Viva New mexico – A statewide Plan for Outdoor ...



Companion Report FPublic CommentsNew Mexico Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation PlaNNovember 2015Viva New mexico – A statewide Plan for Outdoor RecreationStrategic Plan 2016-2020Public Draft Survey Responses 267 complete responses and 790 partials. And 14 emails/letters were sent to State Parks. Two webinars were held that presented the key findings and recommendations of the plan. Community Livability:Objective 1.1: Increase the number of communities that have prepared parks, recreation, open space and trail master plans. Action Item% High% Medium% LowConsider using the existence of a current parks, recreation, open space and trails master plan as one criterion for receiving state or federal grants for implementing projects.573211Continue to build and maintain an online inventory that identifies current trails and parks using NRPA Proragis online database and GIS mapping tools.444214Engage planning and other related departments in public universities to assist in development of local plans and to help build a cadre of skilled outdoor recreation planners.413821Host a work session at annual NMRPA conferences to report on progress in implementing Víva New Mexico, celebrate accomplishments, update on LWCF stateside funding, and prioritize strategic plan actions for the subsequent year.254134Identify local government gaps and needs by preparing city and county parks, trails, open space and recreational facilities inventories, assessments, level of service and accessibility analyses.543610Maximize federal programs to aid in the planning and implementation of park and recreation plans702010Prepare and update management plans for each state park on an as-needed basis404911Provide LWCF stateside funding to local governments424414Work to implement existing local park, recreation, trail and open space plans66286Comments:ResponseAll are extremely importantI do not know what LWCF stands for.Install more electrical sites at summer lake state park, east side. Like to see a bigger Rollerblading park or area for skating. Little confused. E survey may not be working correctly. Make restroom available at large city parksMediumNeed more parks and trails on the Westside in Albuquerque Our parks and recreation areas must be protected and improved for us and our future generations.Parks planning needs to be coordinated and consolidated to avoid wasted effort and funding.Provide bathrooms in parks.Should spell out the acronym LC..... People don't know what it is.Wasn't the LWCF just discontinued by congress?We must seek reinstatement of the LWCF in Congress.We need more outdoor volleyball recreation areas in Santa Fe and Albuquerque!! Please!! Who's going to pay for all this!!!YES pass through LWCF and other funding mechanism down to local governmentkeep parks and all trails safe for people to accesskeep the FEDS OUT!mediumnoneprovide funding for parks maintenance. state dollars to help small communities with match requirements of LWCFtoo many acronyms! what is LWCF?taking care of what we have should be at the forefront of the efforts toward this program. why spend more money for new things if we have shown in the past that the previous areas couldn't be taken care of properly. it's a tough sell to the public paying for this through their hard earned taxes. from what I have seen in Bloomfield/Farmington area you have plenty of parks and rec areas, there seems to be no community care about the condition of these parks from the trash and graffiti in the area and the lack of anyone of authority making any type of appearance to cut down on general misconduct.I would like to see funding travel to other regions- such as the town I live in, Roswell. I see our community having limited resources with limited access to resourcesNew Mexico rural communities must be engaged in this process. Rural areas provide the largest, most authentic, scenic, outdoor settings and those communities are not part of the conversation. This loss adversely affects every level of the SCORP planning process and reduces the program's success.Elephant Butte Lake State Park is a wonderful place to stay. However, the reservation process is a bit difficult to deal with.I LOVE NEW MEXICO, ALTHOUGH I HAVE LIVING QUARTERS, IN MY TRAVEL, THE NEXT BEST THING IS MY HEART DESIRE TO BE IN THE BEAUTY THAT OUTDOORS HOLDS. SIMPLY, MAGNIFIES, MY LIFE, ALL SUBJECTS, FOR OUTDOOR, EASIER ENTHUSIAST, LIKE MYSELF, DO WHAT WE CAN TO MAKE IT HAPPEN, and continuing efforts, the sky is the limit, jamillerState parks are the best They need and deserve more funding, better pay and training for staff.We need to clean up local parks, then shift some of the responsibility of maintaining that park to the local community (it should give the people that use it some since of pride and ownership in the park, trails, etc.would like to see more police/security patrolling of parks (bike patrol) to deter illegal/malicious activity; especially spaces utilized by families/children/womenAll the criteria addressed is not only important to the community but for the environment as well. It provides oxidation for continual balance of nature since we utilize the parks for our own recreation.Open space is a euphemism for land control. Any advocate of "planning" should first read economic noble prize winner Friedrichvon Hayek's book, "The Road to Serfdom."I would like to see some city parks added as it seems there are not many of these, & I would also like these city parks to have space for 1 to 3 days of RV's to stay.Keep State Parks as independent as possible so not stifle local planning which reduce rather than promote outdoor facilities in New Mexico.Sierra County/TorC government is in need of an overhaul. To many in city government with interest that only benefit them.Unfortunately, recreational activities seem to be viewed lower priority (less urgent) than many other topics of state and federal government concern and expenditure, so efforts to milk those cows is pretty much a waste. We'll have to mostly keep trying to do what we can on our own with reliance on user fees and others with similar interests/orientations. Sorry I left all this bureaucratic language with my nursing career. Heads up New Mexico. This is what you need. From an RVer who loves our state parks: Bath houses need to be cleaner and can we have some hot water for showers. I currently live in Carlsbad NM and I wish there camp grounds at Brantley Lake were more updated. It was nice but kind of nasty especially the facilities. The only access for fishing was only IF you had a boat. Nowhere to go fishing from the shore. I think over the years some of the funding has been decrease and finding how to recoup some the funding is vital.More emphasis should be implemented for the handicap, elderly and mentally challenged as they love the outdoors as much as the young do. One good example is, the elderly and people in wheel chairs cannot go Snagging for Salmon at Navajo Dam as you have to go down a 30 foot steep hill alongside the dam. These are the people that bring money into our economy but have stopped going because of the danger!!! I am only 61 years old and I know that I cannot carry my Salmon back up to my vehicle and in the near future I will not be able to walk down it, this has always been something I have planned for every October for 1 week and sad to say it will be coming to an end.Don't create another level of Bureaucracy at the Universities, Fix what you have. Better manage what exists. Provide funding opportunities and support those who are already providing recreational opportunity.A livable community absolutely must have clean air and clean water. Greenspan help maintain clean air and water, therefore they are an absolute must.ALL HIKING AND BIKING WHERE\'s THE OHV PLAN? I pay taxes too! and get little or nothing for the state!LWCF funds should not be spent in New Mexico unless and until all deferred maintenance can be funded with the LWCF. Government owns more land that it can manage and care for. No more property should be taken off property tax rolls Having access to local outdoor activities areas in all areas or the state especially those in low income areas so the families can have an inexpensive place to visit, play or walk.Providing more input, control and financial support at the county, city, and Soil and Water Conservation District level would improve effectiveness and value of efforts. Exceptional care should be taken to not indicate or map trails and roads that are private and mot on public property. There are an abundance of public recreation resources in New Mexico. Expenditures should be focused on improvements, maintenance and staffing on those resources instead of more planning and new acquisitions.Provide year round 100% access to state parks by maintaining staffing levels to provide the minimum of services even in the winter months. Elephant Butte