- Location
- Sandy, Ut
More on RS2477
- Thread starter cruiseroutfit
- Start date
cruiseroutfit said:
i am not sure i gathered the whole thing.........but it sounded good!
- Location
- East Stabbington
I wrote a 5 page paper that outlines rs2477 if you want to read it--it's boring and not particularly good, but it explains the history of it.
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
Cody said:
Could you post it? I'd love to read it.
- Location
- East Stabbington
Like I said, it's not really a great paper, but it covers 'some' of the issues involved.
{long read but I was asked to--sorry}
RS 2477
For centuries citizens of every country have fought about the environment, its preservation, and who has the right to use it. The United States has its own environmental battles being waged between people, businesses, and organizations, local, state, and federal governments. The issues are generally not black and white and more often than not, bickering comes at the cost of action. This environmental movement has been adopted by people and organizations of all shapes and sizes. Organizations are able to reach more people via electronic medium and share their messages than they have in the past. Environmental policy is no longer an issue left to the debate of those with the time and knowledge to decipher through the rhetoric and apply and adapt old laws to solve new issues. Possibly the region with the most environmental turmoil is Southern Utah.
The environmental movement in Southern Utah is well organized and very prominent. As such, there are thousands of supporters on either side of the coin, and thousands that walk the grey area. The ‘moral struggle’ (Denton et. al. 2001) of this particular segment of the environmental movement involves access and preservation of land. One side of the debate advocates the designation of millions of acres of land as Wilderness Areas in which the only available means of access would be hiking. Organizations such as the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) have been formed to lead this side of the movement. SUWA is highly organized and funded and relies upon litigation and rhetoric to spread their message. While their tactics are peaceful and generally non-confrontational, some of their viewpoints and messages are unrealistic and are written to convey a ‘greater good’ moral position.
The opposition is generally local land owners, governments and organizations such as the Utah Shared Access Alliance (USA-ALL). USA-All is much newer, smaller, and less funded than SUWA. They advocate the responsible use of land for ATV’s, OHV’s, Jeeps, horses, mountain bikes, and many other forms of transportation. USA-ALL also uses litigation and rhetoric to achieve their goals but seldom has pieces published in large newspapers, such as the Salt Lake Tribune, unless it is a reaction piece to another editorial.
The most current debate in Southern Utah is multi pronged and deals with wilderness designation on BLM lands around Moab, the San Rafael Swell, and the Grand Escalante National Monument that was created by the Clinton administration in 1996 (Isrealsen, 2003). At the heart of the debate is an old law--Revised Stature 2477, also known as RS 2477(Skinner, 2003). RS 2477 was passed by Congress in 1866 and in its entirety states; “The right-of-way for the construction of highways over public lands, not reserved for public uses, is hereby granted.” The law was originally designed to facilitate westward expansion. If settlers needed to get from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ they were allowed to make a road. Obviously this law has little relevance today; however in 1976 Congress passed the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act, also known as FLPMA (Skinner, 2003). This law repealed RS 2477 but stated that any road on the ground as of October 21, 1976 would remain a road which can be used by the public. There are many instances where these old mining and wagon trails are overgrown or cross what is now private property. Technically speaking, these would be legitimate right of ways for the public to use and this caused problems for many local land owners.
The major issue for environmentalists is that according to FLPMA, in order for land to be eligible for wilderness designation, the tract must be at least 5000 acres and contain no roads or man made intrusions (Kay, 1997). When FLPMA was passed, federal lands were inventoried and studied. 22.8 million acres were found to meet the criteria to be road less (3.8 million in Utah) and these lands were to be known as the “Section 603 Wilderness Study Areas” (WSA’s). Since then, Congress has designated 6.5 million acres of these lands as official wilderness. The remaining 15.5 million acres are still managed as wilderness until Congress decides what exactly it wants to do with them. The issue was to be closed and no other designation of wilderness was to be allowed after the inventory. In 1991 the Utah BLM added an additional 2.6 million acres of WSA to their inventory. The State of Utah almost immediately filed suit against the Interior claiming these designation inhibited the state from generating revenue on nearby School Trust Lands (school trust lands are areas that were given to Utah by the Federal Government to be used to generate income for Utah schools) (Skinner, 2003). No decision has been made as of today.
