SITLA Teams-up with Proactive Stakeholders to Implement OHV Pilot Program on La Sal Mountains

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For Information Contact:

Kim Christy              801-538-5187

Bryan Torgerson     435-259-7417

SITLA Teams-up with Proactive Stakeholders to Implement OHV Pilot Program on La Sal Mountains 

The State of Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) launched an OHV pilot program in the La Sal Mountains in the fall of 2010 with a simple bottom line: off-highway vehicle users can protect their privileges by using designated trails.

The primary goal of the Pilot Project was to work with stakeholders to develop and implement a Motor Vehicle Travel Management Plan (MVTMP) that addressed access and SITLA’s responsibly manage the properties for its beneficiaries through a designated trial system.

The MVTMP implementation included the placement of over 150 directional signs and trail markers and the reclamation and re-seeding of miles of old logging roads, redundant routes and spur trails. Collaboration with diverse stakeholders helped shape the project but it didn’t end there. SITLA has been working with those same stakeholders to implement the plan during this past year and a lot of work was done this spring and summer.

“SITLA has worked closely with key OHV groups, such as San Juan Public Entry & Access Rights (SPEAR) and Ride with Respect to sign all of the dedicated routes. We also worked to rehabilitate and re-seed many acres of land. We are proud of the trail map that has been created and also very appreciative of the help that we received from San Juan and Grand Counties and the Division of State Parks and Recreation. Full color fold-up maps are available to the public at information kiosks that are strategically located at entrance points to the trust land blocks,” said SITLA’s Assistant Director Kim Christy.

SPEAR Representative Bob Turri said, “It was a real opportunity to work throughout the entire process with an agency such as SITLA and to help implement the plan. We really appreciate the kind of input that we had. We are really proud of the trail system up there and we are glad to be able to demonstrate what our organization can do to balance OHV use and protection of the land. It’s nice to be able to show how much we care about the unique resource in the La Sal Mountains.”     

On August 17^th, 2011, there was a volunteer work project to install a new bridge on one of the ATV loops. The work project was held at a spot on one of the ATV loops between Sheepherders’ Haven and the Dark Canyon Road. The project was a collaborative effort between SITLA, SPEAR and the many stakeholders. The bridge was named the new SPEAR Bridge because many of the materials for the bridge were donated by SPEAR and then assembled by SITLA’s Resource Specialist Adam Robison.

Clif Koontz, Program Director with Ride with Respect said, “This beautiful bridge symbolizes the strength of teamwork, planning, and trail design to conserve both recreational opportunities and natural resources. We appreciate SITLA's follow-through to make this vision a reality on the ground and, in this case, above the ground.”

SITLA is an independent state agency that manages 3.4 million acres of Utah trust lands for the benefit of Utah’s schools and other public institutions. Money generated from the school trust lands is deposited in the state Permanent School Fund, a perpetual endowment that annually distributes income to each K-12 school in Utah.

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