PRESENTATION ON SAND MOUNTAIN RECREATION AREA;

**FIELD PRESENTATIONS BY FRIENDS OF SAND MOUNTAIN, THE NATURE
CONSERVANCY, AND THE FALLON PAIUTE-SHOSHONE TRIBE;**

**REVIEW OF SAND MOUTAIN ISSUES & FUTURE PLANNING**

**A Segment of the Sierra Front -- Northwestern Great Basin Resource
Advisory Council Meeting**

**Fallon Convention Center**

**April 30, 2003**

Presentation on Sand Mountain Recreation Area; Field Studies of
Sensitive Species, Fee Demonstration Project & Future Resource
Management Plan Revision

This is a response by BLM to an inquiry for more information on the Fee
Demo Project at Sand Mountain.

Dean Kinerson, Carson City Field Office plant ecologist, presented a
slide program on the Sand Mountain inventory of January 2003.

Dean showed a map of the area showing the deep drainage on the west
side, the dunes and Stillwater Mountains on the north side, and an
aerial photograph of the drainage area. OHV use is designated limited on
the south side and open on the north side.

There are a number of sensitive species in the area. This inventory
focused on the Sand Mountain blue butterfly. There are also four plants
and a number of bee species on the sensitive species list. The global
rating of many of the species in the area is still unknown. The blue
butterfly, scarab beetle, click beetle and two species of bee are
endemic to Sand Mountain.

Several slides showed the butterfly in various stages of development.
Also shown was a photo of the larvae being tended by an ant. The ant is
able to extract a benefiting excretion from the larvae. There is more
than one species of ant associated with the butterfly.

The Kearney buckwheat at Sand Mountain might be a variation of the main
species. It is the only plant that the butterfly will lay its eggs on.

The sand dune is a combination of active and stable. The plant can adapt
as it is buried by the sand but is more adaptable to burial than
excavation. It interacts with other plants in the area. The shrub area
in 2002 was about 1,000 acres.

There is use at Sand Mountain and impacts from that use. Slides of use
in 1977, 1987 show decrease in vegetation through impact of use. A slide
from 1995 showed a closure sign and the impact to the vegetation from
ignoring of the sign.

Jon Crowley, Friends of Sand Mountain, commented that the signage might
have been put up after the impacts occurred.

Dean showed slides of jump impacts on shrubs and sand over time.

There are clay areas that are impervious to water, keeping water closer
to the dune surface. Loss of the impermeable water causes moisture to go
lower making it harder for the plants to reach it.

Widely dispersed plants on tops of swales are more exposed to wind.
Swales have more protection from wind and vehicle traffic. The
difference between ridges and swales will be studied through the
monitoring effort.

High density of trails through vegetation has been observed in areas
where vehicles travel from the drainage up the dune, make a tight turn
at the top and go back down.

Dean showed a graph of the estimated yearly visitors. Use in the 1980s
has doubled to present.

Impacts have increased. There have been over 41,000 visitors through mid
fiscal year 2003.

There was a lot of the discussion in the 1990's of the areas where there
was a lot of impact. Vehicles are leaving roads established in the '90s
and driving through the vegetation.

There is encroachment of roads in habitat that is in the best condition,
which in Dean's opinion shows continual degradation of habitat.

A slide showing a digitized network of roads in the area that had been
un-impacted shows the density of the roads.

The plants have some tolerance for disturbance but not repeated
disturbance. The concern is that with repeated impacts and loss of
vegetation more butterflies are being lost.

A slide showed a comparison of impacts to vegetation in the five years
1996 -- 2001. Survey data has been collected with some preliminary study
of the data.. Data suggests seedling plants do not grow close to the
parent plant. Even to ride in and among the plants interferes with the
natural regeneration. Impacts to the shrubs themselves have to be
avoided as well as impacts to the areas in and among them.

A survey was done throughout the entire area.

78 percent of the plants surveyed are large mature shrubs

16.5 percent are intermediate plants

5.1 percent are young plants

More study will have to be done to discover true impacts.

