Dunes pollution discussed

Written by San Luis Obispo Tribune

Saturday, March 06, 2010

SAN LUIS OBISPO -- Anyone expecting a fracas between off-roaders and Oceano Dunes purists at the meeting last week about how the Dunes pollute the Nipomo Mesa left disappointed.

What the 100 or so people at the South County Regional Center witnessed instead was a highly technical explanation of a study supporting the thesis, laced with phrases like "micrograms per cubic meter" and "aerosol episodes."

Those who love to drive their quads and other off-road vehicles at the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area are deeply afraid that this study will be used to justify their removal from the Dunes because of health reasons.

During the question-and-answer period, a few audience members asked about the health effects, but a number of questioners seemed to challenge the report itself.

Off-roaders may have been laying the groundwork for the March 24 meeting of the Air Pollution Control Board, at which researchers will present their data, then veer from the scientific to the political.

Source: http://www.fresnobee.com/2010/03/06/1849415/dunes-pollution-discussed.html

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“As a rancher who leases public lands for cattle, I’ve seen my share of cut fences and rangeland damaged by ORV use. I’ve also experienced ORV trespass onto my private lands. But I’ve had no way to identify the culprits when reporting trespass or illegal ORV use to local law enforcement. Congress should require that ORVs used on public lands have visible identification plates or decals. Doing so would remove the anonymity enjoyed by ORV riders who are bent on breaking the rules.”

- Ambers Thornburgh, second-generation rancher from Oregon who grazes cattle on his private land and adjacent lands leased from the Bureau of Land Management