or 10 to Bennett's or Potlatch to allow me to "play" on their
land.  That way they have a record of who's supposed to be there, and
who's not.  I'd like to see something like that put into effect before
totally closing the land off.

I can understand the timber companies wanting public funds to ensure
public access.  "You want public access?  Pay for it with public money."

In a conversation I had today with coworkers, one guy said "$300,000.00
worth of damage to 670,000 acres?  That works out to 50 cents an acre."
When you put it in those terms, it doesn't seem like as much, even
though it is a lot of money.  Another guy put it in the terms of a
farmer who has to deal with deer and elk and the damage they cause to
fields.  A farmer has to figure that in, and maybe the timber companies
should figure in a certain amount of "depredation".  I'm not saying
those are MY opinions (I *DESPISE* the irresponsible nutjobs), they're
just a "man on the street" opinion I heard today in discussion of the
article.

The biggest issue is education and enforcement.  You know and I know
that, while there are still problems on Moscow Mountain, the abuses have
decreased drastically over the last few years.  I think the efforts of
Friends Of Moscow Mountain did a lot to help that situation.

DC