The folks at Bark remind us that there’s not much time left if you want to comment on the OHV plan for the Mt. Hood National Forest.
The deadline is tomorrow (Wednesday) by 4:30 pm. Though it’s probably too late to mail a letter, you can email your thoughts to comments-pacificnorthwest-mthood@fs.fed.us.
I’ve covered this issue in detail. For a look at all my stories click on the Quiet Forests category. But to sum it up, the OHV plan would sharply limit where off road vehicles are allowed in the Mt. Hood National Forest. Officials want to set aside certain areas of the forest for OHV trails. They would be banned from the rest of the forest.
But how many areas, and how many miles of trails is still up for debate. Bark is asking everyone to support Alternative 4, the most restrictive of the four plans being proposed. It calls for three off road areas with 96 miles of trails. Bark says this one does the best job of protecting streams and wildlife habitat, as well as reduce conflicts between off roaders and quiet users such as hikers, anglers, mountain bikers and horse riders.
The Forest Service is leaning towards Alternative 2, which creates six OHV areas with 221 miles of trails.
For more information see the Mt. Hood Forest Projects and Plans website. You may have to scroll down to find the Off Highway Vehicle Travel Management Plan.
To see more about Bark’s view of the plan visit their Mt. Hood Off Highway Vehicle Plan page.
