|
|
|
|
rrrADAM
Oct 20, 2001, 1:15 AM
Post #1 of 2
(3200 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 19, 1999
Posts: 17553
|
The Access Fund: "Securing your Climbing Future"
http://www.accessfund.org/
Virtual Times #13
October 2001
Submissions/comments for the Virtual Times are welcome via email to mailto:info@accessfund.org
___________________________________________
IN THIS ISSUE:
1. Access Fund Work Helps Reduce Fee Demo Extension from Four Years to Two Years and Increase Appropriations for Land Agencies
2. Access Fund Grants Program
Grants awarded in fourth cycle - October 2001
3. Access Fund Appeals Climbing Closure at the Road 18 Caves Near Bend, Oregon
4. Adopt-a-Crag 2001
5. Access Fund "Crazy" for Crazy Creek Chairs Sale!
___________________________________________
1. Access Fund Work Helps Reduce Fee Demo Extension from Four Years to Two Years and Increase Appropriations for Land Agencies
___________________________________________
On October 10, the House and Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittees extended the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program ("Fee Demo") for two years instead of the four years initially proposed. This scaling back of Fee Demo is a victory resulting from concerted lobbying efforts by the Access Fund, the Outdoor Industry Association, American Whitewater, American Hiking Society, American Alpine Club, Outward Bound, and others.
Fee Demo imposes fees on certain recreational users of lands managed by the federal land management agencies. This is not an entrance fee but a use fee for simply walking, paddling, climbing, fishing or biking on public lands. The Fee Demo program was intended to supplement, not supplant, the general appropriations approved by Congress to support our public lands. Fee Demo, however, has been plagued with problems related to implementation, agency accountability, and equity. Furthermore, public support for the program has decreased considerably.
The Access Fund opposes the implementation of use fees to access wilderness areas and other backcountry sites where administrative support is neither required nor desired by recreationists. Therefore, there should be no "pay-to-play" where "playing" costs nothing. America's national parks, forests, wildlife refuge, recreation areas and open spaces are the heritage of every citizen and access to these lands must be preserved. Importantly, Congress should provide funding for the necessary protection and maintenance of our public lands through annual budget appropriations.
Congress initially authorized Fee Demo in 1996 for a three-year test period. Following this "test" Congress extended the program for successive one-year periods, and recently Congress proposed another larger four-year extension. However, after strenuous input by human-powered recreationists opposing the four-year extension, Congress agreed to two years. Congress specifically "provided this extension to allow the authorizing committees with jurisdiction to continue their assessment of this program and to provide for a permanent solution to this issue."
Furthermore, Congress strongly encouraged "the agencies implementing this program to focus on public service, work closely with local communities and the recreational industry, and to use the receipts to enhance visitor services and reduce the backlog in deferred maintenance." Significantly, the FY 2002 Interior Appropriations bill also increased general appropriations to the federal land management agencies as advocated by the Access Fund and others.
While the human-powered recreation community succeeded in limiting the extension of Fee Demo and increasing general appropriations, there is more work to be done. Jason Keith, AF Policy Analyst, attended the September 25, 2001 Oversight Hearing on Fee Demo held by the House Subcommittee on Forests & Forest Health, submitted testimony for that hearing. Also he lobbied Congress about restructuring the Fee Demo program to reflect the policy position of the Access Fund. There is reason to believe that some congressional members may be inclined to sponsor such a bill. The Access Fund has also been working on the use fee issue with lobbyists at the DC firm of Higgins, McGovern & Smith, LLC to keep backcountry and wilderness areas free of charge.
___________________________________________
2. Access Fund Grants Program
Grants awarded in fourth cycle - October 2001
___________________________________________
The Access Fund utilizes your membership dollars to fund projects that preserve or enhance climbing opportunities and conserve the climbing environment.
Access Fund grants approved for the fourth and final funding cycle in 2001 totaled $29,339 and were distributed to support five separate projects organized by local climbing organizations, public agencies, and land trusts. Overall, the Access Fund received 27 applications for project funding in 2001. Out of these requests, 20 projects received funding totaling $70,250. For information on how to apply for a grant in 2002 - see the Access Fund website http://www.accessfund.org.
a. Saddle Park Boulders Acquisition, CA.