Dean went to the Imperial Sand Dunes in southern California to look at
impacts. In protected areas there were more shrubs and in unprotected
areas less. There were a few isolated surviving shrubs in unprotected
areas.

Slides of the north area show higher density of vegetation along the
swales to the west. Higher use seems to increase impacts.

BOUNDARIES OF THE REC AREA ARE NOT MARKED according to an answer from
Carson City Field Manager John Singlaub to a question from Karen Boeger
at the beginning of the presentation.

Slides showing digitized roads show changes in road densities over time.
There was limited designation in the 1995 plan. These slides show how
fast impacts to the vegetation can occur.

They show that there was not as people assumed in the 1990s little
activity in the north area and thus little impacts. Every area of the
shrub areas has been impacted to some extent by 2002.

On the entire planet the Sand Mountain butterfly exists only in the Sand
Mountain area. This is its only habitat.

# Presentation on Fee Demo 

Christine Miller, Carson City Field Office Rec Planner gave a
presentation on the fee demo program.

In 1996 Congress implemented the Fee Demo Act. In Fall 2001 the first
publication went out to the newspapers on fee demo for Sand Mountain.
Flyers were handed out to everyone who came in. Vehicles in the area
were counted over Memorial Day Weekend. In August 2002 BLM published
proposed fee rules, open for 30 days of comments. Most of the comments
were to increase law enforcement, grade the roads better and put in more
bathrooms.

In November 2002 the BLM Carson City Field Office submitted to the
Bureau rules and regs for the fee demo project at Sand Mountain. They
were approved in February 2003. On March 13 the fee program began.

Chris talks to people coming to the area on the weekends. It was decided
it is cheaper to have a one-to-seven day pass, or an annual pass.
Sixteen thousand vehicles were polled. Approximately 85 percent of
visitors are from California. Before Easter weekend BLM had sold 387
annual passes and 220 weekly passes. On Easter weekend the numbers sold
doubled to 630 annual passes and 1,072 weekly passes. Forty-nine
thousand dollars was collected by Easter weekend.

Spring and fall are the busy times.

Three law enforcement officers were added on Easter weekend, as well as
additional trash collection receptacles. Money is already being used for
some of the maintenance and the law enforcement. Volunteers from the
Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe and Friends of Sand Mountain have been
working at the site on the weekends.

John Singlaub told the group that the Churchill County Commission
estimates that Sand Mountain is the largest single tourist attraction in
the county.

Larie Trippet reminded the RAC that Dean's presentation focused on
proliferation in roads. It is designated an open area and managed as a
recreation area so the number of roads is legal and appropriate.

John Singlaub added that the exception is the south area.

Jim Eidel commented that at one inch to 40,000 resolution on the
digitized map you will only see the roads. At that resolution you are
not able to see a lot of the detail that Dean was showing in his
on-the-ground photographs.

John Singlaub told the group that BLM wants to both avoid the listing of
the butterfly and maintain the recreation area.

# Comments from the Public 

Tom Baker, US Forest Service asked do you get to keep the majority of
those funds in the area? What are the future plans for the money?

John Singlaub - whatever we see the needs to be. Law enforcement is a
large need according to the people out there.

Jon Crowley, Friends of Sand Mountain -- I want to make sure that
everyone here understands that the Sand Mountain butterfly is only known
to exist at Sand Mountain.

Joshua Macenroth, Off Road Business Association -- Dean said there is
some more research you want to do. What was the main power to do the
research you have already done?

Dean -- we are proposing putting together a pilot study in the west and
north areas, look at natural features that affect the buckwheat and also
impacts.

Joshua -- what goes into the pilot study?

Dean -- it is designed to look at a number of things and see what we
need to sample to learn a number of things. It will take a minimum of
three years. We will learn what we have to do which will take another
three years minimum. We have looked in other buckwheat areas to see if
we see the Kearney buckwheat. We are not likely to find it more than
within a 100-square- mile area.