Additional controversy surrounds the creation of the Grand-Escalante National Monument which covers over 1.9 million acres in Kane and Garfield counties (Israelsen, 2003). The very legal foundation of this monument is questioned by Utah residents and equal access advocacy groups. Recently, the Kane County Commissioner and Sheriff were being criminally investigated for uprooting signs within the monument that blocked vehicular travel. They contend that these roads have been in use by the county for years and are not only eligible for protection under RS 2477, but have been regularly maintained by the citizens of Kane County which is a prerequisite of road designation on most federal lands. Elected officials from both Kane and Garfield counties have formally asked the federal government to remove the manager of the Grand Staircase-Escalante Monument and downsize its staff of 62 full time employees (Israelsen, 2003). Many of the residents in this area are cattle ranchers and without this land and those roads, they have no way to make a living.
The RS 2477 debate also stretches into other areas of Utah such as our numerous national forests. The Wilderness Act of 1964, the National Forest Management Act (NFMA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), along with several other laws provide the guidelines required to establish a wilderness area. The national forests have an additional component to the debate which is logging and fire access (Outdoorwire, 2003) A coalition of 14,000 Forest Service employees (nearly 50% of all FS employees) drafted a letter of concern against the road-less initiative that was championed by the Clinton administration. The Forest Service identified these “road-less” areas in the 1970’s as areas with little or no logging or mining potential. Many of these areas do contain roads that were in existence before the Forest Service was created to manage public lands (Outdoorewire, 2003). These roads have been used for generations to picnic, hunt, and fish, collect firewood, rock hounding, and just to enjoy the freedom of the outdoors. Some of these roads were built by the Forest Service for fire fighting and are marked with the Forest Service’s own little brown signs. To the people who don’t use them, these areas are road-less. Under the current proposal, over half of all current Forest Service land would be designated wilderness.
While SUWA advocates the designation of 200 million acres of wilderness area and USA-ALL advocates the existence of 5000 roads in areas currently surveyed as ‘wilderness’, the reality is that neither side is entirely right. Both sides to this debate exist so that a resolution somewhere in the middle will eventually be formed. It is silly to think that some of the old wagon tracks can be claimed as a road even though they have not been used for decades, and it is silly to attempt to close down roads that have been used by local land owners for decades because they don’t fit a standardized and formalized description of what a road should be. Not all RS 2477 road claims should be valid and not all of the land proposed as wilderness should be closed to use by the general public. The problem lies in the government’s inability to be consistent. One administration supports the wilderness designations (Clinton for example) and the next supports access rights (Bush). With the constant sway of power in the federal government it will be difficult to find a fair and equitable solution that provides both protection and access to these lands. Money should be funneled away from the courtrooms and diverted into paying for more employees to enforce the rules and ensure that the actions of a few do not ruin the land for generations.
{long read but I was asked to--sorry}
RS 2477
For centuries citizens of every country have fought about the environment, its preservation, and who has the right to use it. The United States has its own environmental battles being waged between people, businesses, and organizations, local, state, and federal governments. The issues are generally not black and white and more often than not, bickering comes at the cost of action. This environmental movement has been adopted by people and organizations of all shapes and sizes. Organizations are able to reach more people via electronic medium and share their messages than they have in the past. Environmental policy is no longer an issue left to the debate of those with the time and knowledge to decipher through the rhetoric and apply and adapt old laws to solve new issues. Possibly the region with the most environmental turmoil is Southern Utah.
