Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area Working Group Meeting and Field Visit

[writeforus]

The Siuslaw National Forest, located in western Oregon, has announced that a meeting and field tour for the off-highway vehicle (OHV) Designated Routes Working Group for the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (NRA) will be held on Saturday, October 3, 2009.

The Working Group was recently formed to develop recommendations for the designation of OHV routes in a portion of the NRA (upland vegetation areas included in Management Area 10(C)).

According to Forest Service officials, the process to designate OHV routes was identified as an action item in the 1994 Management Plan for the NRA.

October 3 will be the first meeting of the Working Group, and the agenda will be focused on introductions, ground rules and the purpose for the Group, background information on upland vegetation areas and the NRA Management Plan, and orientation to the NRA.

Working Group members were selected from a pool of applicants and represent a broad range of interests. Members selected represent the following specific interests or organizations: Organized OHV groups, unaffiliated OHV users, outfitters and/or guide businesses, mushroom pickers, fish and wildlife advocates, conservation groups, local Tribes, local community leaders, State ATV Program, local emergency response agencies, local Parks Departments, local landowners, and the general public.

The October 3 meeting will take place at the Florence Events Center at 715 Quince Street in Florence, and will begin at 9:00 a.m. The Working Group will take a field tour to an area of the NRA near Florence from approximately 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and conclude the day with a wrap up meeting back at the Events Center.

The public is invited to attend both the meeting and the field trip. A public comment period will be provided at 11:00 A.M. Members of the public attending the field trip will have to provide their own transportation.

The Working Group will be meeting six times over the coming ten months, and will be taking four field trips to look at different areas of the NRA.

Individuals requiring alternate format material or accommodation, or who have questions regarding the October 3 meeting, can contact Ross Holloway, OHV Designated Routes Working Group Facilitator, by phone at 503-812-4056 or by e-mail at rholloway@inciplan.net. Questions about the field tour can be directed to Sharon Stewart, Dispersed Recreation Supervisor, by phone at 541-271-6071, or by e-mail at slstewart@fs.fed.us.