Morning email to alert list
Dear Friends,
As you may have read the governor of our great state has
stated that OHV use on public lands in our state is
abusive and that "abuse" is an "abomination" and an
embarrassment to our state. If you haven't already please
read this article that came out this morning in the Salt
Lake Tribune:
www.sltrib.com/news/ci_10614514
I agree with the governor's implication that in some
places the intensity of use is high, I agree that in other
places folks need to stay on the trail and obey the law,
but I fundamentally disagree with the governors comments
that the "abuse" is an "abomination". However we would
agree that in some places the use of OHVs needs to be
better managed. This management does not equate with
closing areas, heavy fines, or pandering to environmental
extortionists. It does equate with understanding why the
non-compliance is occurring and then addressing the issue
with that understanding. The governor is shooting from the
hip on this point and doesn't have a good handle on why or
how to resolve the so called abuse.
I am disgusted that the governor has repeatedly denied our
organization the opportunity to take him on a field trip
yet he has found time to go out with a well known
environmental activist and financial supporter of the very
radical group known by the acronym SUWA (
www.suwa.org).
Does he believe what he was shown was an accurate
representation of OHV use on public land in our state? If
he had done his due diligence he would not have made such
erroneous and ignorant comments to the Tribunes editorial
board.
I am disgusted that instead of looking proactively at what
can be done to encourage better compliance he has decided
heavy enforcement (i.e. spending more or redirecting tax
dollars) and a PSA video will suffice. How about putting
in some outstanding trail systems on state land with the
use and heavy involvement of volunteers (i.e. less tax
dollars) from local clubs and communities?
I have been disgusted by his willingness to sell our state
and his constituents down the river in order to maintain
harmony with various federal agencies, other states
governments, and radical environmental groups. How about
not rolling over for federal land use plans (i.e. RMP's)
that are closing down countless miles of trail? You know
the governor has special status with the feds when those
plans are formulated and finalized. He and he alone gets a
special review of those plans and then he gets to sign off
on how consistent they are with the state's position and
local land use plans. Why has he signed and approved 100%
of them while knowing full well how damaging they are to
his constituents?
Why has he NOT supported many rural counties such as Kane
County who is fighting a heavy battle for ALL of us? Why
has he placed the interest of "getting along" with the
federal land use agencies over serving the people of this
state? Why has he aligned with California's governor
Schwartznegger and signed on to the green house gas
initiative that has harmed our ability to grow our power
plant industry? Why has the governor created a state
recreation task force stacked with known radical
environmentalists? Why has the governor opposed and
reluctantly signed state legislative resolutions urging
the U.S. congress to pass meaningful law to resolve the
road ownership issue in the west? Believe me I could go
on.
There are many unanswered question such as these. I will
leave their conclusion to you. One thing we know the
Governor and others in his administration have not served
the public very well. Perhaps he wakes up in the morning
licks his finger and hold it to the air to see which way
the political winds are blowing, lately they have been
blowing very green, and so he charts his course
accordingly. Perhaps he has failed to account that this
"green wind" is mostly coming from outside our state. We
wish he would pay closer attention to the political
concerns of the folks at home here in Utah. The governor
has broken our hearts. We thought, in him, we had a friend
and an advocate it turns out he has slighted us. Its past
time our communities let him know how we feel.
Below is his contact info let's see if we can make some
political wind of our own.
Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr.
Utah State Capitol Complex
350 North State Street, Suite 200
PO Box 142220
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-2220
801-538-1000
800-705-2464
Fax 801-538-1528
To email him:
governor.utah.gov/goca/form_comment.html
PLEASE be respectful and on point. But DO let him know how
you feel about his recent comments and his lack of support
for our community. DO suggest things he could do to
improve (i.e. give equal time and consideration to
opposing sides, go on a field trip with USA-ALL, support
local county commissioner's fight for roads, etc.)
USA-ALL is a non-profit organization. Recently our
donations have all but dried up, probably ended up in the
gas tanks of most people's automobiles or at their local
grocery stores. We desperately want to continue to fight
for all of you, and we want to improve how we do that. But
it can only happen if we have donated money to pay for
basic services and fund important projects. If you like
what you read here in this email and would like to see our
organization improve please send us a donation. You can
donate to us online with a card or bank account through
www.paypal.com using the email address
[EMAIL="treasurer@usaall.org"]treasurer@usaall.org This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it [/EMAIL]. For additional info you can also
visit our website at
www.usaall.org (our joindonate page
is having problems). In addition to your donations if you
have a little time we are holding a board of directors
meeting at 6:00 pm on October 28 in Orem, Utah. We are
looking to add passionate individuals to the board, you
will need to commit to a monthly time commitment of 4-8
hours. We need people from all types of recreational
interests and others that need access to land such as
grazers, industry folks, etc. we also need people from all
areas of the state. If you're interested send an email to
[EMAIL="mike@usaall.org"]mike@usaall.org This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it [/EMAIL]and let me know. I can fill you in on
other details. Despite a few differences those in the
community may have with one another WE CANNOT AFFORD to
allow USA-ALL to go out of business, we have to come
together and fight united. If you have a gripe with us
email me, we can work it out. Please donate today even a
few bucks if that is all you have. Our access to public
land is too precious to let it slip through our fingers.
Sincerely,
-Michael Swenson-
Executive Director
Utah Shared Access Alliance (USA-ALL)
WWW.USAALL.ORG