Desert Land Use

Now that the Barstow to Vegas off-road race is completed we can expect to hear motorcyclists rant about environmental terrorists. We can also expect to hear environmentalists decry the abuse of public lands. Experts will probably not speak up. Botanists, soil scientists, and wildlife biologists harbor knowledge that could sway the debate about desert land use.

I am a motorcyclist (on-road) and a naturalist. I know that the ecology of the desert is complex and fragile. Desert plants are assisted in gathering moisture by bacteria that live in the shallow soil. To upset the soil to the depth of one-half inch can kill the bacteria and effectively sterilize the soil. Creosote bushes are one of the planet’s oldest living things, at 9,000 years old. These are routinely run over by dirt bikers who call them “puckerbushes.” Any adrenaline addict with a few hundred bucks can buy a dirt bike with which he can harass wildlife, crush habitat, and lay immutable tracks upon the virgin desert.

I implore earth scientists to use their knowledge to educate legislators. Land-use policy should not be dictated by the strongest lobby, nor by the most emotional group, but by farsighted experts who can foresee the long-range repercussions of policy decisions.

ROBERT MARSHALL

Glendora