Column: Closing Upper Verde River Wildlife Area an opportunity for four-wheeling enthusiasts

Allan Bacon

As a young man growing up in the Verde Valley my buddies and I took full advantage of the public lands and the countless dirt roads that lay within. We always made time to travel to our favorite mud-holes and "romp" in 4WD for hours, returning our trucks to the pavement proudly displaying a fresh earth-tone paint job.

As recently announced by the Arizona Game and Fish Department, the Upper Verde River Wildlife Area will be closed to motorized access within the month due in large part to illegal off-road vehicle usage. At a younger age this announcement would have outraged me, especially if one of my favorite mud-holes was within the wildlife area. However, my formal education in Forestry from Northern Arizona University and current pursuit of a graduate degree in Ecology from Duke University as a PhD student has opened my eyes not only to the long-term ecological effects that result from four-wheeling, but also other opportunities for four-wheeling provided by our National Forests that are both legal and ecologically responsible.

Today, I'd like to share some of what I've learned with other 4-wheeling enthusiasts.

It's a fact, 4-wheeling does have negative ecological impacts. Spreading invasive species, killing native vegetation, and potentially damaging cultural artifacts are all notable consequences. Most obvious, and in my opinion most important, are the impacts on soil erosion.

Roughly 50 percent of the volume of a natural undisturbed soil is pore space. This allows water to infiltrate and drain down through the soil. Vehicle travel compacts the mineral soil, commonly reducing the porosity by more than half after only the first pass. During rain events, the compacted soil (with considerably less porosity) cannot drain and therefore concentrates surface water flow, resulting in erosion. On an annual basis hundreds of pounds of soil can erode away from less than 100 feet of vehicle tracks. The eroded soil nearly always ends up as sediments in streams or watersheds, which degrades water quality and can destroy both fish and wildlife habitat for decades.

Further, the most surficial soil layers will be eroded away early in the process of erosion. Loss of such nutrient rich material severely reduces the ability of the soil to support the regrowth of vegetation. This is clear when you return to your favorite mud-hole and see bare mineral soil exposed in tire tracks that you made in years past. In fact, in dry climates it can take literally thousands of years for compacted and eroded soils to recover and return to their natural, vegetative supporting, conditions.

Although the negative impacts of 4-wheeling, such as erosion, are extreme and long lasting, I understand that it's not reasonable to ask individuals that enjoy such recreation to completely cease on public land. First, public land should provide the opportunity for all to recreate regardless of their specific activity. And second, I know from previous experience, 4-wheeling is simply too much fun. Therefore, I'd like to briefly point out legal and more ecologically responsible opportunities for 4-wheel enthusiasts.

For a number of years, National Forests around the country have worked hard to construct Travel Management Plans (TMPs). As part of these plans National Forest managers have designated specific areas and roads where 4-wheeling is allowed, thereby localizing negative impacts for appropriate management. TMPs are available to the public for free, and while it may seem like your recreational opportunities are being limited, a look at either the Prescott or the Coconino National Forest's TMPs reveal that legal and ecologically responsible 4-wheeling opportunities abound in the Verde Valley region.

I urge all 4-wheeling enthusiasts not to view the closure of the Upper Verde River Wildlife Area as a road block. Rather, look at it as an opportunity to utilize TMPs and the National Forests in your back yard. Doing so will provide you with ample opportunities to recreate while protecting you from legal recourse and localizing the negative ecological impacts of four-wheeling such as soil erosion. Who knows, maybe next time you parade your fresh earth-toned paint job around town you'll have just as much pride in the way that you got it as you do in the paint job itself.

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Source: http://campverdebugleonline.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=73&ArticleID=26161

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