State Park used to provide year round access now most access is closed by locked gates at least six months out of the year.Coordinate with local communities to make cellular service available to parks an communities. Add wifi service to all parks. Increase the number of electric and water sites in most parks.There is potential here, but very little to keep out young people occupied and give them reasons to stay in the area after high school. There is also potential here to promote activities that will encourage travelers to stop in the area instead of just passing through, but nothing much is done unless it is a music venue that seems to promote fights between the locals.many existing plans are flawed, either in process or function, as well as controversial where they impact private property, as in the example of trails, trail heads, etc. Blanket implementation or requirement for funding could have many unintended consequences. Certainly within large municipalities there are community differences in desired recreation facilities. These decisions are best made at a community level, not with top-down implementation. Coordination and information is one thing, criteria and guesstimates of community desires is quite another.Local, state and county leaders need to develop a strong proposal to our federal representatives to reauthorize the LWCFI would like to see more state park camping and outdoor recreation available within a 90 minute drive from Albuquerque. more partnering with entities to develop joint use of outdoor areas. I would also like to see more large regional parks on the west side of ABQ. I believe that a good infrastructure of parks, walking and biking trails adds to the economic viability of town and cities while enhancing the quality of life for the citizensAll properties need regular, scheduled maintenance, as well as planning and funds for unforeseen repairs and replacement of assetsThe state health department has data , commonly called HIA data, you should consider using. NM IBIS, NM EPHTAny plans should be developed in cooperation with the local county and community so they "buy in" to the plan. Access to recreational areas is very important. You might consider involving the Forest Service in your planningI just feel we need to use current resources and staff be diligent in their duties. we are short staff everywhere and underpaid but we should do our best no matter what. Grater partnership with local governments to expand parks as well as reimbursing them for monies they have spent in upkeep of state parks in the past.First and foremost support and continue to develop existing parks. Encourage utilization of the fine parks that exist and try to keep the regulations flexible to better serve the public. One suggestion is to not enforce the 14 day stay during the winter when the parks are underutilized anyway. Might even add a buck per day to the cost for those wishing to stay longer than the fourteen days. Would help overall revenue and perhaps encourage use of the parks.Make use of the county health councils reports- community asset surveys, community health profiles, & community health improvement plans - in proposals for parks and trails grant proposalsThere needs to be more camping with accessibility to the water for the people without boats. Families need areas to camp teach kids about fishing and respecting our natural resources. Developing good family bonds through camping. There must be an inventory of all existing state trails and parks along with an inventory of pending or deferred maintenance. All of these maintenance projects must be completed before any future projects are considered or celebrated. I strongly OPPOSE the use of ANY LWCF funds on new projects of any kind. there should be city trails that challenge the person on the trail that allow the walker to negotiate through the entire city. My children were in elementary, middle school and high school here at no time did they go on outing to any outside open space. we moved from Michigan and that activity happened frequently while we lived in Michigan. we need to teach our young children to enjoy the state and be healthy in the state so that they stay in the state and help it grow positively. we need to have bike laws in place so people feel safe on their bikes here in NM. The language in this survey is over my head for an average Albuquerque resident--lots of acronyms. Sounds like management speak.As a previous NM State Park employee.....I moved from NM to CO in 2010. The park system and open space system in CO is handled completely different than NM's. NM needs to do some research as to better ways of implementing initiatives within the parks system......changing personnel procedures so budget monies are not wasted on law enforcement employees who leave after receiving certifications, etc.Objective 1.2: Increase local government capacity, resources and partnerships to address community recreation priorities. Action Item% High% Medium% LowAssist local governments in preparing a gap inventory showing areas that are underserved with play areas and programs.414019Establish a New Mexico boating resource round table with agencies and key stakeholders with town hall meetings to discuss common issues/concerns.233839Work with New Mexico corporations and NMRPA to help local governments and organizations find funding for underserved areas and to help maintain existing areas.573310Comments:ResponseAgree with everything Caring the message.Collaboration and partnerships work on every level. Inter-agency communication is essential. Knowledge is powerLocal concerns can't be overlooked, but squandering resources on in-fighting should be avoided.MediumOHV trails between towns like in the MinnesotaThe county health councils could be part of the work group preparing a gap inventory of assets.The last question should be, "do you own a boat". There can be a LOT of improvement in TorC. Watch your ernment needs volunteersneed to focus on the now and we will develop a strong future. the is a big gap on the west side of ABQ. with limited parks and play grounds and poolsBy interfacing with local businesses it ensures that we are also concerned about the issues with local environments.I think it is important to work with local governments to find the funding and to assure the rec areas are available but I think identifying the need and proposing the solution is the local govt. prerogativeWe have a lake, which depending on the drought and how much water is in it that draws boaters and fishermen. We need other recreation programs. There is a wonderful astronomy program that needs to be advertised more.The boating issue is particularly important because it would take few resources, the range of consequences are great, and interagency coordination and cooperation (agreement?) seems to be key to problems like Heron and the Butte. More constructive dialogue is a contribution.corporations need to be part of the solution to that they can attract highly qualified individuals to the state. Develop bond program for immediate upgrades to park facilities to be phased in over 5 year period and use User Fees as revenue source to debt serviceI understand that boaters are dissatisfied with recreation opportunities but there are not that many boaters; vastly more people will benefit from implementation of other priorities.The state health department has data , commonly called HIA data, you should consider using. NM IBIS, NMEPHTLet the local government decide what is best for them, Don't let the State dictate what they need to build and where. Provide resources for information, planning and funding. But let them decide what they need. The parks that our family have visited have offered a wide range of resources (i.e.: boating safety, informational materials, etc..) Thank you!State, local, and federal governments are all broke. We do not need to "increase local government capacity."We have the need for more family centered and adolescent centered activity areas in this community.Increase safety in the outdoors. Many urban trails are not safe or are perceived to be unsafe. Some are downright scary. Most state parks feel safe although I no longer visit Pancho Villa St. Park because of border issues. The state must be made safer.getting involved with the communities and sharing our ideas and wants, would probably help getting them more involved.Could we have working dump stations at all of the state parks please. I really would like to visit Oasis State Park more often but the area around the park has lost its local dump stations. We need to conserve the water in our lakes for use in New Mexico instead of sending it all to Texas. What makes you think local governments need direction from big brother. the state parks should set the example and allow local governments to govern their own communities. State dollars should go to developing state parks. Creating too many boards or committees