The Bureau of Land Management has released a decision on the proposed camping management changes outside of Zion National Park. Our members submitted hundreds of comments in support of keeping free, dispersed camping open and available to the public. However, the BLM did not listen to this feedback. The SR9 Camping Management Plan will move to only allow camping in designated campgrounds or designated campsites. The decision shifts the area from largely open, dispersed camping to a more controlled system that concentrates use in designated locations.
The decision approves building two new campgrounds, the Flagstone Quarry Campground and the Gooseberry Mesa Campground. The plan also includes adding a trailhead and staging area, and creating designated dispersed campsites. At the same time, large areas will be restricted to “designated camping only,” and many existing campsites will be closed and restored. The Restoration process will most likely be using heavy equipment and creating more of an impact than if the campsites were just left alone to be used and managed by the BLM.
In the Flagstone Quarry Campground, the BLM can create up to 150 campsites. In the Gooseberry Mesa Campground the BLM can create up to 80 campsites. Within Gooseberry Mesa, there can be up to 30 designated dispersed campsites. This area already has designated dispersed campsites along Sheep Bridge Road. A lot of the dispersed camping is happening within the Gooseberry Mesa area but those sites will now be restored. There is no guarantee these campsites will could result in a significant reduction in available campsites.
The BLM appears to have adopted the key findings of the 2021 SUWA-commissioned “Recreation Report” to justify widespread camping restrictions. If this is the case, it is highly questionable because the document is not actually a site-specific scientific study, but rather a broad literature review commissioned by an anti-access advocacy organization. The report itself does not present any new, empirical data collected from the specific locations like the SR-9 corridor. In fact, it acknowledges that “specific research on recreation impacts on the [Colorado] Plateau is somewhat limited,” meaning it extrapolates generalized conclusions to a region where localized data is lacking. SUWA sent a letter in September 2021 asking BLM to incorporate the findings of this report into its management, and the BLM appears to be using this report as a foundation for its recreation management policy as if it provides direct, site-specific evidence to support concentrating use and limiting dispersed camping. This raises serious concerns about where the BLM is taking the direction from and why there has been a recent surge of camping closures across public lands in Utah.
Send a message to the BLM state director letting him know that this report is not law and they should rethink their recreation management policies to be more in line with the recreation experiences that align with public interest.
