Fire Facts Air Pollution and ORVs Water Pollution and ORVs Soil Degradation and ORVs Wildlife Impact Impact on Humans Problems Facing the Forest Service ATV facts
	ORV tracks in the Santa Fe National Forest near Medanales, NM

 Fire Facts

• The Travel Management Plan for the Santa Fe National Forest designates an area directly adjacent to the official borders of the Santa Fe watershed as an ORV recreation area
• More than 90 percent of the trees over nearly 8000 acres have been cleared in the roadless Santa Fe Municipal Watershed since 2002 in an aggressive and well-funded Forest Service program to reduce fire risk. These newly cleared forests have greatly increased ORV access. Nearly 2000 acres are currently piled with thinning debris waiting to be burned. These highly flammable areas could be ignited by ORVs traveling a web of unplanned motorized trails created by tree cutting crews. In many cases, these trails run straight up hills and along sensitive ridge tops damaging soils and harming wildlife (see slide shows)
• The city of Santa Fe gets 40% of its water from the watershed. The fire hazard in the watershed poses a formidable risk to the city's water supply. In 2000, one fire started in the watershed and a helicopter put it out. Also in 2000, two large fires, the Viveash and Cerro Grande, occurred near the Santa Fe Watershed. In 2001, 100 acres burned in a drainage in the wilderness on the east side of the Municipal watershed, with its head on the watershed boundary. These fires demonstrate the palpable and immediate threat faced by the Santa Fe in the watershed. (Toddi A. Steelman and NCSU,Santa Fe Case Study - Community Responses to Wildland Fire Threats in New Mexico)
• There is a high probability of a large crown fire burning the entire watershed during drought conditions, which have been prevalent in the last few years and are projected for the coming years. A large stand-replacing fire likely could have some, if not all, of the following effects:

Heavy flooding into Santa Fe

Movement of soil, mud and woody debris into the canyon bottom and reservoirs

Damage to or loss of homes, habitats and drinking water supply

Spread of fire into residential and developed recreation areas

Major smoke infiltration into urban areas, resulting in health problems.

Wildfire would denude the slopes creating conditions for sedimentation and erosion to fill the reservoirs thereby compromising the short and long-term water supply of Santa Fe.⁽Toddi A. Steelman and NCSU,Santa Fe Case Study - Community Responses to Wildland Fire Threats in New Mexico)

• Approximately 85% of wildfires on forest lands are caused by humans. A study of all California national forests reports that 75% of all fires occur within 10 feet of a road (Wilson C. 1979. Roadsides: Corridors with high fire hazard and risk. Journal of Forestry)
• ORVs can directly ignite fires. Research shows that the combination of dry fuel material (i.e. grasses or debris) and an all-terrain vehicle exhaust system can result in the ignition of a fire and the combustion of organic material. The number of ATV-caused wildfires has increased over the last 10 years. Fires may be started by ATVs due to exploding electrical switches (solenoids) on winches, the ignition of grass and fine fuels by exhaust systems and sparks from exhaust systems. (Baxter G. 2002. All terrain vehicles as a cause of fire ignition in Alberta forests. Publication of the Forest Engineering Research Institute of Canada)

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 Air Pollution and ORVs

• One two-stroke off-road motorcycle or all-terrain vehicle emits as much hydrocarbon pollution per mile as 118 passenger cars, while relatively cleaner four-stroke engines still emit more than seven times the level of carbon monoxide as new cars. (Fussell, L. M. S. 1997. Exposure of snowmobile riders to carbon monoxide: Emissions pose potential risk. Park Science: Integrating Research and Resource Management 17 1)
• The large quantity of particulate air pollution (dust) caused by ORV travel on unpaved roads and trails is "a serious health risk" Researchers explain that "recent health studies have also associated particulate pollution with impaired lung function, increased emergency room visits and increases in mortality". (Kasnitz, M. and E. Maschke. 1996. Backcountry giveaways: How Bureaucratic Confusion Subsidizes Off-highway Vehicle Harms. A Report for the California Green Scissors Project. CALPIRG, Santa Barbara, CA.)
• Much of the pollution that ORVs emit into the air eventually ends up settling on the soil and water, and on the snow during winter months .Much of this contamination works its way into nearby waterways. That these processes can occur slowly doesn't mitigate their potential severity. ORVs can leak fuel, oil, antifreeze, and other chemicals. Aune, K. E. 1981. Impact of winter recreationists on wildlife in a portion of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. M.S. Thesis, Montana State University, Bozeman)

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 Soil Degradation and ORVs

• Soil compaction and the shear forces of motorized vehicles create mud holes and gullies that alter hydrologic patterns and intensify erosion
• Revegetation is inhibited by lower soil moisture and higher soil density. The compaction of the soil by the vehicles prevents seed germination and decreases soil nutrients Some of the impacts on the soil include: the compaction and disruption of surface soil; destruction and dispersal of soil stabilizers; reduction of infiltration capacity; increased frequency and intensity of runoff; increase in soil erosion to the loss of soil by wind
• The spread of noxious weeds can be directly attributed to ORV use

