the dharma blog

First, clarification: I’d love to see snowmobiles, ATVs and powerboats confined to very small outdoor areas. Most Democrats, and espcially DFL elected officials, would rather seek compromise. That’s an important difference. As someone who is not elected, I’m quite happy being an extremist. I understand that politicians seek compromise in the name of the public good. Or at least, they’re supposed to.

Second, now I’m really pissed: I print here an email from Kevin Biegler, president of the Twin Cities chapter of Trout Unlimited

The North Shore Trail is about to be opened to ATV use!!!In a bill that is attempting to pose as tightening and redifining youth regulations for ATV riding and also posing to increase education programs for riders and violators has another purpose.

SF 1442 authored by Senators Bakk, Nienow, Saxhaug, Stumpf and Olson was introduced last nite. Introduced as a bill intended to increase education and more responsible use this bill has one very interesting pragraph.

Buried on page 15 in Section 16, subd 13 (b) the whole southwestern segment of the North Shore Trail will be opened to motorized traffic.

(1) if this bill is about education and responsible use then why add a provision to open up hundreds of thousands of acres to riding?

(2) this trail crosses 55 trout streams, the major rivers like the French, Knife, Lester and Beaver are already listed as turbidity impaired by the DNR

(3) It is currently illegal to ride in streams and wetlands ATV riders are already causing damage and ignoring bridges in an area where motorized vehicles are not allowed. Does anyone really think that these incidents will decrease once the trail is opened???

(4) many areas, literally millions of acres are currently opened to big game hunters to use ATVs in recovery of their game, the legilsations being debated are in regards to full and open year round driving and increasing enforcement. The ATV-lobby is squarely against more severe enforcement and in full favor of opening more land. Yet when testifying yesterday claimed that damage is minimal and isolated and a few bad eggs, they say they favor enforcement but are vehemently opposed to putting a front license plate on an ATV so that it would be
easier to indentify violators.

Your Senator Needs to Hear from YOU NOW!

Call your fishing friends and let them know that any progress in ATV use is about to be rolled back 5 years. North Shore area TU’ers I need to hear from you and you absolutely need to be writing your Senators.

Once again the arena of the debate is being characterized as you Mean People from the Twin Cities are picking on us good ole pioneer stock in northern/outstate Minnesota.

I am in fact paraphrasing one county commisioner brought in by Senator Stumpf to testify.

…

Virtually every ATV club’s web page has pictured their members ‘mudding’ in wetlands and driving in streams currently I have over 24 pages of photos (over 120) submitted to me by TU members depicting deliberate damage on the part of ATV’s, one photo shows the riders not only in a stream but actually driving along the course of the stream (not crossing)!

Our hard work is being deliberately placed at jeapordy by members of the MN Senate committee on Environment and Natural Resources!

Kevin Biegler

And when I wrote above that “I understand that politicians seek compromise in the name of the public good. Or at least, they’re supposed to,” I should have said that in this state, the DFL constantly seeks reasonable compromise, while the Republicans pull this kind of shit again and again. And again.