
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 12, 1995                   TAG: 9503130077
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: JAN VERTEFEUILLE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

NATIONAL FORESTS LOOK FOR HELP BATTLING FOUR-WHEEL OUTLAWS

THEY TEAR UP THE LAND, they kill the vegetation and they dump gasoline into the creeks. Foresters say almost everybody is welcome in the national forests - except the irresponsible four-wheelers who do damage that can never be repaired.

Smokey needs help with more than just forest fires these days.

The popularity of four-wheel-drive vehicles and irresponsible behavior by some who own them is wreaking havoc on America's national forests.

When drivers go "four-wheeling" off maintained roads, it scars the forest, kills grass and vegetation and lets the soil wash into streams.

That forces the National Forest Service to spend money on repairing damage by vehicles instead of on maintenance and projects, said Woody Lipps, a district law enforcement officer for the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests.

Two of the Forest Service's police officers, Lipps from the New Castle district and Bryan Altizer of the Blacksburg district, invited reporters to visit an area of the forest in Botetourt and Craig counties Saturday to see some of the damage.

This is the time of year when nice weather brings people into the forest. It's also the time of year the most damage is done.

A trip through the Broad Run area of the forest revealed embankments that have been worn down to rock from drivers who want to see if they can make it to the top and a gate across private land knocked down to gain access to private logging roads. Deep ruts were cut through fields not meant for vehicle traffic.

Lipps described a driver he had to help; the man's battery exploded when he tried to drive up a steep hill. He also described a car whose gas tank leaked into a creek after its driver tried to drive down the streambed.

"The vast majority, we welcome them out there," Lipps said. "Just don't get off the open road."

All areas of the almost 2 million-acre national forest are open to visitors on foot. Hundreds of miles of roads are open to motorists. But it's people who drive off road who are causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages. The problem is getting worse across the country, Lipps said.

Forest Service officers shun warnings, instead charging violators with reckless driving or damaging the natural features of government property. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of a $5,000 fine and 6 months in jail. Drivers also can be held liable for damages.

"Everyone says they just wanted to see if their vehicle could do it," Altizer said of the people he catches. "Just wanted to see if they could."

Money for repairing damage caused by four-wheeling is scarce, and it has gotten to the point that some areas of the forest may be closed to all vehicles.

"When it gets to the point we can't maintain [areas] safely, we have to close them," Altizer said.

"Once soil's gone off the land," Lipps said, "we can't put it back."

by CNB