The environmental movement in Southern Utah is well organized and very prominent. As such, there are thousands of supporters on either side of the coin, and thousands that walk the grey area. The ‘moral struggle’ (Denton et. al. 2001) of this particular segment of the environmental movement involves access and preservation of land. One side of the debate advocates the designation of millions of acres of land as Wilderness Areas in which the only available means of access would be hiking. Organizations such as the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) have been formed to lead this side of the movement. SUWA is highly organized and funded and relies upon litigation and rhetoric to spread their message. While their tactics are peaceful and generally non-confrontational, some of their viewpoints and messages are unrealistic and are written to convey a ‘greater good’ moral position.
The opposition is generally local land owners, governments and organizations such as the Utah Shared Access Alliance (USA-ALL). USA-All is much newer, smaller, and less funded than SUWA. They advocate the responsible use of land for ATV’s, OHV’s, Jeeps, horses, mountain bikes, and many other forms of transportation. USA-ALL also uses litigation and rhetoric to achieve their goals but seldom has pieces published in large newspapers, such as the Salt Lake Tribune, unless it is a reaction piece to another editorial.
The most current debate in Southern Utah is multi pronged and deals with wilderness designation on BLM lands around Moab, the San Rafael Swell, and the Grand Escalante National Monument that was created by the Clinton administration in 1996 (Isrealsen, 2003). At the heart of the debate is an old law--Revised Stature 2477, also known as RS 2477(Skinner, 2003). RS 2477 was passed by Congress in 1866 and in its entirety states; “The right-of-way for the construction of highways over public lands, not reserved for public uses, is hereby granted.” The law was originally designed to facilitate westward expansion. If settlers needed to get from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ they were allowed to make a road. Obviously this law has little relevance today; however in 1976 Congress passed the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act, also known as FLPMA (Skinner, 2003). This law repealed RS 2477 but stated that any road on the ground as of October 21, 1976 would remain a road which can be used by the public. There are many instances where these old mining and wagon trails are overgrown or cross what is now private property. Technically speaking, these would be legitimate right of ways for the public to use and this caused problems for many local land owners.
The major issue for environmentalists is that according to FLPMA, in order for land to be eligible for wilderness designation, the tract must be at least 5000 acres and contain no roads or man made intrusions (Kay, 1997). When FLPMA was passed, federal lands were inventoried and studied. 22.8 million acres were found to meet the criteria to be road less (3.8 million in Utah) and these lands were to be known as the “Section 603 Wilderness Study Areas” (WSA’s). Since then, Congress has designated 6.5 million acres of these lands as official wilderness. The remaining 15.5 million acres are still managed as wilderness until Congress decides what exactly it wants to do with them. The issue was to be closed and no other designation of wilderness was to be allowed after the inventory. In 1991 the Utah BLM added an additional 2.6 million acres of WSA to their inventory. The State of Utah almost immediately filed suit against the Interior claiming these designation inhibited the state from generating revenue on nearby School Trust Lands (school trust lands are areas that were given to Utah by the Federal Government to be used to generate income for Utah schools) (Skinner, 2003). No decision has been made as of today.
Additional controversy surrounds the creation of the Grand-Escalante National Monument which covers over 1.9 million acres in Kane and Garfield counties (Israelsen, 2003). The very legal foundation of this monument is questioned by Utah residents and equal access advocacy groups. Recently, the Kane County Commissioner and Sheriff were being criminally investigated for uprooting signs within the monument that blocked vehicular travel. They contend that these roads have been in use by the county for years and are not only eligible for protection under RS 2477, but have been regularly maintained by the citizens of Kane County which is a prerequisite of road designation on most federal lands. Elected officials from both Kane and Garfield counties have formally asked the federal government to remove the manager of the Grand Staircase-Escalante Monument and downsize its staff of 62 full time employees (Israelsen, 2003). Many of the residents in this area are cattle ranchers and without this land and those roads, they have no way to make a living.