Rochanne Downs, Fallon Pauite-Shoshone Tribe-- my concerns come from the
spiritual. There are cultural sites all throughout the Great Basin.
These trails are affecting the cultural sites. This concerns us. We have
the opportunity now to not impact the native species. Our people have
uses for the native species. The Tribe is looking at closures for other
uses of the Mountain. Our elders can't go there to practice their
spiritual needs because of the danger. The sound drowns out the natural
sounds of the singing dunes of the Mountain.

Jim Bramham, Past President of the California Four-Wheel Drive Clubs --
I've been a recreator at these dunes for more than 30 years. There is no
new route proliferation in the areas that have been closed. Primary
access to Sand Mountain has changed. Previously the primary camp area
was closed. We have always advocated a designated entrance route for
vehicles using hard surface. The other thing that happened in the Pony
Express area through the 1990s is a lot of rain impact that scoured the
area down to the volcanic base taking many of the small plants with it.
That has already been an area of high use for many years. The Grimes
Point issue is an area almost unattainable to vehicles with sand tires.
The more water and the more wind in the area will often obliterate the
routes. Heavy scouring causes the uplift of the Mountain. The north
route network has been in use for 30 years and I will admit that use has
increased. Trying to balance the use and the buckwheat is something we
certainly need to look at. Fees - one of the concerns is that the Bureau
has not had public input on how the fee money is spent. The issue before
you today is to put some public input into how the fees are used. People
who pay the fees expect the services to not only be there but to
increase.

Tina Nappe, RAC Vice Chair -- we only talked about one sensitive
species.

Roy Denner, Off Road Business Association -- the presenter drew a
comparison with the pearson(sp?) plant listed in the Imperial Sand
Dunes. Since it was listed, millions have been spent by many groups. I
would encourage this group to do studies first before millions are put
into studies. I saw nothing to do with rainfall stats up there.

# Field Trip

The first stop on the field trip to Sand Mountain was at the fee
collection pad. Chris Miller told the group that the cost of grading,
the fee pad and the sign was \$5,000. A larger sign is going to be
installed. A spot is also going to widened for new dumpsters. The closed
area can be seen very well from this location and you can see very well
who's coming in and out.

Jim Bramham -- when the plan came out the perception was to extend the
line into the dunes. The carsonite signs got knocked down.*.*

Chris Miller -- we are thinking of using orange barrels as a moving
fence.

Jim -- knowing that youth ride in this area, I suggest an 80 cc size
bike area for youth only. It allows people to do what they want to do
without impacts.

Chris -- sand boarders use the dunes face. You can see from here.

Jim Eidel -- what kinds of injuries are there?

Chris -- Most injuries are back and neck, often alcohol related, often
caused by not knowing how to use the equipment. The injured person pays
for evacuation.

Jon Crowley -- we would like to see more vehicles BLM could use to help
with health and safety.

Chris -- I am limited on the uses of fee money, but I can use it for
health and safety. It costs \$106,000 to manage Sand Mountain. Rochanne
and her boss have been out here helping with EMT. I spend most of my
time out here on the fee pad.

Jon -- *the perception from the web site is that services are less since
fees went in.*

Chris -- volunteers can be used to help collect fees. You don't have to
pay a fee to go to the Pony Express Station or to go in for a half hour
or less.

Jim Bramham -- I would like to see education on taking out your own
trash. If you handle their trash they will have the expectation that you
will continue to handle it.

Chris -- we have looked at a self-serve fee box or web site payment. The
Tribe may help sell passes at their store and not charge expenses to
BLM.

The color of the weekly pass changes monthly. The weekly passes cost 69
cents a piece to print. A packet of information comes with each pass.

Jon Crowley pointed out the sign with the rules and regs on it and
suggested that it needs a new design to highlight them.

The second stop was the main camp area where there was a presentation by
Jon Crowley of Friends of Sand Mountain. He told the group that Friends
of Sand Mountain is a non-profit organization founded a couple of years
ago. Their goal is to make sure that Sand Mountain is safe, clean and
open. Two and a half years ago they hosted the first clean up of the
area on Labor Day Weekend. The group tries to educate people to
different principles such as Tread Lightly. They have a web site used to
educate users with two banners that rotate through -- no glass bottles
and no pallets.