$5,000 to the Truckee Donner Land Trust to preserve access to Saddle Boulders. The preservation of this bouldering area is part of a 2,500-acre expansion to Donner Memorial State Park. The project will more than double the size of the Park, protect Schallenberger Ridge (a stunning backdrop to Donner Lake) and ensure continued access to Saddle Boulders. The bouldering is on steep granite, has potential for scores of problems of varying difficulty and offers a welcome alternative to the popular nearby Donner Summit. Total budget for this project stands at $4,422,300.
b. Solar composting toilet for the Trapps climbing area of the Mohunk Preserve, NY. (The Gunks)
$10,000 to the Mohunk Preserve for installation of a solar composting toilet in the Trapps climbing area. This sum was matched with an additional $10,000 from an Access Fund Board of Directors member. The unit will be installed on Undercliff Carriage Road and is targeted for spring 2002. This popular area receives over 55,000 visits per year, with an average of 600-800 climbers per weekend day. Until now the Preserve has maintained portable toilets. Installation of a permanent solar-composting facility will eliminate the environmental impacts created by large trucks servicing the unit as well as damage caused by their weight to the Preserve's historic carriage roads. The total budget for this project is $31,710.
c. Salt Lake City Climbing Areas Access Brochure, UT
$3,389 to the newly formed group, Salt Lake Climbers Alliance for a 16 panel, color brochure, which will contain quality photographs and a map pinpointing locations for rock, ice and alpine climbing as well as bouldering. The brochure will provide information to climbers on climbing locations in the Salt Lake City Wasatch region as well as details on access requirements and Leave No Trace practices. The project has received tremendous support from the local community with well-known photographers, locally based manufacturers, climbing gyms and land managing agencies. The total project budget is $11,514. Climbers should look for the glossy brochure in February 2002.
d. BLM Bishop Bouldering Management Project, CA
$9,750 to the Bureau of Land Management Bishop field office to help towards bouldering management and resource protection on the Volcanic Tablelands. This area includes the popular bouldering areas the Happy and Sad Boulders and the newly established Pleasant Valley Campground. Funds will be directed towards a number of projects, which include campground maintenance, education, outreach and cultural resource surveys. The BLM are anticipating 14,000 climbing visitors to this fragile high desert area this season. Funds directed towards these projects will reduce vehicle and camping impacts on the Tablelands while supporting climbing access. The total project budget stands at $34,000.
e. Study on climber abilities to assess the difficulty of novel routes, MN.
$1,200 to Hamline University to survey climbers' abilities to estimate route difficulty. Photographs will be shown to climbers who will then determine the grade of the routes shown. Supplementary data on age, sex, and experience levels will also be gathered. The resulting data will help land managers and climbing advocacy groups more accurately determine the ecological impacts of climbers on cliff systems based on predictions of route choice. Researcher and climber, Dr Mike Farris, who has previously published in science journals on climbing and vegetation issues, will carry out the project. The total project budget is $4,000.
___________________________________________
3. Access Fund Appeals Climbing Closure at the Road 18 Caves Near Bend, Oregon
___________________________________________
On October 11, 2001, the Access Fund filed an administrative appeal of a US Forest Service (USFS) decision for the Road 18 Caves near Bend, Oregon to remove bolted routes, ban chalk use and prohibit any type of climbing in Hidden Forest Cave. The decision failed to provide any evidence that climbing should be treated differently than uses such as caving and hiking, which remain permitted. Some of these other activities make use of ladders, handrails, and other metal implements far greater in size, visibility, and damage to the natural resource than climbing bolts. The USFS Decision was based primarily on feedback from the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs, which "hold Hidden Forest Cave in high regard as a spiritual site."
The Access Fund supports the management of recreational uses of public lands to balance Native American religious and cultural concerns with recreational opportunities and the Constitutional rights of all visitors. The Access Fund works to educate climbers about Native American spiritual values and encourage them to respect these values by voluntarily not climbing during ceremonial periods and other significant times. However, we do not support mandatory restrictions on climbing based on Native American religious concerns unless there is compelling evidence that climbing violates these concerns.
The Road 18 Caves are a unique climbing resource, unlike any other climbing area in the United States. The climbing takes place only on the walls and ceilings of the mouths of several caves where natural light penetrates.
