BACK COUNTRY HORSEMEN OF AMERICA
STATEMENT ON THE PRESIDENT'S ROADLESS INITIATIVE (Adopted 4/30/2000)
The primary purpose of the Back Country Horsemen of America is to perpetuate the common sense use and enjoyment of horses in America's backcountry and wilderness, and to work to ensure that public lands remain open to recreational stock use.
The effectiveness and credibility of our organization depends on preserving and acting within the parameters of this narrow purpose, and speaking with a coordinated and unified voice from all levels of the organization.
BCHA suggests that long term classification of roadless areas be addressed through local land management plans.
The draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Roadless Initiative has not yet been released to the public.
- BCHA will review the document, when it is released, and provide observations and guidance to states and chapters or units within 30 days of receipt of the draft (the comment period will be 60 to 90 days allowing time for local units to respond).
- BCHA will provide this information to each state's National Directors who will, in turn, assure that adequate communication channels exist to process comments and information between the state and the national level in a timely manner.
- Official comments from BCHA will be confined to those issues that directly impact our mission and purpose as stated above, and will not take a position on the general nature and classification (roadless, backcountry, wilderness, etc.) of these lands that do not affect our future use and enjoyment as recreational stock users.
In taking this position, we understand that the roadless issue may have serious vocational, avocational and philosophical impacts on individual members, their families, and their friends. We do not make light of these lifestyle altering impacts. We simply believe that our - BCH of America's - greatest impact will come from taking a very specific and coordinated approach of addressing only those issues that affect our future use and enjoyment of the backcountry. We do not envision that our official position would deprive individual members of their rights as American citizens to comment in a different manner.
Back to Reports