is not always the solution to solving problem. There are program out there that are paid to address these problems and they need to do their job.I’m from El Paso, Texas and I fish constantly in New Mexico. I believe that we fisherman that live in El Paso should pay the annual residence New Mexico Fishing license fee instead of the out of state. I have always fished up in Ruidoso, Elephant Butte, Caballo Dam, etc. At least give us a well-deserved discount.have seen almost zero boating safety enforcement at Navajo dam park. boaters fish in close to bank and get hit by shore fishermen trying to hit them on purpose for being in so close to shore. no wake rules are ignored, large house boats tie up to shore and take up 10 or 12 spaces where people on shore could stand to fish. some type of boat patrol several times a day and some safety enforcement may cut down on this.Spend money and resources on existing facilities and resources not on planning and adding resources that will not have enough revenue or funds to maintain them.Objective 1.3: Provide lower cost, close to home, and accessible activities that are socially equitable and inclusive - targeting senior citizens, youth, low income and underserved populations. Action Item% High% Medium% LowCreate accessible, inclusive park features that address social and mental wellness. Employ best practices to meet or exceed Federal Americans with Disabilities Act requirements483715Develop and support outdoor education classrooms that enhance knowledge and appreciation for the outdoors.513712Increase transportation options to the outdoors via walking, bike, bus, shuttles, etc493219Comments:ResponseAll aspects of involvement, should be considered.HighThis is critical if New Mexico will ever address the social issues it currently faces.Very satisfied with all comments What is meant by "socially equitable and inclusive" and who determines the same?Yeah, I\\\'m sure we are VERY lacking in these areas.this is a must for all to enjoyBesides Brantley I really like Lake Sumner State Park. What a wonderful idea to have one area of the park as a dry camping or boondock area. I just wish all of the parks, especially Lake Brantley had such a great boondock area. Brantley would be utilized better if this were done. Keep ADA under control. It would be nice to provide ADA access to everyone but sometimes a wilderness, trail, route, or river can't provide ADA without ruining the overall experience for everyone. Example...Rio Grande Box. Bandelier National Monument, Sandia Crest Rim Trail.So many disabled individuals would welcome such changes; I often wanted to take my 98 year-old aunt to a variety of nature reserves but the only place around Albuq. where we could really safely go that she could get out and walk a little and enjoy herself was Tingley Beach. It was too daunting to try the BioPark or Aquarium, due to her need to rest, and she didn't want to use a wheelchair. Navajo dam has not allowed shore fishing on marina south of boat ramp for last 2 yrs. my wife is disabled and has not been able to fish for last 2 years there. that was $60 worth of fishing license. fees you lost there. there are nice hc facilities in park but only 2 camp spots that I have seen in the main loop. More safe bicycle routes, please! They are wonderful---the ones in Santa Fe are terrific, but we, need more!Educate NM kids to be stewards of their land; teach the value and importance of the outdoors. Kids complain there is nothing to do in Santa Fe, let’s show them there is plenty to do if they just get outside. Developing social and mental wellness goals are a little too much in my opinion. Getting outdoors is healing enough.Self-guided tours, trails and classrooms would be more beneficial and sustainable than staffed sites and programsEducation of the outfits is important not only as a community but for self-preservation as all these parks are provided to assist nature in its balance and provides us our recreation.Collaborate with neighboring communities to provide fall tours, host outdoor photography workshops, engage community colleges, non-profits and private landowners to partner in outdoor classroom activities.Better consider the law enforcement problems with Objective 1.3 and who is going to pay for it. I'm NOT going to use a park that is unsafe!The US Census Bureau has identifies over 300,000 New Mexicans as having a disability. Therefore physical environment and program accessibility should be made a priority so that all New Mexicans can enjoy the health and social benefit that are available. I recommend adding the following action statement to Objective 1.3 on page 23 to improve the strategic plan: Actions Ensure access to: significant trails, river segments that afford quality rafting, kayaking and canoeing; and quality rock climbing areas. Responsibility All land managers and the NMDOT. Discussion I have some examples where neglect to address access has resulted in de-facto closure. 1. Ten years ago a section of the Rio Grande from the Taos County line to quiet water below Embudo Station was open to canoers. It contains Class II rapids and even was used for canoe races. Now there is no takeout, only highway and guardrails. It would be very difficult or impossible to take a canoe out here, and it would be very dangerous because the NMDOT built it with only highway and guardrails. 2. Near the end of La Barbaria Road is an elaborate locked gate crossing the road. Behind the gate is a piece of private land. However, just beyond that the road crosses Forest Land before continuing onto more of the same private property. This effectively blocks access to; a long trail that follows a stream on Forest Service land, and an 85' high crag ideal for teaching beginning rock climbers. There are remains of historic Colonial logging trails a little to the East of this trail. The gate should be moved to the other side of the Forest Service land to ensure access. 3. A few hiking trails starting on Santa Fe County lands have inadequate parking considering the popularity of those trails. One of these is in an area of complex land ownership. I believe that failure to address access would cripple any final Strategic Plan. Thank you. James A. Olsen 84 Verano Loop Santa Fe, NM 87508 Again there are so many programs available to the public that provide many of these services. I believe that making the public more aware of the programs so they can utilize them is money better spent.Although some of the parks and recreation areas I visit have a few accessible features for people with physical challenges, the features are not adequate enough for all people to access and use the areas and activities. It is imperative that people with physical disabilities be included in the design and review of the accessibility of parks and recreation areas. In addition, ongoing upkeep and repair of structures and accessibility be a priority.More parks and manage not close fishing and camping areas that have been family traditions for many years. IE: Fishing camping in Francis Canyon AreaMore accessibility for elderly and disabled a must. Information age technology has had a negative effect on youth; they do not desire to play outdoors. Parents rely on TV/video games, etc. for entertainment.The bus system on the west side of ABQ is non-existent. no bus goes from the NW transport hub to CNM campus, the new ventana ranch regional park or the soccer complex I have a college degree and a good paying job and I still struggle so maybe some days have free days for state employees that are tied to days we would be off like a weekend or holiday that is observed by govt. None of us are getting any younger (let's face it), were all going to need help and educational assistance for our futures!I would like to see sustainability, growing food, finding food growing in the wild taught in school here. I think developing outdoor classrooms is entirely dependent on the reception they have received with previous attempts. If they have been well received, do it, if not then probably a waste of resources.Lessons from the state health department should be included in the outdoor classrooms. You might also want to work the aging department and senior service programs.Transportation for the elderly and disabled to outdoor venues would be a plus. There is a wonderful van for disabled and elderly, but it costs money that some elderly just don't have. And sometimes is it booked solid.Our city has had long term plans (over 10 years now) that have never completed. These plans included expansion of an open area to include zero entry pool, lazy river and other features. It would also be an asset to improve the Skate Park, also located in this area and include a "Teen" center or activity center that would provide appropriate adolescent activities and resources.Objective 1.4: Increase awareness of the benefits of outdoor recreation. Action Item% High% Medium% LowCommunicate