Smithsonian Magazine: The Case for Destroying Old Forest Roads

[ShuttlePilot]

No.


The message y

[vandiesel]

My experience has been here in Oregon that many roads get closed because of poor financial management. Due to the lack of planning and budget management repairs simply can't be done and it's easier to close things down. After speaking with multiple agency officials they are exasperated and frustrated. They tell me they are forced to close things (camping areas, roads, bridges) because money needed to fix was wasted and planning was so poor they are stuck. They go on to say its posted closed due some higher thinking plan but in actuality it's just poor management. This burns me.

[arctictraveller]

In Canada, roads are “deactivated”, not closed. This means they remain open but unmaintained until they become impassable due to landslides, washouts etc. at that point they return to nature on their own, the only cost to the government is a “DEACTIVATED” sign.

[vandiesel]

I love that idea. I can travel a long way in deactivated mode

[deserteagle56]

Originally Posted by vandiesel

My experience has been here in Oregon that many roads get closed because of poor financial management. Due to the lack of planning and budget management repairs simply can't be done and it's easier to close things down. After speaking with multiple agency officials they are exasperated and frustrated. They tell me they are forced to close things (camping areas, roads, bridges) because money needed to fix was wasted and planning was so poor they are stuck. They go on to say its posted closed due some higher thinking plan but in actuality it's just poor management. This burns me.

My experience here in northern Nevada is that road neglect is intentional. When I moved here 50 years ago every back road would have a grader or other piece of road equipment pass across it at least once a year to fix up any washouts. That no longer happens. Only main roads get maintained - and even those may not get graded but every 2-3 years. The more primitive roads are not touched and when they become impassable they are closed. Of course, that DOES save money!

[arctictraveller]

Originally Posted by deserteagle56

My experience here in northern Nevada is that road neglect is intentional. When I moved here 50 years ago every back road would have a grader or other piece of road equipment pass across it at least once a year to fix up any washouts. That no longer happens.!

I’m sure there will never be enough money to maintain the thousands of miles of unpaved roads, but that’s no excuse for closing them. Letting them naturally deteriorate will quickly enough reduce the traffic volume. Additionally, I prefer unmaintained roads for their lack of tourists.

[lchukar]

Thank you so much for that thoughtful response, Marcel. Unfortunately we live in a time of “alternative” facts, anti-science views, and political polarization. But the science has long been clear on how damaging roads can be to the natural world.
Look folks, we all love our 4x4 vans, and we love backroads to drive them on. No one is going to take them all away. And if a favorite spot of yours gets closed off, well trust me, I feel your pain. It has happened to me. But we all might have to give up a little in order to gain a lot.

[MaineWildlands]

Oh, wow, one of our captured institutions arguing to reduce our freedoms, such surprise! When the Smithsonian manages to find and display the giant human bones it has hidden in its archives that is has seized or received from archaelogists, maybe I'll care what they say. But the Smithsonian is one of the greatest obscurers of our real history, and has been curating a false narrative for a century. I wouldn't waste my time reading their claptrap.

[arctictraveller]

[QUOTE=lchukar;329412]Thank you so much for that thoughtful response, Marcel. Unfortunately we live in a time of “alternative” facts, anti-science views, and political polarization.”

I completely agree with you on that point.

“But the science has long been clear on how damaging roads can be to the natural world.”

Unfortunately, there are few things we humans do that don’t have some impact on the natural world. I think a large reason for this is because there are so darn many of us. Some of us like to recreate in remote places to escape this crush of humanity, and if we “tread lightly” the total effect can be minimal compared to the big picture of things like pollution from the burning of fossil fuels, manufacturing, agriculture etc. Closing that access to OUR PUBLIC LAND” to virtually everyone but hikers would certainly reduce a very, very small amount of that impact, but shows excessive favoritism to a disproportionate, very small percentage of all responsible back country users.

“Look folks, we all love our 4x4 vans, and we love backroads to drive them on. No one is going to take them all away.”

Unless we as a user group pay close attention, the continued loss of access to OUR PUBLIC LAND could well result in millions and millions of acres of additional closures. Another unfortunate result of these closures is that it increases the pressure on the remaining access. Wholesale land closure is not the answer….

[deserteagle56]

Originally Posted by lchukar

Look folks, we all love our 4x4 vans, and we love backroads to drive them on. No one is going to take them all away. And if a favorite spot of yours gets closed off, well trust me, I feel your pain. It has happened to me. But we all might have to give up a little in order to gain a lot.

The part I just can't understand is what I will "gain a lot" if my favorite areas are closed to vehicular traffic. WHAT have I gained?

And it has been my experience that "giving up a little" is never enough. Soon those same entities are asking us to give up some more.