8 colorado airstrips in jeopardy. 5 minutes of your time will go a long long way

[patrickromano]

5 minutes of your time would be very useful. We may not have this chance again for another 25 to 30 years. Please pass along to whoever you feel comfortable:


We only have till 6/24 to comment please read below and take a few moments to comment. 8 wonderful airstrips depend on your support.

There are several airstrips in Colorado that are in the public comment phase for a RMP with the BLM. While the strips have been given recognition as a whole, there are 4 alternatives to the Travel Management Plan. The Alternatives suggest road closures that could affect some of the airstrips if the airstrip in considered part of the trail. The only alternative that doesn’t affect any of the strips is Alternative “A” which is not the preferred alternative but rather the current alternative that is in place. We desperately need comments to the below addresses stating that you are a pilot that enjoys the outdoors for recreational purposes you support Travel management alternative “A” or you would like to see the following airstrips excluded from the proposed travel management Alternatives since the airstrips are small slivers that coexist alongside the trails but are not part of the trails themselves.

Dolores Point
Hubbard
Little Dolores
West Creek Bluff
Arrow Head Camp airstrip
Calamity Camp Airstrip
Flattop Mesa Airstrip
Blue Mesa Airstrip

Make sure to add that personal touches that include why you like aircraft access to the outdoors. That most pilots are responsible and follow outdoor ethics guides, and that aviation is extremely low impact compared to many other forms of outdoor recreation.

Comment Form:

http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/etc/medial...ent%20Form.pdf



· By email: gjfo_rmp@blm.gov
· By fax: 970-244-3083
· By mail: BLM – GJFO RMP, 2815 H Road, Grand Junction, CO, 81506







If you have any questions please feel free to contact Patrick Romano at5122891989 or by email atpromano@theraf.org

[patrickromano]

here is a copy of the letter I sent. Please don't copy verbatim it would be considered the same letter.

I have been following the draft RMP closely and was very excited to see the verbiage of "Backcountry Airstrips" included in the draft. However after close consideration of the Travel management alternatives I have a few concerns. Several of the airstrips sit along routes that have some form of limitation depending on the Alternative. I would like to see the airstrips that do sit along such routes as independent entities. The roads/trails/or routes in most cases travel alongside and do not include the strips themselves as in the case of Dolores Point, Westcreek Bluff, Calamity Camp, Blue Mesa, North Arrow Head Camp, and Flat Top Mesa. Hubbard and Arrowhead camp seem to be unaffected by routes in any form. Perhaps this exclusions of airstrips already exist, but we can't be too careful and I can't find the specific language that does protect these important points of history and access. I am an avid outdoor enthusiast and do support rehabilitation, however I would like to point out that these Airstrips are a very small footprint when considered with the rest of the route system and provide a low impact form of access for a variety of actives. At less than 2000 ft in most case the strips are a fraction of a typical point of access for recreation. In the event that they cannot be excluded from the current routes as their own entities I strongly support Travel management alternative "A"

These strips are also a large part of our western history as rich as the mines and ranches these served. In the process of researching these strips I found that many of them were made for medical evacuation of injured workers, or were used to bring in equipment for rescue in the event of a collapsed mine. Today they are largely used for recreation for access points for camping, hiking, fishing, and historical research. They too could perhaps be uses for points of egress as well if the need ever arose.
In addition to small footprints and reduced wear and tear for points of access, pilots are rigorously trained and are typically very responsible and respect their privileges immensely since they are federally licensed and regulated.
Thank you for your consideration that the airstrips would be their own entity separate from any of the route closures in any of the alternatives if at all possible. In the event that an exclusion cannot exist then I strongly support Travel Management Alternative "A"