to school systems how outdoor activities contribute to educational goals and core competencies criteria, as well as health benefits.622612Improve awareness and partnerships with allied professionals such as Game and Fish, public works departments, stormwater, etc.553411Promote the economic, health and environmental benefits of outdoor recreation to elected and appointed officials.543016Comments:ResponseDon't forget BLM, Forest Service and state land partnershipsEducation is very important Get the youth to learn about the outdoors instead of them being on the Dam cell phone All day!!!HighI love the archery in schools program.Increased awareness can only help.The community could utilize this enhanced area in conjunction with the RISD.The state must have control and a say of the "states" resources.Too many agencies only address THEIR concerns. It is time to work together.We need more money budgeted to keep state parks open longer (more days)every summer season.You might want to work with the state health department on these activities.focus on community education and less focus on lobbying highkeep the community well informed and educated on access to landsnoneTeaching children how to take care of the environmental health of our public spaces is very important.Kids need to get off the computer and cell phones and get outdoors. There needs to be more activities that would be of interest to them.All are important and challenging with considerable effort being expended now, most successfully with schools it seems.appointed officials don't care of any program unless the voter cares and addresses them directly. more education and experiences with the outdoors will hopefully incite people to respond to their elected officials to pass on those experiences that had with their friends and families. I do not believe that NM Game and Fish is a professional organization. Of late they are a POLITICAL ORGANIZATION.When I went to school physical education was a requirement not an option, but now too often it isn't even an option. Promoting outdoor activities to families through the schools would be great.we need to give back to communities and we should tie things together with the school systems so our kids can participate in field trips that are teaches them about the outdoors. come on it can be done. people are just lazy and don't want to work together. Our educational system is dysfunctional: a real curriculum is no longer taught. The last thing needed is someone's indoctrination program on "outdoor activities." Again, government is broke. We can't sustain more programs.perhaps you could have a school adopt a park, spend a Saturday picking up trash and then you give them a hot dog cook out or something. Put up some no littering signs at fishing areas and some trash cans that are emptied daily. last snagging season one of the trash cans at the parking lot was not emptied the entire 8 days I was there and it was overflowing when I got there. Children need to know the availability and resources of outdoor activities to promote a healthy lifestyle.Always cater too and make generous allowance to handicapped groups and youth groups. Opportunities for the first group may be limited by other things, be sure that the parks themselves don't infringe on their enjoyment. As for the kids, they are the heirs to whatever parks are developed today, teach them to love them, respect them and foster their care and development. Involving local government in the plans, process and then funding them will be more effective. That would be the same for school activities as well, local control would be most effective and efficient.Sooooo important, that this message gets to the right people for others to enjoy and have the opportunity to utilize, health, young people being involved, absolutely, can’ t get better than nature, to make your life healthier and abundantMaybe you should get out in an RV yourselves and see what great parks we have. Come camp for the entire two weeks and go to different parks also. You would be surprised to see what I could point out to you since my home-office is on wheels. How do you measure outcomes? Terms such as "increase awareness" are too vague. Increasing awareness sounds good but the outcomes should be increased visits to state parks, more resources devoted to parks (I.e.$$). Game and Fish Wildlife Management Areas are an unknown outdoor recreation resource to many non-consumptive users. This can be addressed via blended learning in many school systems or by using competency based learning initiatives across the state. If we can get the kids off the streets & outdoors it may well keep some of them out of trouble. I have seen many youth groups that started out bad & ended up good just after a few days. Think of the possibilities if they could do this more often.TorC schools do a great job involving kids. City government seems to care less, most projects are taken on by private individuals. Engage private landowners to partner with schools to host outdoor classrooms, conduct scientific experiments, schedule "a day on the land" for students, be innovative, grow young leaders to move the programs forward.Educating these groups with scientific data and a global perspective is essential and should be a priority along with care of wildlife and wild spaces. Any other education provided to the local community provides them with knowledge of the recreational areas that are provided and to assist in maintenance is important for overall environment process to rejuvenate themselves.Trails:Objective 2.1: Provide leadership in trail planning initiatives. Action Item% High% Medium% LowDevelop a state wide trail inventory and integrate mapping66268Host a work session at the 2016 NMRPA conference to define next steps for a New Mexico trails inventory.334720Make better use of and support volunteer groups to maintain and build trails67276Work with New Mexico Tourism Department to highlight trails in New Mexico since out-of-state visitors indicated a preference for hiking among their top activities.65278Comments:ResponseBetter handicap trails for those with only minor handicap. Say intermediate.Every trail I maintained there has been destroyed.Get folks back to work...reestablish the C.C.C.Good clean trails are needed, also advertise the trails so people can know about them Good idea do have volunteers and everyone should have free accessGood jobHighI don’t use the trail systems so I won’t do this sectionI'm not a citizen of NM But I think this plan has its merits.It can be very difficult to figure out where trails exist in New Mexico.Keep all trails open to bikes.Maintain and map the back roads and trails Mapping is very important Mountain biking trails need to be added throughout the state.My comments on Objective 1.3 in part apply to this section as well.The rio corridor deserves trail system in NM. I support ORV closing/designation.The trail system is beneficial to everyone, visitors, locals, and tourism.The trails in New Mexico need to be more highlighted and advertised. There is no mention of jeep trails or OHV trails. This need so to be addressed.There need to be more trails available for off road motorcyclesThis page of the survey should define NMRPA...Trails are not always maintained or marked.What is NMRPA? Not everyone knows agency acronyms.With the possibility of people getting lost while hiking a trail could mean life and death.also focus on the citizens or NM as we enjoy the trails just as much as visitors to our state. be sure that people pick up after their pets on these trails. keep NM money in NM and double charge Texans to visit so they learn to respect NM lands!state wide leadership is very important for all involve!work with volunteer and youth groups like the boy scouts to build and maintain trailsGiven the land tenure status throughout New Mexico, private, state, and federal, there can realistically be no "state wide trail inventory" with integrated mapping. These sorts of programs are an attempt to secure private lands for public trails.Not just to maintain and build trails, but use volunteers to clear out dead trees and shrubs from the forests. The wood could be sold to increase or create funds to upkeep the trails, or for signs, literature, etc.. Pinetop Arizona has an amazing trails system, you should look at the trail model they have in place. WOWUse more partners: look at the Continental Divide trail annex through Cuba as an example of how trail can support local community health initiatives as well as support local economies with the hikers having access to townespecially picking up trash, as it seems to be blowing everywhere and every time I go out on a trail or even to the forest, I end up picking up more trash, than enjoying the environment and scenery!!The quality of bike and hiking trails in Summit County, CO should be used as an example. However they accomplished that could be a great model. Summit was voted