Jon suggested educational signage at the Mountain. The group would also
like to provide more manpower to BLM or look for sponsors. They would
also like additional law enforcement to enforce the rules.

The organization is happy to see more dumpsters. They want to make sure
that BLM stays on top of the emptying schedule.

Friends of Sand Mountain will get the word out on the new rules and
regs. The sign at the fee station is the only rules and regs in the
area. Jon suggested that BLM needs more signage where people can see it
while driving and they need more input on signs.

Jon suggested that there should be more sensible law enforcement. Their
organization has gotten complaints on the lack of enforcement of the
rules. He told the group that a zero tolerance policy should not have to
be initiated as usage increases, it should start now.

Chris Miller commented that some of the fee money could be put toward
increasing law enforcement.

Jon told her that there has been outside comment that law enforcement at
Sand Mountain didn't have a distinct sense of purpose.

Friends of Sand Mountain would like to see BLM focus on --

-   Speeding through camps and near pedestrians, there should be regs
    for this

-   Whip use flags on all vehicles

-   DUIs

-   Institute the checkered flag program which means a person with a
    checkered flag stands for and supports safe use

-   A cell phone provider covering the area. (BLM agreed to approach a
    provider)

-   Keep Sand Mountain open

Friends of Sand Mountain would like to see added cooperation between
their group and BLM on vegetation and butterflies. They can help collect
information, observe, and get information out to the public.

John Mudge - are there any signs on habitat protection?

Jon Crowley -- there are some, but I'd like to see more*.*

Jim Bramham -- enthusiasm to buy into changes is essential.

Before closures are instituted, Friends of Sand Mountain would like to
see BLM do more outreach education on the vegetation and the butterfly,
come up with a program and formal plan to grow Kearney buckwheat, and
avoid listing the butterfly.

Tina Nappe -- BLM should look at all the endangered species in the area.

Terry Reed, Winnemucca Field Manager -- the thing we found worked best
was "tall pots" to propagate in nature.

John Mudge -- do we gather weather information here?

Jon Crowley -- information is gathered at Newlands Agricultural Station.

Dan Jacquet, Carson City Assistant Field Manager Renewable Resources --
Would you consider embracing the whole eco-system, all the values and
issues at Sand Mountain?

Jon -- the Friends group would like to know what all the issues are.

John Singlaub -- how many members do you have?

Jon -- it's hard to tell. We don't have dues. There were 37,000 hits on
are home web page in the past year and a half.

Karen Boeger -- I came out here a long time ago for a natural experience
but haven't come back because of increased use. Do you support
non-motorized use?

Jon -- we're not out to shut out any users. People need to use common
sense in all uses.

Jim Bramham -- noise from all the vehicles has been reduced by Federal
regs.

Dan Peterson, California Off Road Vehicle Association -- CORVA starts
groups to take care of situations happening on the ground, provide
information and attorneys if needed. We have supported Friends of Sand
Mountain monetarily.

Rochanne Downs gave a presentation for the Fallon Pauite-Shoshone Tribe.
You are in the Home Lands of the New Moon, she told the group. Our bands
are named after that we ate. Sand Mountain is a living animal a serpent
that came from Walker River. As people get injured out here, Tribal
people understand why. If you play with a snake you'll get bitten. This
is a very powerful spiritual place. Only our spiritual people come out
here.

We like to share out culture. It is our inherent responsibility to
protect these lands. This is our church. We hope that people will give
that same respect. It concerns us when plants are being destroyed. You
can't rejuvenate seed that no longer exists. The black streaks on the
Mountain are new.

I am not against ATV use. My grandmother couldn't do her ceremonies
because she couldn't hear the Mountain. Things will only work if
everyone works together.

What is the maximum capacity of the area? The Tribe has suggested
putting pictures on the web site of what the Mountain looks like on a
busy weekend.

We will continue to protect our sovereign lands. We work on a
government-to-government basis with BLM. The Tribe's standpoint is lands
are there for everyone for all generations.

Jon Crowley -- have you talked to BLM about signs here to explain about
the Mountain?

Robert Kautz -- what is the area of effect for this area?

