Oakview2
Silver Member
THE ROAD IS CLOSED
With the stroke of a pen, Susan Skalski, Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor closed hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands under the name of “public safety”. The roads she closed were not a part of the rim fire; they are not part of the clean-up efforts and are not being used by USFS for any fire activity. Some of the roads are well over 10 miles from where the fire burned....
The impact of generically closing roads is felt by many. Gold clubs, off road enthusiasts, claim owners and small miners who mine for a living, hunters who just purchased tags to hunt in these areas, hikers, fishermen and women, those who love the forest are all locked out of their own lands. Public lands are owned by the public, are for the public and those stewards of the forests are public employees. Coulterville, Greeley Hill, Groveland and many small communities rely on the income they receive from these outdoor enthusiasts to support their own families. Just the dredge moratorium has devastated many of the local business, now the closure of roads hits them hard after over a month of limited tourism from the Rim fire closures during the fire.
Many, including AMRA (American Mining Rights Association) own claims out in Bull Creek and Halls Gulch. These are accessed by Bryceburg road, 15 miles from where the fire was and the claims cannot off limits with this road closure. Calls to Ms. Skalski are not returned and her assistant spoke of 12 calls in opposition to the road closures eve though hundreds of our members, hunters, off roaders and gold club members have called to voice their opposition to the blanket closing of public lands. Ms. Skalski comes from the EPA and prior to that, she was an environmental activist for dating back to the 1980’s. We understand the need to clean up a fire and the need to keep certain roads clear in the name of public safety is certainly understandable. What is not understood is why entire sections of public lands were closed which had no connection to the Rim Fire, nor any connection to the cleanup of the Rim Fire. According to the order Ms. Skalski signed, the penalty for driving one on of these public roads is a $5,000 fine for an individual, $10,000 for a business and jail time of up to 6 months. These are questions Ms. Skalski is not answering.
Susan Skalski can be reached at: (209) 532-3671 if you would like to voice your opinion on these blanket road closures.
American Mining Rights Association
With the stroke of a pen, Susan Skalski, Stanislaus National Forest Supervisor closed hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands under the name of “public safety”. The roads she closed were not a part of the rim fire; they are not part of the clean-up efforts and are not being used by USFS for any fire activity. Some of the roads are well over 10 miles from where the fire burned....
The impact of generically closing roads is felt by many. Gold clubs, off road enthusiasts, claim owners and small miners who mine for a living, hunters who just purchased tags to hunt in these areas, hikers, fishermen and women, those who love the forest are all locked out of their own lands. Public lands are owned by the public, are for the public and those stewards of the forests are public employees. Coulterville, Greeley Hill, Groveland and many small communities rely on the income they receive from these outdoor enthusiasts to support their own families. Just the dredge moratorium has devastated many of the local business, now the closure of roads hits them hard after over a month of limited tourism from the Rim fire closures during the fire.
Many, including AMRA (American Mining Rights Association) own claims out in Bull Creek and Halls Gulch. These are accessed by Bryceburg road, 15 miles from where the fire was and the claims cannot off limits with this road closure. Calls to Ms. Skalski are not returned and her assistant spoke of 12 calls in opposition to the road closures eve though hundreds of our members, hunters, off roaders and gold club members have called to voice their opposition to the blanket closing of public lands. Ms. Skalski comes from the EPA and prior to that, she was an environmental activist for dating back to the 1980’s. We understand the need to clean up a fire and the need to keep certain roads clear in the name of public safety is certainly understandable. What is not understood is why entire sections of public lands were closed which had no connection to the Rim Fire, nor any connection to the cleanup of the Rim Fire. According to the order Ms. Skalski signed, the penalty for driving one on of these public roads is a $5,000 fine for an individual, $10,000 for a business and jail time of up to 6 months. These are questions Ms. Skalski is not answering.
Susan Skalski can be reached at: (209) 532-3671 if you would like to voice your opinion on these blanket road closures.
American Mining Rights Association
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