I saw this on Adirondack Almanack. I don't understand how allowing UTVs to be registered would "increase the size & number of ATVs allowed on public lands" when all ATVs are pretty much banned from the Adirondack Park with only very limited exceptions.
Unfortunately, with the first amendment, it's very hard to arrest and punish those who engage in truly false political speech. I am certainly not pushing to repeal the first amendment, unlike some activists.
http://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2014/06/apa-panel-votes-to-allow-nyco-drilling.html
Probably the No. 1 thing that bothers me most about NY State, is how a small group of fringe "environmentalists" have a chokehold on all state policy. From fracking to management of our public lands to ATVs. they manage to control everything in Albany, and block even the smallest and minimalists reforms.
Now, there are a lot of good people across the state from forest rangers to conservation groups, working behind the scenes for reasonable policies. But dare they stick their head up too far, the "environmentalists" find ways to win by threats, lawsuits, and cowing elected officials.
After all, why would we want to give people the ability to register and insure their ATVs against loss in NY State? They might abuse that "privilege" and ride on prohibited lands !
Great. Exactly what we need, more wilderness.
NY already has way too many wilderness areas, and what's not wilderness is forest preserve, which is essentially locked up as wilderness, as the state constitution prohibits cutting any material amount of trees over 3" for any purpose.
It's hard to imagine they could build any new roads or snowmobile trails within existing forest preserve, except where relatively recent old woods road exists. Otherwise the tree cutting provision applies.
A super old plant, some of which have been alive for 2,000 years, and are from a species dating back 200 million years ago.
Agency has trouble finding projects to spend the $20.5 million Pittman-Robertson funds it's going to get from hunters this years due to staff cuts.
The state's constitution prohibits the cutting or removal of timber in the forest preserve -- and gives no exception to forest health.
So how did the state address this when an Emerld Ash Borer was found at Kenneth L. Wilson Forest Preserve Campground in Woodstock?
The state has limited authority to remove "hazard" trees over trails and roads, and used it remove a limited number of infected ash. They also girlded selected ash trees to attract EAB to them.
The DEC has be really careful here not to run afoul of the state constitution, as the courts are not likely to allow full-scale removal of ash trees, like they do for infected non-forest preserve plots.
Generally Catskill State Land classifications aren't particularly controversial, and tend to actually be fairly reasonable.