Chris Miller -- there is no formal designation at Sand Mountain. There
are 35 sites within the boundary of this area, but the Mountain itself
is not designated. There is a lot more dialogue now with NAGPRA.

Rochanne -- the issue has been brought up of making Sand Mountain a
Traditional Cultural Property.

Jim Bramham -- OHV people love the culture and the history. It would be
great if something were here to address that. The dark color of Sand
Mountain (that you mentioned) is minerals. They're natural.

Terry Reed -- An application has been put in to exclude Sand Mountain
from mineral exploration. Boundaries were formed to enclose the
Mountain, the Pony Express Station and things like that. We didn't know
about the buckwheat. A special recreation management area includes
several areas all managed and monitored as one.

The third presentation was by a representative of the Nature
Conservancy. She told the group that the Nature Conservancy's goal is to
preserve the area and the bio-diversity in the Great Basin. The Nature
Conservancy surveyed about 72 million acres to find a place that would
preserve this bio-diversity. Sand dunes are very important for this
preservation.

The assessment came up with 359 sites that are very important. Sand
Mountain is one of them. This area has vegetative active dunes as well
as active dunes.

The list of plants and animals of concern includes five butterfly and
three bee species only known at Sand Mountain. This information is
always evolving.

Sand Mountain is a biological "hot spot." This issue is the bio
foundation for many invertebrates as well as an interesting suite of
small mammals and birds.

The Nature Conservancy conducted a site-specific conservation assessment
of the dunes managed by the Carson City BLM and the Fallon Naval Air
Station. This report is in draft form originally intended to help the
Department of Defense. The group doing the assessment focused primarily
on the biology of the system. The condition of the dune here is not good
because of loss of vegetative dunes. The loss of the vegetation, and the
vehicle traffic has impacted the invertebrates.

Three strategies came out of the assessment -- increase BLM law
enforcement presence, restrict vehicle traffic to unvegetative dunes,
and restrict vehicle access from the Dixie Valley area. The Sand
Mountain area is unique and irreplaceable.

Karen Boeger -- who was on the team?

Nature Conservancy representative -- academics, environmental staff from
Fallon Naval Air Station and BLM people. There is scientific data that
shows that at this point there are species here that are restricted to
this sand dunes. We would love to increase our knowledge of these
restricted species.

Jim Bramham -- I would like a list of people on the survey team. People
who use the area would have been happy to be included.

Nature Conservancy -- we included people with the scientific knowledge.

Terry Knight (?), Lead Outdoor Rec Planner, Carson City Field Office --
open designation is for unvegetative dunes.

Terry Reed -- this group has a special opportunity. This is a manageable
area. Be careful to not digress into names of committees etc. Come
together to look forward.

Jon Crowley -- can you better define vegetative and nonvegetative?

Nature Conservancy -- the active versus the stabilized dune.

Don Peterson -- we've only heard about the increase in visitation here.
My concern, given the increase in ATVs, is where are these people going
to go to ride if the areas where they can (ride) keep getting smaller
and smaller? They're going to be in your backyards if you shrink the
places they can go. Have a backup plan.

# RAC Comments After Reconvening at the Convention Center

Larie Trippet asked John Singlaub to be specific about his needs from
the RAC. He told the group that he would hope that the RAC would draft a
statement.

John Singlaub -- what I'm looking for is some short term and long-term
advice from you. I think it's important to keep Sand Mountain open. And
take into consideration the Tribe's concerns and concerns of others who
weren't out there today.

Jim Eidel -- I would like to make a sideboard that we think far enough
ahead. The gentleman form CORVA told us about the increase in ATV sales
in California. I'd like to think 10, 50, 100 years ahead.

John Mudge -- however this is tackled it should be a multi-stakeholder
approach.

Karen Boeger -- I participated in a team that was very successful. I
think it was because everyone on the team had a stake in the outcome. I
would like to suggest a similar process here. We have seen in the slides
a change over a very brief period of time. It seems like there might
have to be some emergency closure as a temporary thing until the team
can assess all the information. I have fears for the time between when
the team starts to look at it and a solution is worked out.