the healthiest in America.We have a low number of equestrian trails in the state, possibly we could see more of them. The ones we do currently have could use some upkeep.Please make trail maps easily available to NM residents as well as tourists and publicize their availability.Am disappointed in the lack of funding and personnel at the Sonoita Creek St natural Area to support the trails and natural area.The not for profit group, New Mexico Volunteers for the Outdoors, should be given a higher priority for utilizing financial and support resources because this group is more efficient.Many people travel with their pets. It is important to recognize that segment and create opportunities for people with pets.Perfect for non-felony prisoners. My son in Minnesota took bus loads out to state parks etc...and built trails, shelters....all kinds of things we use...the trails should be a highlight of tourism in new mexico, but they should also be improved and mapped for emergency purposes. OHV trails have been practically eliminated by the Forest Service Travel Management Plans. New Mexico needs to address this inequity by providing more single track trails for OHV use throughout the State so that the few that are remaining are not destroyed by overuse.Increase the local and out-of-state knowledge of trails while allowing more groups access to them.I am an avid hiker and have discovered the state parks and their hiking trails. And boy do our hiking trails need some regular maintenance. I pay tax $ specifically for off highway recreation, and I want to see those $ used for maintaining trails for off road recreation! Trails around Santa Fe are targeted by burglars. Safety and security needs to be of the highest priority. An out of state woman had her mtn bike stolen in Abq. recently. She had come to NM to ride. This is the worst kind of publicity.I am interested in using the trails; however, when I go online the data is outdated. Clearer mapping to avoid getting lost is my concern. Also, since I am alone, it’s important to allow dogs.Hiking and biking. Adventure biking is growing. The Great Divide MTB Route is already well known, but there are more opportunities to highlight NM's trails. The new Rio Grande trail would be excellent for biking!Help each target recreational demographic find the right trains for them, i.e. help mountain bikers, hikers, OHV/ATV (Razors, crawlers), find the best trails for them so we can all enjoy the outdoors in our own way together as a community. There is a lot of emphasis on-out-of- state tourists, but New Mexicans need to know about trails in their own state. Several state departments have mapping options/services. Maybe they should all talk? Share knowledge? Share links and promote each other's services? Eagle scouts need projects and it is free labor name a trail after the Eagle Scout that improves it or does some difference.Biking, hiking and off road vehicle trails should be promoted. This is a huge recreational activity for families.With the amount of known trails versus inventoried trails there is an opportunity to create more excitement for tourists to visit our stateStudies have shown that if trails are built, people will use them. I am an avid cyclist and have used the trails in ABQ and Santa Fe for years. I live in ABQ and use the trails for recreation and commuting. I work in Santa Fe and use the trails during my lunch hour to commute around the city safely. Trails need to be safe and well maintained for everyone to use and enjoy. Providing trail maps is important. Tell stories of conservation achievements - get the public out on the land. Engage adults to serve as student mentors. Agencies such as F&WS NM Partners program can play an important role in this process.Access to wild country becomes more scarce daily. It is critical that the public retain access to wild country.The Blackfeathers have been clearing trails in Northern NM for over 35 years that I have been associated with them. Our extensive trail inventory, once discovered by the forest service has been shut down.All my comments are in context of using OHV (off road vehicles) on single-track trails, within NM.In Santa Fe it is difficult to find information about our trails. They should be immediately plowed in winter if the intent is for easy commuting. For this reason as well the main in-town trails should be lit between 6:00 am and daylight. Maybe solar lights?Consider how trails can be made accessible for bikers and wheelchair users. See and consider how AMAFCA did the trail along the Embudo Arroyo parallel to and north of I-40, east of I-25 in Albuquerque. AMAFCA would be a good partner for much more. They have a lot of experience in managing trails and design standards.High School Jrotc programs are required to complete community service projects yearly and would enjoy volunteering to assist the stateThe Santa Fe and Carson forests haven\'t done a thing since they reduced trails (TMR) by 90%. It\'s an economic loss for the state...... I know a lot of people that would volunteer to build & help maintain trails, why not take advantage of this "free" help. Promoting these improved trails could also be a big draw to out of state visitors. The trails in our state are fabulous and better and regular maintenance would only increase usage on a regular basis.The difference between the maintenance of the trails in New Mexico and the trails in Colorado is vast. The trail system in New Mexico and the maintenance of trails needs to be improved for economic and safety reasons. Trail stewardship by allowing local organizations, etc. to adopt trails. Providing trail maintenance, cleanup, development of new connecting trails, maps, signs, etc. All are important and each seems to be getting about as much attention now as agency resources permit with promising results. The Boy Scouts through their Eagle Scout program have successfully built trails in my community. Other volunteer organizations may be helpful too. Quiviera Coalition has some good guidance and trail building activities.OHV trail opportunities need to be identified and expanded. The OHV community, throughout the country is a growing recreation segment. This is an out-of-State economic generator. I prefer less government intrusion in our natural resources and would like for you to explore ways to keep the federal gov out of our state.I am a hiker. Appreciate trail maintenance and signage. Do not appreciate ATV’s and their damage/noise. I find that the trails bikers use need a lot more maintenance.Having people volunteer to maintain and build trails is a great idea because the person will have a sense of pride in the trail and appreciate it by keeping it clean and presentable.We do not do enough for cycling in this state. Arizona is building an east to west bicycle trail. We could do something similar and connect to the Arizona Trail via the I-10 corridor. We do need dedicated cycling trails, multi-use trails present hazards.Volunteer groups are great, however volunteers pay taxes and putting in so many hours is a turn off. Our group of puts on 1000- 1500 hours a year (average 4 people) and it becomes difficult. however you get the best of what the park needs are, those groups need funding in which City and State personal does not provide proper build. Tourism Department lacks several sites in Santa Fe. I would specifically like to address the trails at Ute Lake. The trails are used by local residents and visitors year round. Recently due to the unusual amount of moisture, there has been a higher volume of stickers, weeds, grasses etc, growing on the trails. There has been no maintenance on these trails since early August. The trails at this point are unusable for both foot traffic and paw traffic. As a local resident we would appreciate a quick resolution to this problem. Thank you.If you want to camp and go mountain biking at a state park, you go to Colorado State Parks. NM does not have any state parks with mountain biking at or near the state parks.TRAILS NEED TO BE ADA ACCESSIBLE. This is Fed law and in urban areas like ABQ's Bosque, trails have to meet ADA. We should be setting up best practices that meet and exceed standards for inclusive trails and facilities that allow all bodies and disabilities to have enjoyable, safe and dignified experiences while accessing natural spaces. Visitors often want trail data for wheelchair and slow walker access, too. We need better signs on some of the trails the rating of difficulty and the distance. Highway roads mark as far as the type of vehicle, 4 wheel drive ,passenger car etc.New Mexico has many great trails. It would be nice to see some additional trailheads for easier access. I would contact local Boy Scouts of America to help. Boys need to do service hours to advance in rank and earn awards. Free labor from willing young men and parents. They clean/fix up a trail really quick.Objective 2.2: Increase the rate of trail