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ATVs & ORVsOne of the greatest threats to the ecological integrity of the 31 Protected Wilderness Areas established in 1998, and to any future Wilderness Areas, is the unrestricted use of all terrain vehicles (ATVs) and other forms of off road vehicles (ORVs) within their borders. Section 17(2) (e) of the Wilderness Areas Protection Act prohibits the use of all vehicles in Wilderness Areas. Unfortunately Section 23 (3) (4) and (5) currently allow for all terrain vehicle and snowmobile use in Wilderness Areas in certain situations. Clarity on who can use ORVs in Wilderness Areas and under what circumstances is not crystal clear at the present time due to differing interpretations of the legislation. What is clear is that many ORV users are still driving in Wilderness Areas, and having fairly devastating effects on the environment while doing so. This is also true of public and private lands in general. 
Loss and degradation of habitat is a major threat to biodiversity in North America. Off road vehicles cause damage to sensitive habitats by crushing vegetation, scarring bogs, and causing erosion and sedimentation in streams. We have seen several examples of rare and endangered species that have been killed by careless use of ATVs. Many opportunities exist for the legal use of off road vehicles outside of protected areas. Protected wilderness areas must be maintained in a natural, wild state, as the law intends. The US Bureau of Land Management has stated that ORVs have a negative impact on:
Some of the stated purposes of the Wilderness Areas Protection Act (section 2) are to:
Comparing the impacts of ATVs with the purposes of Wilderness Areas, it becomes fairly clear that the two are incompatible. Protection of biodiversity and natural processes cannot be achieved if activities that degrade air, soil, water, vegetation and wildlife are allowed. Opportunities for quality, low-impact outdoor recreation are obviously compromised by vehicles that can be heard for well over a kilometre, and have unsightly and damaging impacts on wetlands, watercourses, and natural areas in general. Simply put, ATVs and other types of ORVs are incompatible with wilderness conservation, both on and off public land. Conflict with other user groups, including private property owners, is also a major problem. So are the increasing number of accidents and fatalities, many involving children. Today there are approximately 40,000 ATVs in use in Nova Scotia - no one knows for sure since at least half of them are not properly registered. The number of vehicles being sold has tripled in the last 5 years. This explosive growth in ATVs sales means the problems experienced today is only going to get worse in the future - unless something is done to bring the situation under control.
Provincial TaskforceOn June 27th, 2003 Nova Scotia Environment Minister Ron Russell announced the appointment of a provincial Taskforce to review the growing problems associated with unrestricted ATV/ORV use in Nova Scotia and report back to government with recommendations. The Taskforce undertook a thorough public consultation process in the fall of 2003, including holding public meetings across the province throughout October and November. More than 1400 people attended a series of 24 community meetings held across Nova Scotia. The Taskforce received 714 written submissions and also met with 32 stakeholder groups including members of the Nova Scotia Public Lands Coalition. 
In its interim report, released in February 2004, the Taskforce found that "Off-highway vehicle use in Nova Scotia is, frankly, out of control. While we were prepared to hear negative comments about OHVs, we were shocked to learn about the degree to which irresponsible users disrespect the law, impact the environment, injure themselves, trespass on private property, and intimidate other trail users." The Taskforce released 48 draft recommendations to bring order to the current chaotic situation. "Consensus emerged on the following areas: more effective enforcement and more self-policing through clubs and associations; no operators below the age of 16; a stop to the bullying tactics of a minority of lawbreakers; a network of managed designated trails; a halt to further environmental damage; additional protection for Wilderness Protected Areas; much more emphasis on safety, training, and operator proficiency; effective private property protection; and more education about all aspects of OHV use." Among other things, the taskforce strongly recommended that ATVs should not be allowed in Protected Wilderness Areas or other ecologically sensitive areas (bogs, beaches, wetlands, streams, etc.). Taskforce findings
Taskforce RecommendationsThe Task Force recommends the following: 36. Establish a policy that completely prohibits recreational off-highway vehicle use in our Wilderness Protected Areas. 37. Phase out, within 3 years, OHV trails now crossing Wilderness Protected Areas and all other OHV access granted under Ministerial Discretion by establishing alternate trails. 38. Amend the Off-highway Vehicles Act to say that all off-highway vehicles are prohibited from the following sensitive ecosystems, unless otherwise specifically provided for within the designated trail network: a. barrens - coastal and plateau
The interim report was well received and endorsed by most Nova Scotians including environmental, tourism, medical, safety, law-enforcement and private landowner groups and organizations. Unfortunately the report came under predictable attack from a small but vocal group of ATV enthusiasts, lead by the manufacturers lobby group from Ontario, who opposed many of the most important recommendations. Fortunately many other responsible ATV riders supported the Taskforce's recommendations. Final Report
After eight more months of public consultations (for a grand total of 15) and after having received over 2,500 written submissions in the biggest public consultation process in Voluntary Planning's history, the Taskforce finally released it's Final Report on November 2nd, 2004. "We're confident our recommendations represent a broad social consensus on the solutions to the off-highway vehicle issues facing Nova Scotia", said Louis Tousignant, taskforce chair. "All political parties, levels of government, interested citizens and organizations must now find ways to translate these recommendations into progressive legislation, policies and initiatives. It is now time for action." In the end the Taskforce released a more refined end product that presented the government with 39 clear, well thought out recommendations designed to balance the interests of all stakeholders and bring some order to the current chaos. Wisely, the provisions for protection of sensitive ecosystems and wilderness areas remained. Key Recommendations
Government ResponseNearly a year later, in October 12, 2005 DNR Minster Richard Hurlburt finally responded to the Taskforce's Final Report when he unveiled the Conservative government's "OHV Action Plan". Although he insisted the government was implementing 37 of the Taskforce's recommendations, they did, in fact, only accept six recommendations as-is from the taskforce, changed 31 and put two regarding licence plates on hold indefinitely. The so-called "action plan" was widely seen as failure and a cop out. Bill 275A month later, on November 1, 2005 the Tory government introduced Bill 275 to amend the Off Highway Vehicles Act. Predictably, the bill fell far short of the Taskforce recommendations or even the government's own lame "action plan". It igneored most of the issues and proposed only a handful of changes to the OHV act aimed at restricting, but not banning, children under 14 from riding ATVs and to require written permission to use OHVs on private property not owned by the rider. The public and opposition parties howled and eventually forced improvements to the bill at public hearings during the Law Amendments process. ATV legislationFinally, on December 8, 2005 the long and rancorous road towards legislation ended when a much-improved Bill 275 was passed in the legislature. Many, but not all, of the Taskforce's most important recommendations made it into the final version of the bill. Several more still need to be implemented including removing ministerial discretion that allows the Environment Minister to issue permits for recreational OHV use in Protected Wilderness Areas. Environment Minister Kerry Morash has promised to do this through a legislative amendment in the spring of 2006. The new law includes:
The province has also increased enforcement by hiring 12 new officers dedicated solely to enforcing the new and previously existing OHV laws. They have also set up a toll-free hotline for people to report OHV violations. The province-wide number to call is 1-800-565-2224. It will be staffed 24/7, 365 days a year. It is now hoped that a previously "out of control" situation will now come under some kind of reasonable control - for the good of all concerned.
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© Nova Scotia Public Lands Coalition, Ecology Action Centre, 2006 |
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