Colorado residents are especially encouraged to submit this petition. Thank you!

Colorado's National Forests and BLM lands have seen an explosion in off-road vehicle (ORV) use in recent years with in-state ORV registrations increasing 223% between 1995 and 2008, resulting in over 133,000 ORVs registered  each year. While some riders take care to use their vehicles responsibly, many others disregard signs and closures, go off trail, creating thousands of miles of illegal trails. This irresponsible use often causes destructive gullies and erosion, damages water sources and wildlife habitat, and spoils the quiet backcountry experience sought by hikers, backpackers, and other non-motorized recreationists.

Current ORV registration fees -some $3.2 million annually - are used almost exclusively to promote and expand ORV use on public lands without funding critical law enforcement and habitat restoration.  More than 40 Colorado organizations are demanding that a portion of these fees go to pay to restore public lands and waters damaged by ORV users and to enforce their proper use.

IMPORTANT: Please add in a personal sentence or two at the top of the letter stating where you like to recreate in CO (outside of Wilderness).

Photo (c) Peter Arnold, Inc.