June 11, 2015—SDORC is an organization that works to keep land open for off-road vehicle use and advocates for off-roading. We have developed relationships with legislators and land managers to help our goals. We primarily watch out for problems in San Diego and Imperial Counties, but will help more distant areas when we can.
There are threats everywhere we turn. There is a lawsuit and potential endangered lizard listing in the Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area (OWSVRA). The park is also reforming its general plan and further restrictions are being proposed. The Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area (aka Glamis) is still being litigated against by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD). The CBD is also trying to have a number of species listed as endangered, including two lizards that live throughout Imperial Valley.
The Cleveland National Forest has identified routes not currently in their inventory and are working to close them. The Air Resources Board is looking at the red/green sticker program now with an eye for further restrictions. There are renewable energy projects coming, which can threaten our areas.
Most of these threats can be addressed through public comments. At SDORC we take commenting very seriously and write substantive comments to every action we hear about. We don’t go it alone, either; we work with other OHV groups, land managers and interested individuals to try to remove or reduce the impacts these actions can have to our form of recreation.
There are people who hate what we do and work tirelessly to end it. While we work to oppose any restrictions, we can’t do it alone. We need help with volunteers and money. If you love an area or trail and would like to help preserve it, get in contact with us. If you love riding in the desert and would like to help in a small way, SDORC is a membership organization and you can join us by clicking here and following through.
We know there are a lot of you out there. There are over 100,000 green/red sticker registrations in San Diego County. If you add street legal off-road and past due vehicles, there are a lot of us here. If we could get one dollar a year from each of you, we could do an awful lot more. If you love riding or driving “Out There” please go to our PayPal link and send us a buck. Please don’t forget to give us your email address. We only send one or two emails a month, but when we really need your help to prevent a closure, bad law, etc., we need to contact you quickly and email is still a great way.
Thanks for reading and see you on the trail.
Ed Stovin
President SDORC