The price of access
Outdoor enthusiasts look for state help to maintain recreation areas
By Tara Roberts, Daily News staff writer
Friday, December 28, 2007 - Page Updated at 12:00:00 AM
There is a place on an Elk River snowmobile trail where a person can see Idaho, Washington, Montana and Oregon.
Gene and Carolyn Riggs are worried fewer people will be able to access such views as the number of public trails diminishes and recreation costs rise.
The Riggs, who live outside Troy, have been snowmobiling for 15 years. Gene is president of the SnoDrifters of Latah County snowmobile club, which hosts snowmobiling events and maintains trails in the area.
The couple said they would like to see the state do more to preserve access to public lands and expand the amount of land available for recreation.
Members of the SnoDrifters clean up and groom trails in Idaho's Area 29, which includes Moscow Mountain and Elk River. The club raised money to build and maintain a warming hut by one of the trails. Carolyn said state money could help support the volunteers who spend time, effort and money to keep land accessible.
State Sen. Gary Schroeder, chairman of the Senate Resources and Environment Committee, said a recent poll showed more than 70 percent of Idahoans support opening more wild places in the state.
"That's a pretty strong indication that people in Idaho are interested in maintaining quality of life that includes the possibility to recreate," the Moscow Republican said. "The question is, how are we doing it?"
The Resources and Environment Committee will discuss ways to keep Idaho lands accessible for recreation during the legislative session that begins Jan. 7.
"Our goal is to maximize the amount of the public and non-public lands that the state has access to in the future for hunting, hiking, fishing and all sorts of outdoor activities," Schroeder said.
Schroeder said the committee will consider adding a $10 fee to Idaho income tax forms to help pay for resource-related issues such as land access, parks and animal habitat preservation. The fee would be like the $10 Permanent Building Fund fee already on tax forms.
The money generated from the fee - potentially $6 million a year - would go toward "actual projects that benefit the public so they have places to go in the future," Schroeder said. A board would be set up to decide how the money could be spent.
The Resources and Environment Committee will start putting together a coalition of people to develop language for the fee proposal, Schroeder said. He was not sure if the proposal would be ready to introduce during the 2008 legislative session.
There has been increasing pressure on Idaho's public lands over the past few years, Schroeder said. The state needs about $1 million a year to help make up for the damage people cause to parks and trails.
"People do a lot of damage," Schroeder said. "They tear up gates, they tear up roads, they do all kinds of things."
University of Idaho recreation instructor Dale Newberry said Potlatch Corp.'s recent decision to charge for access to its lands has pushed more people onto state land for recreation. Potlatch owns 660,000 acres of forest land in Idaho, according to the company's Web site.
Newberry said Potlatch has a right to charge for access, but the net effect is increased demand on federal and state agencies that must maintain other land. Decreased logging revenue and federal funding have put additional pressure on the state.
"They're gonna have to respond some way, because when (people) show up at the doorstep with their campers and their tents, you've got to have facilities for their garbage and refuse and human waste," Newberry said. "That costs money."
The reality is, people are going to have to pay for access, Newberry said. If the state decides to collect fees, the revenue should go into projects such as improving campsites and building trails.
"I don't welcome it with open arms, but I view it as being almost inevitable," he said.
Moscow resident Brandon Glaza, who works for the U.S. Forest Service Palouse District, said he supports the proposed $10 fee, as long as it goes toward programs that directly effect public recreation.
"Ten bucks for that kind of access is a small price to pay for what you can do with it," he said.
Glaza, who backpacks, mountain bikes, and enjoys "basically anything you can do outside" said money spent on public land is money well spent.
"We live in a beautiful state and it's just great to be able to get out there and see things that don't exist" in other places, he said.
The Riggs said they also support a $10 fee, as long as the money is used well.
"The money to maintain the trails for snowmobiles, ATVs and motorcycles would be great because it's hard to get a place to ride," Gene said.
Other natural resource issues for the 2008 legislative session
The Senate Resources and Environment Committee continues to work with aquifer management plans for the state. Schroeder said his priorities regarding water rights are to make sure private landowners don't end up with a fee on private wells, and to place a water rights adjudication court for north Idaho in north Idaho.
He said the governor has been asked to include money for water resources in his budget, including $2 million for Palouse-area aquifers.
Global warming and its repercussions will also be on the Resources and Environment Committee's radar this session. Schroeder said the committee will explore the effects of global warming on water, forests and animals, and considering what actions the state should take.
Schroeder said a hunting season for wolves will be in place by next fall if wolves are removed from the Endangered Species list.
"That's an important step, is to have the state take over management of the wolves," he said.
Tara Roberts can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 234, or by e-mail at troberts@dnews.com.
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