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AOC and SB 85---public access off the Dalton
Posted by bushrat on Oct 12 2005
I wanted to post a message about where I think we're going with hunting access rights inre: the good debates below on SB 85 that seeks to open up the Dalton corridor to public access and atv use.
The Alaska Outdoor Council (AOC)is a powerful lobby in Alaska. I remember meeting many of these guys and gals at the old Tanana Valley Sportsmen's Association building in Fairbanks back in the early 1980s---they've come a long way since then because of sincere, dedicated effort. They have some great people volunteering much time and energy on outdoor issues. I sincerely commend them and some I call friends. But as an org, AOC hasn't yet come out with a position paper on atv use and abuse, nor have they discussed "how much is too much" within their org as they are fighting just to open up areas of the state that have been locked up by the feds.
One of the advocated missions of AOC is habitat conservation and "wise use" of the resource. A commendable goal indeed. The resource in this case being both the land and waters and the wildlife of Alaska. Another goal they are woking on is "access" for the public to the lands owned by the state. Much of this hinges on the many RS 2477 trails within the state that cross fed land, one of which is off the Dalton and made the news last winter when Murkowski staged a dogsled ride with a popular musher to highlight this particular right-of-way and the battle to regain our state rights to these trails. (Too much history on that to go into now, but check this link for info on RS 2477: http://www.dnr.state.ak.us/mlw/trails/rs2477/index.cfm ; )
What's happened is that many (and I've argued with feds over the years myself about things) are so committed to opening up these trails to the public (and big business) that they don't have the time, staff, or energy to adequately consider the repercussions. Access! The feds stole it from us! We want it back! AOC fights for it. But what happens if/when we get it?
I'd like to see AOC come up with a position statement on ATV use in Alaska, and particularly off the Dalton. I think they should have already done so. I gather that a good portion of their membership includes atv users. When you have an org that seeks to espouse conservation and wise use of Alaska's wildlife and habitat while at the same time they seem to promote widescale atv use for hunting...well, those things seem mutually exclusive, incompatible. (btw, AOC supports drilling in ANWR as a wise use of the resource.) Obviously (I think), AOC doesn't believe we should simply allow thousands of atv-ers to run rampant on the tundra, so c'mon guys and gals at AOC, let us know what exactly you DO believe in this specific instance. Help everyone make an informed decision. Come out with a position paper on atv use for hunting. How much is too much? How much would you like to see? What will your org push for if SB 85 passes, in terms of atv use off the corridor? This bill has a lot of detractors, including hunters; this is the third year it hasn't passed. Yet your org hasn't definitively addressed all of these questions.
Conservation and wise use. I'm all for that. Some access for atvs; I'll go along with that too. But only if I see a solid plan for each and every area that adequately addresses possible repercussions to wildlife numbers and habitat, and with enforcement money behind it that guarantees a trooper presence and (heavy) fines for violators. Lacking that, well...we really need to be careful here. This isn't an "us against them" issue, a "hunters vs. non-hunters" cause. Access and wise use is what this is about, yet all we're hearing from Seekins and AOC is about access. No one is discussing the wise use part. Why? Because no one wants to really discuss it prior to the possible passage of this bill. Why? Because when push comes to shove, what we'll really see from this IF any "wise use" principles are actually incorporated (I stress the IF)is just another Tier or draw hunt for a few. We simply can't open the area up to everyone with an atv, not for long anyway, even if it's regulated to just certain trails---I think most of us intuit that. Forget for a moment about any habitat destruction; the herds simply can't withstand such pressure. (We are going to begin stricter regulations of air-taxis and transporters and guides next year, statewide, for the same reasons---too many hunters, too little game. Certain wildlife populations are getting hammered. Pred control is not the catch-all be-all answer to this, either, though many look at this as the solution to this problem. Almost every bio I've spoken with talks of statewide Tier and draw and Controlled-Use hunting as our future.) As hunters we need to think about what our kids will inherit, what we WANT them to inherit from us by way of wild places and wildlife. I ask everyone to look down the road a bit farther. What is the future of hunting in Alaska? What do we want it to be? What are we willing to sacrifice now?
Thanks,
Mark
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