The RS 2477 debate also stretches into other areas of Utah such as our numerous national forests. The Wilderness Act of 1964, the National Forest Management Act (NFMA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), along with several other laws provide the guidelines required to establish a wilderness area. The national forests have an additional component to the debate which is logging and fire access (Outdoorwire, 2003) A coalition of 14,000 Forest Service employees (nearly 50% of all FS employees) drafted a letter of concern against the road-less initiative that was championed by the Clinton administration. The Forest Service identified these “road-less” areas in the 1970’s as areas with little or no logging or mining potential. Many of these areas do contain roads that were in existence before the Forest Service was created to manage public lands (Outdoorewire, 2003). These roads have been used for generations to picnic, hunt, and fish, collect firewood, rock hounding, and just to enjoy the freedom of the outdoors. Some of these roads were built by the Forest Service for fire fighting and are marked with the Forest Service’s own little brown signs. To the people who don’t use them, these areas are road-less. Under the current proposal, over half of all current Forest Service land would be designated wilderness.
While SUWA advocates the designation of 200 million acres of wilderness area and USA-ALL advocates the existence of 5000 roads in areas currently surveyed as ‘wilderness’, the reality is that neither side is entirely right. Both sides to this debate exist so that a resolution somewhere in the middle will eventually be formed. It is silly to think that some of the old wagon tracks can be claimed as a road even though they have not been used for decades, and it is silly to attempt to close down roads that have been used by local land owners for decades because they don’t fit a standardized and formalized description of what a road should be. Not all RS 2477 road claims should be valid and not all of the land proposed as wilderness should be closed to use by the general public. The problem lies in the government’s inability to be consistent. One administration supports the wilderness designations (Clinton for example) and the next supports access rights (Bush). With the constant sway of power in the federal government it will be difficult to find a fair and equitable solution that provides both protection and access to these lands. Money should be funneled away from the courtrooms and diverted into paying for more employees to enforce the rules and ensure that the actions of a few do not ruin the land for generations.
- Location
- East Stabbington
here is a case brief I did a few years back for an argument class. I have a 7 page paper that goes with this too but the case brief should be an easier read. Case brief basically outline a particular stance.
Resolved: The Federal Government should abandon the Roadless Initiative (Clinton Land Legacy) and allow State and Local governments to govern their lands in a manner that allows equal access for all outdoor enthusiasts.
I. The Roadless Initiative, which would permanently designate 54 million acres of National Forest and BLM land as wilderness area, was developed behind closed doors in a deliberate attempt to exclude the public from the decision making process.
A. The public opinion is not adequately represented by the green organization
1. Agricultural Undersecretary Jim Lyons claims “tremendous popular support for the (roadless) proposal”.
a. The 700-page proposal only released for public comment for a 30 day period.
b. Only 30,000 (out of 270 million U.S. residents) made original comments on the proposal.
2. A coalition of 14000 (nearly 50%) Forest Service (FS) employees representing 92 FS unions wrote a letter of concern against the RI.
3. During open government hearings on the RI, green organizations sent paid members of their organization to fill the small rooms overwhelmingly with supporters.
4. 22% of FS lands are currently designated wilderness (42 million acres).
a. FS estimates that 98% of visitors either don’t or can’t access these areas.
b. RI would designate 50% of FS lands as wilderness.
c. Nearly half of the 76300 miles of FS roads would be closed.
1. FS roads are created with public money and are intended for public use.
2. It is 56 times more expensive to destroy a road than it is to maintain it.
i. 8850 miles of road per year could me maintained for the cost of destroying 150.
ii. The cost of the RI to the FS would be extremely immense.
B. Due to the source of the monetary support of the RI, the public opinion is inherently skewed.
1. The Sierra Club, Autobahn Society, and Wilderness Society all helped draft the lopsided 700-page initiative.
2. No representation was given to the Equal Access organizations in the development of the RI
C. The Federal Government should hold off on further designation of wilderness area until the public opinion can be determined.
1. Public forums should be held on the local level to allow the public a chance to voice concerns.
2. The RI should be made available to the public to read and comment upon.
3. An independent polling agency should be used to determine the public opinion in areas most affected by the potential land closures.
