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Post by tomhedden on Aug 17, 2012 12:30:57 GMT -5
This pdf is provided for those unable to attend the letter signing on September 4th (7:00 pm) at the Pic-a-Lilli. Please feel free to download and fill with signatures and then return to me by September 4th. I want to mail them to the Commissioner on the 5th. Please use blue ink for the signatures, this will make it obvious that they are not photocopies. Thank you, Tom Attachments:
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Post by tomhedden on Aug 17, 2012 12:35:50 GMT -5
Dear Commissioner Martin, We are the New Jersey Trail Lovers Coalition, a group of New Jersey residents representing a diverse assortment of forest users who are dedicated to preserving both the unique character of the incredible environmental asset of the Pinelands as well as continued access for responsible and law-‐abiding use of the forests. We have a governing committee comprised of representatives from the equestrian community, four-‐wheel drive groups, enduro clubs, hunters and fishermen, hikers and campers, cross country skiers and bicyclists, naturalists, historians, fine artists, canoeists and kayakers, geocachers and canine trainers. We are writing to you to request that you do not adopt the proposed rule changes (DEP Docket Number 01-12-06) for the N.J.A.C. 7:2, the State Park Service Code.
We feel very strongly that the proposal is written in a vague and arbitrary manner that is far too open to interpretation and we fear that the intent may be misguided and will have the effect of restricting recreational access of NJ residents to NJ State Lands for reasons that are unclear at best. The proposal attempts to prohibit, by definition, vehicles that are “likely” to do damage. It is a person who is likely to do damage not a vehicle; a hammer in the hands of a vandal is an implement of destruction, but in the hands of a skilled carpenter it is a building tool. Defining categories of vehicles is a very slippery slope and will certainly harm more law-‐ abiding, responsible forest users than scofflaws that are causing the environmental damage. It is our feeling that this proposal is a thinly veiled attempt at discriminatory social profiling and for that reason should not be adopted. Trying to prohibit “off-road motorcycles” or “military surplus vehicles” will be made more difficult because it is more rule than exception for these vehicles to be highly customized and legally modified within the limits of NJ motor vehicle laws. The logic becomes as random as saying that red cars are okay but blue cars are not. It is apparent to us that even if they are not the actual target of these proposed changes the damage will fall disproportionately on the permitted, historically important users of the forest. The heritage of Enduros, for example, is a legacy important enough to the cultural identity of the Pinelands to have been recognized in the original Comprehensive Management Plan.
While it is no secret that the limited resources of the NJ State Park Police are currently being stretched this is no excuse for enacting undue restrictions on the responsible citizens who work hard to “play by the rules”. Our opinion is that these changes are redundant and are written in a way that effectively give the NJ State Park Police authorization to visually profile vehicles based on subjective judgments of what illegal activities they MAY engage in without any evidence of wrongdoing. There are good and effective laws on the books for preventing abuse of the forests and regulating vehicles. We feel that the currently available Park Regulations and Motor Vehicle Laws are sufficient tools to cover all acts of motorized public land abuse; as Stakeholders in not only the various forms of recreation, but also the protection of our forests, we would embrace the opportunity to assist in finding ways to support their effective enforcement. We already work to educate our membership about environmentally responsible recreation, volunteer with the State Forest staff for trail marking and vandalism cleanup, and organize trash collections along the trails, roads and rivers. We would be glad to contribute to finding ways of preventing damaging activities. We are the responsible, concerned, organized and law-‐abiding users of the forests and our efforts have a large and positive impact on the environment. These proposed rules will undercut everything we are trying to do to help protect this unique and special part of New Jersey. In the end, the very real damage of adopting this proposal will be to the forest.
Respectfully, The New Jersey Trail Lovers Coalition
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Post by tomhedden on Sept 5, 2012 14:38:46 GMT -5
The letter, signed by 150, is on its way with copies sent to the District 8 & 9 offices, the Governor and the Lt. Governor. If you have a signed copy, please send it to the DEP directly. Also, it's fine to have more than one signature per copy. Thank you to all those of you who gathered signatures!
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