Robert Kautz -- would you need a new plan?

John Singlaub -- we have a plan now, but it would need amendments. We
are working with Churchill County on a joint plan. Churchill County is
expressing a lot of interest in expanding a destination OHV area.
Obviously a lot is going to rely on the help of the people out there
like Friends of Sand Mountain.

Don Klusman representing the California Four-Wheel Drive Association --
you have a lot of issues on the table here. Many of them are very valid.
There are motorized as well as non-motorized rec users out there. My
suggestion is to form a RAC subgroup to deal with all these issues --
local people, science people, local business people, motorized and non
motorized users, people from the community who are affected. I don't
think emergency closures are the answer. Until the facts are out there
just looking at aerial photography is enough. A lot of ground truthing
has to be done. There might be a combination of open and not open
needed. These are some of the issues that a subgroup could look at.

Jim Bramham -- I did a lot of work with these types of maps. I agree
with Don there will be a lot of routes that are out there that don't
show up on the maps and a lot of routes that do that aren't there any
more. Emergency closure seems to be a really draconian step. A lot of
users out there don't know to stay on designated routes. There is
nothing out there to tell them that. Just because routes are there is
not any indication of use. Identifying that into some type of map
structure may be helpful.

Jim Eidel -- the comment was made today that we've spent millions of
dollars on sand and not gotten the results we want. Any attempt to
ground truth the area would be a waste of time and money. The
photographs represent 24 years of work in the most transient area there
is. The impact of the old roads is still there even if they are buried.
What is important is that there is an increase in the use and an
increase in the impacts. The trends are what you need to see. I think
they point toward an increase in use.

Joshua Macenroth, Off Road Business Association -- emergency closure
needs a significant risk. At this time I don't think we have a
significant emergency. We don't have enough scientific information yet.
We don't have enough scientific information to show that OHVs even have
a significant impact on the butterflies. We need completion of the
Nature Conservancy report. We need Dean's pilot study. I don't think
we're ready to make the closure decision yet.

Tina Nappe -- we don't have a quorum to take that kind of preemptive
action today. And we are only an advisory group.

Karen Boeger-- I thought emergency closure could be done if any resource
damage was being done.

Terry Reed -- just yesterday you passed OHV guidelines that outline
several guidelines for managing OHV use. All of these are the kinds of
issues we are struggling with today. In essence these are the kinds of
things that John is asking you to do and you did it yesterday. I think
you could work toward these things in the interim.

Tina Nappe -- This is my recommendation -- Sand Mountain is a signature
place. Unfortunately it can stand a lot of use without that damage. It
can be a destination area. It also has many endemic species. I would
hope that this board would never be an encouragement to do away with
endemic species. What we have informally talked about is setting up a
TRT. I would suggest that we do that as a group with the first task that
they look at immediate impact. I think we can do that with this group.
This is our first fee demo area in the Carson City/Winnemucca Districts
so we can really look at what the needs are. In Washington there was
talk of making the fee areas permanent. Earlier Larie (Trippet) had
agreed to be our rep on a TRT. We certainly need more people from this
group.

Larie Trippet -- I was told by Mark Struble (Carson City Field Office
Public Affairs Officer) that TRT is not the correct term. It needs to be
a subgroup.

Terry Reed -- you could recommend setting up such a group today and talk
about members at a later time.

Tina Nappe -- would the group support setting up a subgroup of the RAC
with some of us and people from other groups?

John Singlaub -- it has to be one member from the RAC and then
recommendations have to come back to the RAC.

Tina Nappe -- I feel that we have an opportunity here to work together
and we have a little time.

Jan (Nature Conservancy) -- there is a real need for more and better
information on the biology. There is a BLM group gathering that
information but the activities at the monitoring areas is destroying
them (the biology).

Dean -- I'm supportive of an emergency closure in the de-vegetated
areas. It would protect the areas being studied. A lot of impact can
happen in a short time.

Terry Reed - this should be left to the subgroup.

Larie Trippet -- if that's a proposal to our subgroup for emergency
closure I would recommend alternative places of similar quality from
Dean and Jan where people can recreate.

