REDWOOD NEEDLES
REDWOOD NEEDLESPresented by the Sierra Club Redwood Chapter Newsletter, The REDWOOD NEEDLES
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By the Parks and Trails Committee
At the junction of Napa and Lake Counties, between Highway 29 on the west and Morgan Valley Road on the east, lies a 17,000-acre wilderness known as the Knoxville public lands. This land is home to bear, mountain lion, bobcats and other wildlife, and a profusion of rare plants that grow on its unusual soils. The landscape is rocky and rugged, covered with chaparral and cypress forest, with streams and oak groves providing occasional oases. Miners came and went in the 19th century, and a few ranchers live in the area now, but today very few people visit these public lands.
The Knoxville lands are managed by the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM). For 25 years, the BLM's approach has been to encourage off-highway vehicle users (OHVs) by building trails and campsite facilities. But with very little policing, the area became known as a haven for lawless behavior. Motorcyclists and four-wheel drivers have cut gates and overturned barriers, and damaged streams, meadows and private property. Gun enthusiasts have brought automatic and semiautomatic weapons, and are often seen firing away a few feet from the main road. Shooting up appliances, propane tanks and cars, and leaving the wreckage littering the landscape, is a pastime that has flourished in Knoxville's wilderness.
The BLM's 1991 Knoxville management plan called for increased law enforcement, but also for building 30 miles of new OHV trails. The OHV emphasis arose from the fact that grants from the California OHV Commission (the so-called Green Sticker Fund) were the only ready source of funds for BLM to manage places like Knoxville. But neighboring ranchers were not happy with this "solution", believing it would worsen their trespass problems. They appealed to the Interior Department, and threatened to sue; Napa County, wary of an increased need for law enforcement, joined these protests.
In the past year, the state OHV Commission has been radically reformed, thanks to activist landowners such as Karen Schambach who&emdash;like the Knoxville ranchers&emdash;were angry at the impacts they suffered when the Forest Service or the BLM developed an OHV trail system next to their homes. Two environmentalists now serve on the Commission. No longer does the Commission simply exist to promote OHV trail systems; it is returning to its original mission, which is to manage the sport to contain the damage it causes.
Changes are in the air at Knoxville, thanks to these statewide changes. The BLM is proposing amendments to its Knoxville Management Plan that would increase law enforcement, restrict shooting to specific areas, and suspend the expansion of the OHV trail system. There would still be guns and motorcycles at Knoxville, but there would be rangers there four days a week to cut down on the excesses. The BLM plans to ask the OHV Commission for money to implement this amended plan.
Environmentalists are guardedly pleased with these changes, although some would like to see shooting and OHV use stopped altogether. The neighboring landowners remain distrustful, suspecting BLM of still desiring to turn Knoxville into a full-blown motorcycle park. They would like to see the area closed. The OHV users have been largely quiet; relatively few of them use the area they disdainfully call "Rocksville".
Since few people know about Knoxville, your awareness and concern can make a difference. To express your concerns about how the Knoxville public lands are managed, you can write:
Rich Burns
Ukiah Area Manager
US Bureau of Land Management
2550 North State Street
Ukiah, CA 95482
rburns@ca.blm.gov
I will be having an outing to this area in October. Look in the next Needles for info. This will be a conservation outing and will include a look at the UC McLaughlin Preserve. Professor of Environmental Science Susan Harrison has agreed to be the interpreter.
&emdash;Carol Vellutin, Redwood Chapter Outings Chair
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