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 Wildlife Impact

• Many scientists suggest that motorized recreation is the greatest threat to wildlife on our public lands because it can alter habitat, cause disturbance and lead to the direct death of animals (Luckenbach, 1975, What the ORVs are doing to the desert. Fremontia 1978: An analysis of off-road vehicle use on desert avifaunas. Transactions of the North American Wildlife National Resource Conference.; Bury R. B., R. A. Luckenbach, and R. D. Busack. 1977. Effects of off-road vehicles on the California Desert. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Wildlife Resource Report; Sheridan D. 1979. Off-road vehicles on public land. 041-011-00041-6. Washington, D.C., U.S. Government Printing Office, Council on Environmental Quality; Berry K. H. 1980. The effects of four-wheel vehicles on biological resources. In R.N.L. Andrews and P.Nowak (editors), Off-road vehicle use: A management challenge.U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Environmental Quality; Brattstrom B. H.and M. C. Bondello. 1983. Effects of off-road vehicle noise on desert vertebrates. in R.H. Webb and H.G. Wilshire (editors), Environmental effects of off-road vehicles: impacts and management in arid regions.; Boyle S. A. and F. B. Samson. 1985. Effects of nonconsumptive recreation on wildlife: A review. Wildlife Society Bulletin; Havlick D. 1999. Roaring from the past: Off-road vehicles on America’s National Forests; Joslin G. and H. Youmans. 1999. Effects of recreation on Rocky Mountain wildlife: a review for Montana.in Committee on Effects of Recreation on Wildlife, Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society)
• Animal mortality can occur when off-road vehicles hit ground-dwelling animals, destroy birds or small mammals by crushing ground nests or vegetation that contains nests, or cause the collapse of needed burrows. Although animal mortality is an obvious and familiar direct effect, displacement, avoidance and disturbance at specific sites, often associated with breeding and raising young, are the most commonly reported direct effects of motorized trails on wildlife (Bury et al. 1977; McReynolds H., and R. Radtke. 1978. The impact of motorized humans on the wildlife of forested lands. Wildlife and people: Proceedings of the 1978 John S. Wright Forestry Conference. Purdue University; Bury, 1980; Luckenbach R. A. and R. B. Bury. 1983. Effects of off-road vehicles on the biota of the Algodones Dunes, Imperial County, California. Journal of Applied Ecology; Sachet G. A. 1988. Wildlife evaluation processes for ORV, hiking, and horse backcountry recreation use in Washington Forests. Department of Wildlife, State of Washington; Youmans H. 1999. Project overview in Josiln, G. and H. Youmans, coordinators. Effects of recreation on Rocky Mountain wildlife: A review for Montana. Committee on Effects of Recreation of Wildlife, Montana Chapter of the Wildlife Society)
• In addition to loss of vegetation and destruction of habitat, road traffic and the use of off-road vehicles can cause increased sedimentation and chemical contamination that can be detrimental to adjacent aquatic systems; large amounts of sediment can prove detrimental and even lethal to amphibians. (Welsh H.H., and L. M. Ollivier. 1998. Stream amphibians as indicators of ecosystem stress: a case study in California’s redwoods. Ecological Applications)
• Noise from ORVs can interfere with wildlife’s ability to find and capture prey, to escape from predators and to successfully mate and reproduce. (Brattstrom B. H.and M. C. Bondello. 1983. Effects of off-road vehicle noise on desert vertebrates in R.H. Webb and H.G. Wilshire (editors), Environmental effects of off-road vehicles: impacts and management in arid regions. Springer-Verlag)

Reckless driving creates dangers to horses and their riders, bikers, hikers and the ORV drivers themselves
With few noise buffers in the area, the noise from ORVs travels far, destroys the peacefulness of the natural setting and affects the quality of life of neighbors
There is a disproportionate level of impact caused by ORVs when compared with other recreational activities. Only 6% of national forest visits involve the recreational use of off-road vehicles. This small group has a huge impact on the landscape and quality of recreation of other forest users. (English, et al, 2004)
ORV use is inconsistent with the multiple-use concept because a single machine, through nose, dust and speed, can exclude all other recreationists from an area that could otherwise have been enjoyed by many
Despite identifying “stay on the trail” as a fundamental principle of responsible ORV use, as many as two-thirds of ORV riders go off-trail from time to time. Commonly, these riders believe it is okay to occasionally ride cross-country or off designated routes especially if routes have been previously cut by other riders.” (Monaghan, 2001)
ORV riders can pose a threat of violence to other recreationists in the National Forest. "At an Easter weekend gathering, 50 federal rangers faced "near riot conditions" with about 1,000 out-of-control ORV enthusiasts at the Little Sahara Recreation Area in Utah. Revelers sexually harassed a number of women among the 35,000 people using the area, federal reports of the incident show. There were 300 arrests and 37 injuries." (CBS News)
The number of child injuries linked to all types of non-automobile, motorized vehicles continues to rise. Overall, accidents have jumped 86 percent -- from 70,500 injuries in 1990 to 130,900 injuries in 2003 (Pediatrics)

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 Problems Facing the Forest Service

• It is difficult to impossible to enforce regulations; The Santa Fe National Forest has only a single ranger for law enforcement covering 3 counties
• The lack of enforcement of rules can lead to unsafe behavior of riders, increasing the risk of injury to themselves or others. The lack of enforcement also makes it easy for riders to illegally trespass onto private lands and the Santa Fe watershed area. The available forest is quite small. Therefore, recreational ATV use is concentrated on a small area, multiplying the stress on the land and wildlife. This is all the more significant, because the forest is quite close to the city of Santa Fe and will experience a lot of pressure from ATV use
• The high cost to repair the soil damage and erosion will further stress the Forest Service
• According to official crime statistics released by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), incidents involving off-road vehicles are not only the biggest drain on rangers’ resources, but generate more law enforcement citations than all other criminal activity combined

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