Jim Eidel -- in my mind that solution will work for a year or two only.
It has been shown to us that this is a unique biological system.

Larie Trippet-- my long-term point of view is that the amount of
wilderness and protected areas has grown and grown and grown and the
areas of quality OHV rec have shrunk and shrunk and shrunk.

Jim Eidel -- what is the solution if there are more and more vehicles
and less and less areas for them to go?

John Mudge -- I don't have much sense for how much vegetation has been
destroyed.

John Singlaub -- the progressive pictures through time show it.

Jon Crowley -- the Dixie Valley area is not a high use area*.*

Tina Nappe -- what I am hearing is that the damage done is already
impacting the vegetation.

Karen Boeger -- I don't see that this is an emergency thing where some
other option needs to be provided. We're talking about a relatively
small area.

Larie Trippet -- the fear of the OHV people is that you take ten percent
this year and ten percent next year and ten percent the next year.

Tina Nappe -- one issue is to look at John Singlaub's issue that not one
species be listed. The other issue is can the management needs be met
with the current fee structure. If we could formally establish this
group by the end of June and meet by the end of July... Can we talk
about the broad OHV use in other areas in another forum? We have
specific need here.

Jim Eidel -- we haven't discussed the cultural issue that Rochanne has
discussed. I look at the education guidelines that we have approved as
promoting and expanding the guidelines of Tread Lightly and Leave No
Trace. What I saw in Dean's photographs and what I saw on the ground
today is the antithesis of Tread Lightly. There is a lot of improvement
we can do on this issue at Sand Mountain. Rochanne made some very
germane remarks. One of the comments she made privately is to
accommodate other users culturally by closing the area for a month to
foot traffic, allowing the people to accommodate their cultural needs
and another month to allow the area to heal. The butterfly pupates late
in the summer, the most sensitive invertebrate uses are in August and
it's hot as hell in Aug. Maybe the subgroup could look at closure in
August and maybe it could heal in the winter. This idea of closing it
for a month to allow the inverts to use it would be easy to communicate
to the public. BLM has to look at multiple use and I would like the RAC
to look at multiple use.

Claudia Funari (?), student Wildlife Biologist, Carson City Field Office
-- other species are active at other times of the year.

Don Klusman -- we could talk about anything in any area that is
endangered. The thing we have to manage is the multiple use of the land
and the preservation of the species. This is what BLM is charged with,
but recreation is also one of their charges. Whatever we find it seems
that OHVers are the culprits. We need to know more about the cultural.

Rochanne -- what you have to realize is that this is my homeland. I
don't realize why a temporary closure to study the beetle or the
vegetation is such a big deal. The Mountain is so vast. Something needs
to be done. A lot of people who use the area aren't from here but I am.
Our charge is to preserve it forever.

Tina Nappe -- we need to have ideas for this subgroup to address and a
forum for the ideas to be presented.

John Singlaub -- I would like people who have an interest on serving on
the subgroup who are here today to let us know before you leave here
today. I will be putting my associate field manager Élan Briggs in
charge of this effort. Please email suggestions to her at
<ebriggs@nv.blm.gov>.

Dan Jacquet -- the good science is an absolute. Speaking for our
biologist from BLM. We need to move forward with our monitoring today.
We need to find a way today to prevent the areas we are monitoring from
being destroyed. I want to have the biologists out there this season.

Dean -- the study areas are at the top of the large ridge to the west
and the swales to the east. I'm talking about closing a large area to
allow for the study.

Dan Jacquet -- minimally you would have to close small areas next to all
of the study areas.

Jon Crowley -- You are talking about two different things.

Dan Jacquet -- yes.

Don Klusman -- what he's proposing is putting BLM in a huge dilemma. You
just imposed a fee out there and now you're proposing closing the area.
Users are going to say that you're taking the money to close the area.

Terry Reed - Why doesn't the RAC support the Bureau and some of the
users developing an approach to close and study the area with as little
changes as possible. Charge a group with coming up with these areas.

