News
Posted March 16, 2006
Federal judge blocks re-opening of Glamis OHV area
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston sided with anti-access forces and rejected a plan by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to reopen more than 49,000 acres of the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area in southern California to OHV use.
In a decision issued on March 14, the judge ruled that the BLM failed to properly follow certain federal laws, including the Endangered Species Act, when it proposed reopening the acreage at the popular OHV area that is popularly known as Glamis. She also ruled that the BLM relied on a flawed opinion from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in deciding to re-open the acreage to riding.
BLM officials said the acreage would remain closed while the agency reviews the ruling.
The BLM closed 49,305 acres in the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area in late 2000 as part of an out-of-court settlement of a lawsuit filed by anti-access groups that alleged the BLM failed to properly consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concerning the effects of the BLM-administered California Desert Conservation Area Plan on a number of threatened and endangered species.
As part of that settlement, the BLM agreed to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service. The Fish and Wildlife Service then issued an opinion in 2003 stating that allowing OHV use "is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of (the threatened) Peirson's milk-vetch" plant, and the desert tortoise. The BLM then released its draft plan to reopen the closed Glamis parcels, which was then challenged by the Sierra Club and other anti-access groups.
Glamis is an extremely popular recreation area for motorcyclists, ATV riders, four-wheel-drive vehicle enthusiasts and others. The BLM reports that an estimated 100,000 people use the dunes some holiday weekends. The area is about 40 miles long, five miles wide, and has dunes that rise 300 feet above the valley floor.