construction and support trail maintenance training and techniques. Action Item% High% Medium% LowComplete ADA self evaluation assessments, implement transition plans to address deficiencies, and add ADA accessible trails to the statewide trail inventory.394219Construct previously planned local trails within communities59338Develop mountain bike trail systems and maintenance programs403624Increase rate of trail implementation through alternative funding sources such as alternative transportation funding, clean air mitigation and volunteers.493813Comments:ResponseAny previous rail should be a trail.Bike trails are good in the right place Don't block one type of outdoor user due to another group being more vocal. Encourage user groups to take a more active role in maintenance issuesExpand multi-use trails Get folks back to work...reestablish the C.C.C.I do not know where to go in NM and find, maintained mountain bike trails I would like to see more motorized trails.I would like to see more mountain bike trails for beginners.It's more important to develop maintenance programs than to develop more mountain bike trailsNo jeep or OHV trails? Shame on you. Points of interest and history should be placed on all trails...Those mountain bike trails should include use by off road motorcycles!Volunteers, yes. ADA access, yes. Mountain bike trails, keeps young folks busy.We need to fund improvements to current trails before we build more. What about equestrian use??????Wider trails for ada people Wild mountain bikers can ruin the wild experience for non-biking enthusiasts.Work with non-profits and form partnerships to address projects on the land.different trails for mountain bikes are nice.encourage programs i.e. Boy Scouts to clean and maintain trailsencourage youth to explore the outdoors and appreciate the beautify of our state.how about sidewalks/ bike lanes in Santa Feimplements are very much neededkeep the fu**ing bicyclists out of the mountains as they destroy walking/herd trails !might want to explain ADAthere needs to be more handicap access to trailstrails need to provide accessibility for people with disabilities to the maximum extent feasibleWe long, continuous, bikeways that link communities; such as extending the Rio Grande Bosque bikeway from Bernalillo to Belen. Also, a bikeway loop around Albuquerque. Support Bike maintenance programs. The trail systems absolutely needs to look at the maintenance cost. Santa Fe has lots of volunteers however it’s very difficult for the people to continue with not funding sources. The use of OHV vehicle licensing fees have been used primarily for enforcement. The majority of these funds should be used to construct new trail systems throughout the state. These trails if constructed in a sustainable method can be used by all user groups i.e. mountain bikers, hikers, equestrian.ADA accessible trails are important. Mountain bike trails and road bike trails are very important.Mount an education/orientation program to hiking, biking and equestrian use of trails in our schools.The trails need to be for everyone. Budgets need to be implemented and not just think that a structured system in place can be maintained for free by volunteers. Once again, government at all levels is broke. Increased "trail construction" with corresponding "trail maintenance" is nonsense given the financial condition of government.The trail between the Forest Service property at Sandia mountains and the residential area west of Tramway in Albuquerque could be improved to provide an ADA surface, with attractive landscape screening between it and the housing on the west side. That neighborhood association would probably be willing to participate.With the decreasing lack of water resources, many parks in other states are creating more trails to increase tourism.State Parks has been using the RTP money to build bathrooms at Storey and the Butte. BUT there is no OHV on state parks. YOU ARE WELCOME FOR USING THE MONEY........!I am personally more interested in increasing the trail networks in cities in NM and in the state-wide network. City trails reduce congestion during commute hours and provide a safe environment for individuals and families to walk, in-line skate, skateboard, bike, etc. These trails can both improve health and also bring families and communities closer together. Again provide a funding support for local collaboration-Many great assets are in the state need additional funding and partners to make world classI am Handicapped. I still get out onto the trails and sightseeing. ADA many times makes even the slightest activity impossible if the entity doesn't comply. Don't need government agencies to apply common sense to outdoor activities. There are many trails approved during Travel Management that aren't open due to administrative reasons such as arch and SHPO requirements. This work needs to be prioritized so that trails already in existence, ready to be opened can do so. Local governments need to be more sensitive to users’ needs. The Santa Fe Rail Trail project from Rabbit road to Eldorado was over-engineered and the planners ignored some critical input provided by users. Commuting time on the trail is actually longer than what it was prior to the construction.It is not unusual to find trails that have been washed out and need to be graveled and redefined. Mountain bike trails are very needed personally and ride along with your pet or dog running next to youI'm not sure from the report what the demand is for ADA accessible trails. Currently, I notice many mountain biking trails are actually hiking trails that allow mountain bikers. More mountain bike specific trails might be good, but maybe the demand is not there.As per earlier comments, construction of previously planned trails within communities may not be readily received by those communities as they were controversial and/or the development process was flawed. Increasing trail implementation by diverting monies from transportation or clean air mitigation funds seems completely contrary to what that funding was originally targeted for, leading to questions of ethics and perhaps legality. I doubt if anyone thought clean air money would be used for anything other than cleaning air.Alternative funding for trails could come from health grants for addressing chronic health indicators. Look for trail development to address access by age and ability - if trails are too strenuous to the locals they will not use them. Address trails for able elders who want access to the outdoors but they don't need to summit a peakYou are trying to make too many things in too many areas to provide trails to a low user group like ADA. Diversify where appropriate but understand not all trails can be multiple use. Bikers, ATVs, Runners, Motorcyclists, horses, ADA all have their own needs for trails suitable for their use. That is what makes various trails so special and unique.Put in atv trails, this would be a huge economic boost for State parks and the State of NM. ATV riders spend money on gas, food & lodging. It's a no brainer NM lags behind every State when it comes to ATV trails & usage.California has 250+ ADA accessible trails, New Mexico has 4. Need I say more? The city of ABQ needs to have trails on their city Transition Plan for future and current review, audits and planning, construction. The Valles Caldera needs to have an ADA accessible trail built, as they are now Park Service and need to do a good job of including visitors with disabilities.An ADA transition plan to address deficiencies and add accessible trails statewide should be one of the highest priorities.A well planned system of trails throughout the state will encourage outdoor activities. Trails should be limited to non-motorized vehicles. Create Trails between parks Like From Cimarron Canyon to Coyote Creek. A Trail from Storrie Lake to Morphy Lake. or maybe a trail system that connects all of the State Parks. Trails for hiking, Mountain Biking, and equestrian.The more development you create, the less the wild areas of our state are wild. I prefer them to be natural, not man-made.Pecos New Mexico is one of the areas that is visited by tourists every year, yet it has one of the poorest maintained forests in the state. It is a shame that we are letting this majestic resource fall to ruin because of mismanagement. There are very few marked walking or biking trails in this area and the very few that are there are in horrific condition.I live in Northwest Albuquerque and we are limited to bike trails so having more would encourage more people to go out and ride the trails. Requesting that the people that utilize the trail to volunteer would be easier if there were more assessable trails nearby.too many mountain bike crazies trying to kill hikers by flying down the trail. Need trails for hikers only. Need signage indicating that bikers must yield to hikers, because they never do. Too many accidents due to