Current and ex-BLM officials say off-roaders regularly damage sensitive areas despite signs such as this one at Ironwood Forest National Monument.

dean knuth / arizona daily star

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Calling off-road vehicles the top threat to public lands, a group of former government workers is pushing for tougher penalties for those who trample natural resources.

The newly-formed Rangers for Responsible Recreation comes armed with data from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management showing rampant abuse from off-road vehicles in Arizona and four other Western states.

"Off-road vehicles are causing major damage to watersheds and streambeds, and to plant life and wildlife," said former BLM director Jim Baca. He is part of the group seeking heftier fines, confiscation of off-road vehicles, and suspension of hunting and fishing licenses.

While acknowledging the problem, some off-road vehicle enthusiasts stressed that many of them promote safe riding to preserve access to trails.

"Usually, it's a small group spoiling it for everybody," said Brian Blangsted, who has been riding dirt bikes in the open desert of Southern Arizona for about three decades.

BLM statistics show that off-road vehicles are a serious law enforcement concern. The federal agency released the data recently to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which organized the current effort to shed light on off-road vehicle problems.

BLM numbers from 2004 to the first half of 2007 for Arizona, Nevada, California, New Mexico and Utah show more than 6,600 violations involving off-road vehicles in hit-and-run and reckless driving incidents. More than 2,300 violations stem from illegal use of closed trails and other areas that are off-limits to the public.

With slightly more than 600 violations, Arizona ranks fourth behind California, Utah and Nevada.

Ecologist Daniel Patterson, Southwest director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, deemed the data conservative.

The numbers reflect "a much higher problem" not just in BLM areas but also on other public lands, he noted.

Off-road vehicle enthusiasts routinely plow through restricted areas, ignoring trail markers and, in some cases, sparking wildfires in the drought-stricken West. They also challenge limited enforcement resources, Patterson said.

"We need harsher penalties that will deter reckless off-roading," including jail time for repeat offenders, Patterson said. His group's executive director, Jeff Ruch, said existing penalties — which can vary on federal, state and local lands —are not enough to deter violations.

For instance, using an off-road vehicle on federal lands closed to the public can bring in fines anywhere from $100 to $400, Ruch said, adding that transparency also is needed on the cost that off-road vehicles impose on taxpayers.

Off-road vehicles are known to cause disruption in the Ironwood Forest National Monument northwest of Tucson, and in the Redington Pass area northeast of the city.

"The BLM offices have big off-road issues," said Grady Cook, field staff ranger for the BLM office in Tucson. BLM is responsible for Ironwood; the Forest Service manages Redington Pass.

Blangsted, the owner of Tucson Moto Tours, dislikes being lumped with all other off-road vehicle owners.

"They need to split them up and put them in categories, to see which off-road vehicles are doing the damage," he said.

Dirt bikes, ATVs and four-wheel-drive trucks are among those classified as off-road vehicles.

Blangsted said the riders he guides through the vast desert lands stay on designated trails and have full gear and necessary riding permits.

"I always talk to them about the importance of protecting the environment so we can keep access to it," he said.

John Cartwright, who said he's been riding in Arizona since the early 1990s, said hearing of the problems with off-road vehicles is not surprising.

"There's a lot of bad apples out there," said Cartwright, who owns Iron Horse Motorcycles in Tucson.

He said he always stays on trails. "We don't try to get our quads into washes."

But plenty of others do, said Ron Kearns, who spent about 25 years with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He is one of the roughly dozen Rangers for Responsible Recreation who also enjoys riding his all-terrain vehicle near his home next to the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge south of Quartzite.

As a ranger, Kearns said he witnessed the use of off-road vehicles rise through the years, which has meant more scarring of pristine land.

"Those tires do a lot of damage," Kearns noted. He sticks to designated trails.

Living so close to the refuge, Kearns said he often spots off-road enthusiasts of all ages riding their ATVs without regard to safety or the preservation of the landscape around them.

"I see it every day," he said

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