The Access Fund has been closely involved with the planning process for the Road 18 Caves Environmental Assessment. We offered funding to pay for scientific studies of climbing impacts, and for resource improvement/restoration projects. The Access Fund and local climbers previously supported the closure of one cave for the re-establishment of a bat colony. We also endorsed a variety of management responses that would protect cave resources while permitting some limited climbing in the Road 18 Caves. However, the Forest Service's eleventh-hour switch from a position favoring retention of some climbing opportunities to elimination of climbing was made without sufficient objective analysis of relative recreational impacts and is fundamentally unfair.
___________________________________________
4. Adopt-a-Crag 2001
2nd Annual Adopt-a-Crag Day declared a success!
___________________________________________
Climbers and volunteers across the United States celebrated the 2nd annual Adopt-a-Crag day at 67 areas in 25 states. Over 2,000 people united to build and restore 150 miles of trail and clear thousands of bags of trash from crags. Erosion control and trash removal remained the focus of most events this year as climbers worked side by side with land managers in this nationwide climbers stewardship event. Areas saw improvements in trail maintenance and construction, chalk clean-ups, regrading of switchbacks, building of retaining walls, clearing of drainages and water bar construction, re-rocking of parking areas, mulching and stabilization of belay areas, cliff top enhancment, anchor replacement and much more.
Most events listed the enhanced public relations with land managers and image of climber as their number one success. Adopt-a-Crag Day is aimed at educating the climbing community about the importance of stewardship and of teaching climbers the skills needed to maintain their local climbing areas. Major highlights included:
Hammond Pond, MA - over 90 volunteers between the ages of three and 65 participated in Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Massachusetts to improve trails, mitigate erosion and trash removal. Particpants learned about Leave No Trace and were encouraged to write action letters to Congress regarding Fee Demo.
Independence Pass, CO - climbers worked in conjunction with the Forest Service and the Independence Pass Foundation at the International Outdoor Festival in Aspen Colorado to plant 170 trees on a steep slope at 11,600' below the road (all 12 volunteers are now current members after the tree planting).
Palisades Park, AL - 41 very organized climbers joined together to clean up this park just outside of Birmingham, AL. These project involved and strengthened relationships with the park employees, board and park superintendent.
Adopt-a-Crag of the Year Award 2001 - Adirondack Adopt-a-Crag. This event was a collective effort, which utilized 61 people at two major crags in the Adirondack State Park. Josh Baker from Colgate University and Heather Hibbard, Access Fund Regional Coordinator, were the main organizers. The success of this event hinged on the overwhelming support by the volunteers and the Mountaineer, Adirondack Rock and River, Lake Placid EMS retailers. Many students from five area universities began driving at 5am in order to reach the event by 8:30am. Five crews worked on 1000+ feet of trail, built rock steps, installed cedar-log revetments and blocked off goat trails. A vertical path leading through a ravine that had become an erosion wash and hazard was staked out and built into a new switch back path. This event is a shining example of the purpose of Adopt-a-Crag day: to bring all aspects of the climbing community together in an event that provides grassroots support and activism at local climbing areas.
___________________________________________
5. Access Fund "Crazy" for Crazy Creek Chairs Sale!
___________________________________________
**Members ONLY!** Access Fund Crazy Creek chairs are now on
sale for a low $30. Please specify navy, green or purple. Contact 303-545-6772 (x106) to order while supplies last! For other Access Fund merchandise, please click http://www.accessfund.org/merchandise/merchandise_afgear.html
___________________________________________
Virtual Times Policies:
1. The Access Fund office in Boulder is the only source of outgoing messages to the lists.
2. The AF will not sell or give away email addresses,
and there will be no outside advertising in the V-Times.
3. V-Times will focus on important news pertaining to
the Access Fund and climbing community.
4. V-Times is an announcement-only e-mail list; therefore, you cannot reply to any of the list members.
5. All e-mail addresses will remain confidential with every mail sent.
[ This Message was edited by: rrradam on 2001-10-19 18:22 ]
|
|
|
|
|
rrrADAM
Oct 21, 2001, 1:08 AM
Post #2 of 2
(3200 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 19, 1999
Posts: 17553
|
BTT
|
|
|
|
|
|