II. Environmental groups are used as fronts for private business agendas.
A. Most large-scale environmental groups own diverse stock portfolios that include shares in companies such as John Deer and Caterpillar.
1. With the political sway of the green organizations, an economically profitable situation can be gained for the companies they hold stock in.
2. The Surdna Foundation has holdings of over 335 million.
a. The foundation and it’s President own rights to 165000 acres of timber in Northern California.
b. The Surdna Foundation donated 1.2 million dollars to designate neighboring N. Californian forests as wilderness.
c. The result increase in timber prices netted the Surdna foundation 2.7 million dollars in extra timber revenue.
B. As stockholders backed by the huge lobbying power of the environmental industry, green organizations can direct the fait of their private interests.
1. Josh Reicert, head of the environmental group, Pew Charitable Trusts, stated ''For considerable sums of money, public opinion can be molded, constituents mobilized, issues researched, and public officials buttonholed, all in a symphonic arrangement”.
C. The Federal Government should not allow non-profit organizations to hold stock in publicly traded corporations.
1. By regulating this, the smaller, less privately funded groups such as the Blue Ribbon Coalition, would have an equal chance in voicing the opinions of their supporters.
2. This would also keep large companies such as General Motors from using environmental organizations as puppets to influence government proceedings.
III. Power and control over local lands should be given back to the state and county governments.
A. The Government should not try to apply a “one bill solves all” solution to the environment issue.
1. The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) states that “the decision making for local areas should be made with site-specific scientific information for that particular area”.
a. No concrete scientific evidence is offered in the RI.
b. Many land surveys declare wilderness areas wear towns, maintained roads, and recreation areas exist.
c. Survey responsibilities were taken up by Eco-extremist groups and were done haphazardly.
2. Public Opinion Strategies, Inc of Virginia polled over 400 Utah residents (margin of error = +/- 4.9%).
a. 91% believe roads and trails that have historically been open should remain open.
b. 90% believed that land control should be on the state or local level.
c. 86% claimed they use an OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) while on these lands.
i. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) previously claimed that “98% of public land users don’t drive OHV/ORV’s”.
ii. SUWA has repeatedly been caught making false statements about the nature of land use.
B. A one plan solves all solution is inherently incapable of addressing the specific problems that each land area faces.
C. Local control should be given back to the local governments where the local population can decide upon case specific solutions.
1. Local governments are more familiar with the history and issues surrounding their environment.
2. This would allow easier access to government proceedings by the population.
3. Solutions that are economical, fair, and solvent can be agreed upon.
well--you asked for it.
Resolved: The Federal Government should abandon the Roadless Initiative (Clinton Land Legacy) and allow State and Local governments to govern their lands in a manner that allows equal access for all outdoor enthusiasts.
I. The Roadless Initiative, which would permanently designate 54 million acres of National Forest and BLM land as wilderness area, was developed behind closed doors in a deliberate attempt to exclude the public from the decision making process.
A. The public opinion is not adequately represented by the green organization
1. Agricultural Undersecretary Jim Lyons claims “tremendous popular support for the (roadless) proposal”.
a. The 700-page proposal only released for public comment for a 30 day period.
b. Only 30,000 (out of 270 million U.S. residents) made original comments on the proposal.
2. A coalition of 14000 (nearly 50%) Forest Service (FS) employees representing 92 FS unions wrote a letter of concern against the RI.
3. During open government hearings on the RI, green organizations sent paid members of their organization to fill the small rooms overwhelmingly with supporters.
4. 22% of FS lands are currently designated wilderness (42 million acres).
a. FS estimates that 98% of visitors either don’t or can’t access these areas.
b. RI would designate 50% of FS lands as wilderness.
c. Nearly half of the 76300 miles of FS roads would be closed.
1. FS roads are created with public money and are intended for public use.
2. It is 56 times more expensive to destroy a road than it is to maintain it.
i. 8850 miles of road per year could me maintained for the cost of destroying 150.
ii. The cost of the RI to the FS would be extremely immense.