Don Klusman -- you're going to close a thousand acres and try to mark it
and then the OHVers are going to be blamed for encroaching.

Jim Eidel -- what total area are you talking about?

Dean -- I thought this meeting was premature because we are still doing
our studies.

Jim Eidel -- how many acres are there in total?

Dean -- 4,000.

Tina Nappe -- when would you need the closure?

Dean - the area needs to be closed the end of July.

Tina Nappe - you're not giving us time to even get the subgroup
together. Then we need to set up the subgroup sooner than late June. We
need ideas today. Larie will be part of the subgroup. It would have to
meet in the next three weeks.

Don Klusman *--* you have to provide time for notification*.*

Terry Reed -- if it's needed you can impose the closure overnight.

Don Klusman -- but are you going to get compliance? The butterfly is not
a near issue. I heard about it in 1995. Now it has to be done right now.

John Singlaub -- the conclusion in '95 was that if the use on the south
side remained the same the impacts in other areas would remain the same.
I now recognize that there is a need to take action now. What we need to
do is keep each other informed, get the subgroup going, get some
participants today. And try to figure out what the best compromise is
today.

The RAC came to consensus to set up a subgroup.

Terry Reed -- there are obviously some people missing today who would
like to participate.

Jon Crowley -- I would like to better understand what the numbers of the
subgroup would be. Also to better understand what the level of
participation would be.

Tina Nappe -- the issue has to be addressed in the next couple of
months. Part of it has to be what kind of education are you willing to
do to accomplish a closure. After that the meeting dates could be less
intensive. The group will also look at the use of fee demo funds.

Jon Crowley -- you have an opportunity now, in about three weeks is the
busiest weekend of the year, to educate the users as much as possible.
We can help to hand out information, to revise the information.

Terry Reed -- focusing on just damage to vegetation would be valuable.

Jon Crowley -- a temporary sign is a possibility to get this information
out there.

John Singlaub -- even with the Friends of Sand Mountain logo on it would
be more effective than the BLM logo.

Dan Jacquet -- we have heard the recommendation today that we need to
protect the existing vegetation If that is an objective and there is
enough information to make that decision, let's make it today.

Tina Nappe-- healthy rangeland rules and regs should protect that area
too.

Dan -- BLM needs to provide the committee with real sideboards.

Karen Boeger -- what Jon said about doing something for Memorial Day
Weekend is really critical. Some sort of flyer needs to be out there.
Everyone needs to get one. Some type of decision needs to be made by
that time.

Jim Eidel -- John asked if the RAC felt it was healthy to address this
under no net loss. Most definitely no net loss applies in this area. I'm
concerned where Dean is going from here in respect to his study. To be
good science it has to be statistically valid. You have to include
enough sites so that if you lose some the stats it will still be
statistically valid. If I were BLM I would look at what this pilot study
might include and expand it in whatever ways are necessary to get as
much for your dollar as possible. I would put a bird study traverse in
the study area. The cost would be minimal and it would take one person
knowledgeable on the birds and the birdcalls. I would also investigate
the impact to mammals in the area.

Robert Kautz -- why is it a pilot study?

Dean -- because before we commit a lot of dollars we have to make sure
we're picking up enough information to make the study worthwhile or if
we need more study. It's a trial run without committing a lot of
resources.

Tina Nappe -- anyone who wants to be on the subgroup let John or Elayn
Briggs know. Dean needs to decide what the acreage is that is needed.
What are some of your options. Does the group need to meet in the next
three weeks?

Larie Trippet -- I think that the handout at the site is enough. I don't
think that the subgroup needs to meet in the next three weeks.

Tina Nappe -- I think that I need to be part of the subgroup.

John Mudge -- there is a social aspect here. Is there a study of what
Sand Mountain brings to society. My feeling is that it is good for
people to get out there and recreate.

Tina Nappe -- can we offer them more than what they came out for.

Elayn Briggs was tasked with contacting people who were not at the
meeting. Jon Crowley will be the main conduit for getting this
information out to the users.

Tina -- thank you to everyone for being here today. Thank you to John
for pulling all this together.

Meeting adjourned 3:53 PM.