reckless mountain bikers on trails.Basic trail plans are needed that will identify trail needs both construction and maintenance. Many park have no trail mgt. planObjective 2.3: Improve local non-motorized transportation connectivity (sidewalks, trails, etc.) to parks by creating safe neighborhood access routes. Action Item% High% Medium% LowEncourage the development of recreation facilities that include alternative transportation and infrastructure options and “Safe Routes to Everywhere” principles.493219Include bicycle and pedestrian improvements as an incremental part of larger projects553114Review and leverage the most appropriate funding sources for bicycle and pedestrian projects such as congestion mitigation, air quality improvement program or the surface transportation program.443818Comments:ResponseAlbuquerque has an awesome bike paths and bike lanesAll trails, ...whether biking, running , horse or hiking types help the area.Bike trails should be by themselves Connecting existing paved trails where one does not have to cross streets would be beneficial.MONEY IS BEING SPENT ON THE ABOVE ALL THE TIME.........NONE IS BEING SPENT ON OHV! MediumStick to your lane. air quality improvement is not relevant.You are too vague in this area. If you are going to use bicycles you need to provide trails.development is very much neededkeep the fu**ing bicyclists out of the mountains as they destroy walking/herd trails !safe walk/running trails without running into vehicles or vehicles not seeing you.You might want to ask the state health department for HIA data. NMIBIS and NMEPHT. The state health department's environmental health bureau could be a resource. bicycle facilities have no tax base; if providing additional facility, the bicyclists should pay for it in the form of tax on bicycles and accessories. pedestrians should be provided for as part of metro area rehabilitation and road improvementDon't forget ADA requirements where bike trails cross roadways. AMAFCA has gates across the bike trails to prevent unwanted cars from entering with gravel paths around them that bicyclists can easily use by dismounting and walking through, but are impossible for wheel chair users.Could we also have some presentations on what to do if you find a bear, snake, or rabid animal on the trail?I believe that if the recreational facilities are available then more people with take advantage of the so making improvement or creating new sites or facilities should always be considered.I ride my bike often and I don't think drivers know how to look for cyclists. I also don't think cyclists understand laws either.I keep hearing a theme about "clean air". I fear special interests are influencing this process. This section is on providing leadership, not environmental conditions.Santa Fe promotes itself as a "green" community. The improvement of the bicycle and pedestrian non-motorized transportation connectivity would show support of the "green" mindset for both locals and tourists. This will also help improve the air quality for our community.I'm suspicious that competing with other interest groups (e.g., air quality) for available funds would run counter to building coalitions with them to pursue joint efforts that might help access funds headed to whole other sectors (e.g., policing).Address beautification along highways where bicycle trails exist. Create bicycle trials around small rural towns. Increase butterfly gardens in small communities. Think!There is enough biking trails and the emphasis should be on other factors, such as: walking trails or hiking areas.Again, the difference between the bike trails in New Mexico and Colorado is vast. We need to not only build bike trails but to maintain them. We need to not only put paths for biking and running in parks, we need to maintain them. Encouraging outdoor activities such as walking, biking, and hiking contribute to the health and vitality of the community. I am not aware of any more than 10 miles of OHV single track trail, hosted by the State, on State or Federal property - which is very poor. Given the size of NM, there ought to be 1000 miles of single track trail. I am leery of efforts to "encourage" anyone to do anything What does that mean? Bumper stickers, tee shirts, public service announcements?Bikes are beginning to take over every area of pedestrian issues in built environments. It's always cars against bikes and people. Bike lobbies just happen to be loud, but they are a very small % of the population of mobility users. People with disabilities make up 25% of the population of New Mexico, per the NM DOH. 1 in 4 people. Funding for curb cuts, and new/improved best practice entries to civic buildings, spaces and events needs to also be explored and planned for, not just more bike separated green lanes.Only if appropriate for the larger project. Drivers tend to use bicycle lanes as extra roadway, especially where the lane is so remote and unmaintained that cyclists rarely utilize it. This then leads to bad driving habits and lack of respect for bicycle lanes that are frequently used. The safe access routes to parks etc. are already being implemented in the Santa Fe area by BTAC, Santa Fe Conservation Trust, Santa Fe Fat Tire Society and Trails Alliance of Santa Fe.We need safe routes on our trails in some of the more dense places and congested places so people can feel safe when walking, biking, running and so on. "Alternative transportation...bicycle and pedestrian improvements" as an attempt at "congestion mitigation, air quality improvement program" are all concepts coming out of the sustainable communities push by the federal government. When closely examined, the sustainable communities concept is simply land use control and should be rejected.Objective 2.4: Develop more sustainable OHV trail systems throughout the state. Action Item% High% Medium% LowAccelerate the implementation of federal and county travel management plans to adequately designate and implement suitable OHV routes.383428Create OHV parks in small, rural communities as an economic driver333433Create dedicated OHV areas to give riders what they desire while minimizing conflict with other user groups.453322Increase education and outreach to OHV users to improve resource stewardship and "Leave No Trace" principles.642214Comments:Response OHV should be in designated areas only - they can be destructive.I do not remember what OHV means so am not commenting on three of the above.I would like to see as few ATV areas as possible. It would help if you define OHV.More areas for motorized recreation are badly needed.Need more trash receptacles everywhere. Seems people can pack it in, but not out.Not sure what OHV stands for. OHV produces noise pollution, and campers, want to get away from the noise of OHV.OHV should have their own trails OHV’s are inherently dangerousSome areas have serious litter issues; such as Pecos river, Buckman Road areas.This is an area that NM really needs to explore. A good example is the Moab, UT area.Towns can become OHV friendly to increase revenue. Why limit this to small towns? Use cable barriers to control egress out of OHV trails to sensitive and erodible areas.dedication is very much neededincorporate youth through the schools to own and maintain a trail High priority here. Use the licensing fees fund for OHV's to develop a state wide system of off highway single track trails. This would generate substantial income in the state from fuel use, sales of OHV, motel and hotel revenue , restaurant food sales etc. from the OHV community both in state and out of state tourism use.You might want to get some information from the state health department's injury prevention bureau to include in your education. Need to have better enforcement of helmets, registration, intoxication, etc. This will help keep the scum off the trails that refuse to be safe and never have the proper tags for their OHV.I ride a motorcycle, but I will not drive it on the highways here in the state since they are too dangerous. I know that people who own OHV would love to have a place to legally take their OHVs to so they can experience the great outdoors without fear trespassing on privately owned property.I like OHV and they are fun but we need to manage them very carefully. Follow rules and regulations. I like the increase education and the “Leave No Trace” principles. That is a real problem now. As an avid OHV recreationalist, approved trails are important to me and it is a shame when someone goes off trail and destroys vegetation. Please keep more trails open and accessible so 'kids' don't go and make their own.OHV use generally leads to environmental degradation on our hillsides and arroyos. OHV use for recreation generally leads to damage of our lands and even serious accidents by users.OHV owners should take ownership and pick up trash left by others, I myself have a bag that attaches to my spare tire and holds 50#s