B. Due to the source of the monetary support of the RI, the public opinion is inherently skewed.
1. The Sierra Club, Autobahn Society, and Wilderness Society all helped draft the lopsided 700-page initiative.
2. No representation was given to the Equal Access organizations in the development of the RI
C. The Federal Government should hold off on further designation of wilderness area until the public opinion can be determined.
1. Public forums should be held on the local level to allow the public a chance to voice concerns.
2. The RI should be made available to the public to read and comment upon.
3. An independent polling agency should be used to determine the public opinion in areas most affected by the potential land closures.
II. Environmental groups are used as fronts for private business agendas.
A. Most large-scale environmental groups own diverse stock portfolios that include shares in companies such as John Deer and Caterpillar.
1. With the political sway of the green organizations, an economically profitable situation can be gained for the companies they hold stock in.
2. The Surdna Foundation has holdings of over 335 million.
a. The foundation and it’s President own rights to 165000 acres of timber in Northern California.
b. The Surdna Foundation donated 1.2 million dollars to designate neighboring N. Californian forests as wilderness.
c. The result increase in timber prices netted the Surdna foundation 2.7 million dollars in extra timber revenue.
B. As stockholders backed by the huge lobbying power of the environmental industry, green organizations can direct the fait of their private interests.
1. Josh Reicert, head of the environmental group, Pew Charitable Trusts, stated ''For considerable sums of money, public opinion can be molded, constituents mobilized, issues researched, and public officials buttonholed, all in a symphonic arrangement”.
C. The Federal Government should not allow non-profit organizations to hold stock in publicly traded corporations.
1. By regulating this, the smaller, less privately funded groups such as the Blue Ribbon Coalition, would have an equal chance in voicing the opinions of their supporters.
2. This would also keep large companies such as General Motors from using environmental organizations as puppets to influence government proceedings.
III. Power and control over local lands should be given back to the state and county governments.
A. The Government should not try to apply a “one bill solves all” solution to the environment issue.
1. The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) states that “the decision making for local areas should be made with site-specific scientific information for that particular area”.
a. No concrete scientific evidence is offered in the RI.
b. Many land surveys declare wilderness areas wear towns, maintained roads, and recreation areas exist.
c. Survey responsibilities were taken up by Eco-extremist groups and were done haphazardly.
2. Public Opinion Strategies, Inc of Virginia polled over 400 Utah residents (margin of error = +/- 4.9%).
a. 91% believe roads and trails that have historically been open should remain open.
b. 90% believed that land control should be on the state or local level.
c. 86% claimed they use an OHV (Off Highway Vehicle) while on these lands.
i. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) previously claimed that “98% of public land users don’t drive OHV/ORV’s”.
ii. SUWA has repeatedly been caught making false statements about the nature of land use.
B. A one plan solves all solution is inherently incapable of addressing the specific problems that each land area faces.
C. Local control should be given back to the local governments where the local population can decide upon case specific solutions.
1. Local governments are more familiar with the history and issues surrounding their environment.
2. This would allow easier access to government proceedings by the population.
3. Solutions that are economical, fair, and solvent can be agreed upon.
well--you asked for it.
britney
Queen of Chit!!
- Location
- Chit-Chat, Duh!!
Wow Cody. I bet that took you a day or two to write. Well done.
It's amazing to me how much the big money effects government decisions.
It's amazing to me how much the big money effects government decisions.
- Location
- East Stabbington
britney said:Wow Cody. I bet that took you a day or two to write. Well done.
It's amazing to me how much the big money effects government decisions.
I researched and wrote that 5 page paper in about 3.5 hours--Thats why a good portion of it it reads like an essay from an 8th grade resource class. When I read it, I envision baboons banging on keyboards for 3 hours
I don't rememember how long it took to do the case brief--but I spent more time on it because I was less familiar with the material. It looks better with formatting but the formatting is ommitted on the cut/paste.
thanks for positive feedback