of trash You list us at 2%. The areas we frequent are so far off the beaten path that I can traverse 80 miles of trail in a day and never see another person. Instead of trying to make trails close to town multi-use, open motorized areas in regions where the hikers won't go. works out well for both of us.PEOPLE DON\'T TRAVEL FROM OUT OF STATE TO PLAY IN A PARK WHEN THERE ARE SO MANY NATIONAL FORESTS TO RIDE......don't close any more roads in our national forest, the national forest is meant to be used, leave them open for off roading and 4wheel drive vehicles; educate/inform and ask that they stay on the road if the road isn't maintained much it should be enough of a challengeAlthough this ties in with motorized outdoor recreation it does not mold well with health and wellness. As an avid hunter who does not use OHV, I would rather see less hunting areas accessible to game via OHV, than more.I don't think off road vehicle users give a s**t about the quality of anyone else's life or the environment.have a trail system and location within each park for OHV use all the time with a yearly riding pass and training on ridingthis survey page should define OHV. My selections will change depending on if this means 'Outdoor Horse-like Vehicle" versus "Over Head Vent". The travel management plan has reduced the areas we used to camp on. I do not think this type of action will increase the use of our Forest and our door resources, as for the State this only can mean a loss in revenue There isn't really a reason that trails for hiking and mtn bikes can't be shared with MC. ATVs on the other hand tear up more land. OHV education is VERY important, NM is vastly behind with proper builds at our designated riding areas. The lack of design & engineering at our parks Needs to be addresses. Core biking sports lack funding period. (BMX and MX). NM is in a position of possibly being a rich state for this use. It is important because all other biking sports follow. not to mention it is low in cost. Off Highway Vehicles are a big nuisance, especially in rural areas where people think the ditch banks are their private highways for 4 wheelers. They cause difficulty with livestock, pedestrians, and autos, while being a noise and dust nuisance. Creating off road areas away from communities, on BLM lands or state lands is far more appropriate than creating trails in communities. Plus those community parks become a place to avoid...The current travel management plan appears to be severely limiting the people's access to their lands.Lake Brantley had a presentation on the big predatory birds. Would really like to see more at this park since my base camp is the SKP RV park just across the lake. What a wonderful short trip that is. Education of off road vehicle users to "leave no Trace" and resource stewardship is very important. having designated areas, to protect other key resource areasOff road vehicles should be BANNED everywhere, but if we can't do that, at least give very hefty fines for disturbing places not designated for off-road vehicles.Our state promotes an outdoor mindset and this includes OHV activities. If the creation of OHV parks can improve the state and local economies and reduce the damage to hiking trails, then the development of OHV parks should be a high priority.LNT and OHV are hard to integrate and the OHV communities are likely less receptive than other recreational modes. Maybe just de-conflict and get on with it.being able to use OHV in the mountains to explore new areas, especially for hunting and finding fuel wood areas, are more of a consideration of users than having their own park. they are fun, but they serve a practical purpose in the mountains.New SWAN park in Santa Fe is attracting OHV's and is a danger and are destructive to the newly developed area. having designated areas will help.Create Parks or at least managed areas in sand dunes etc. areas like west of Albuquerque (on top of 9 mile hill) or 7 miles west of Rio Rancho sand dunes and canyons that lead down to the Rio Puerco and numerous other places like that around the state.Increase public awareness about the legal aspects of OHV and the impact on illegal operation of OHV's. Keep OHV's away from hiking trails and campgrounds. They are a nuisance when used in areas not designated for them. IMHO OHVs are a noisy, smelly plague. I support creating OHV areas that are well out of hearing range of hikers, and where erosion is not a concern.This has become a popular family activity. Lots of people go out of state for this kind of opportunity.many times the trash is not collected in a timely manner and the overflow looks horrible and the wind takes trashProbably the most important issue. needs to be coordinated with Federal agencies ie...Forest service, BLMPut in and maintain OHV trails, it's a no brainer OHV users spend money on gas, food and lodging would be a huge economic boost to the State.This survey already has too much focus on non-motorized trail use - and not enough on motorized trails.While dedicated OHV areas are a good option. This should not come at the expense of closing OHV's to existing multi-use trail systems. There are vast existing recreational opportunities for so-called "quiet recreation" users in wilderness areas, all State parks, and most municipal and County lands as most currently forbid OHV use. BLM and Forest Service lands are multi-use, by design and continue to exist as such. It is completely one-sided and unfair to corral motorized recreation to "dedicated" areas as they only serve one small segment. The State needs to identify opportunities to connect trails from one community to another so as to enhance and expand the recreation experience for OHV's. This is done in many surrounding State's with appeal and success. the state needs to work better with BLM and other agencies to facilitate a more uniform OHV policy As an avid OHV user, I believe you could vastly improve tourism spending by better accommodating this demographic. Look at the states of Utah, West Virginia, Tennessee, South Dakota, (among others) and see what the OHV community has done for their local economy.ATV trails are excellent for the handicapped and young children. They are a way to get out into the trails and be a part of nature. Noticed the lack of them in the areas we hiked.keep the fu**ing bicyclists and ATV's/OHV's out of the mountains as they destroy walking/herd trails!Objective 2.5: Plan, prioritize, and implement new statewide and regional trail connections between cities and towns.Action Item% High% Medium% LowAcquire fee-simple, trail easements, or complete land swaps to close the gaps in trails and open spaces to create contiguous recreational opportunities.573013Identify the priority segments of the state’s long distance trails and implement by 2020444115Secure funding to staff a position to coordinate implementation and management of the Rio Grande Trail.394120Work with partners to identify and complete new National Recreation Trails and side-connecting trails to communities along National Trails and major state trails.493912Work with the NMDOT Bicycle, Pedestrian, Mountain Bike, and Equestrian trails coordinator on statewide bicycle infrastructure.503119Comments:ResponseAll good stuff here! The CDT is a big deal for biking in many states north of NM.All these sound greatColorado Trail, Arizona Trail, etc. New Mexico does not have one.Great opportunities in this area. HighI think it important to have trails and bike path to help the community with tourism.I think people will use the Rio Grande Trail, as they do the Arizona Trail and Colorado Trail.Implementation/Creation of the Rio Grande Trail is of paramount importance.Is there not funding now to coordinate the position for the Rio Grande Trail? Less is more.Single day fee based trail access to offset some cost of trail system.The Continental Divide Trail likely satisfies distance hikers.do not waste time of funding on half built trails. you end up doing the work twice.....identification is very much neededlighting not just for trails at day but also at night (lit up trails)bicyclists do not pay taxes specifically for bicycle facilities. once a tax is implemented the use of funds for additional facilities will not be an issueLessen the biking trails and increase more walking trails. There seems to be enough biking trails in cities and towns. I love a good ride on a trail but there are too many fragmented trails. Why can't planning and zoning require new subdivisions to connect their trails to existing?why are SO many questions on this only bike related? No doubt bike coordinators are writing the surveys. Stop this. we don't need more fees, just better management of funds. or charge tourists and let nm residents go at no charge. land swaps never favor the public but it does favor the individual landowner (the trades are seemingly lopsided)Yes to all of these priorities but this also needs to be done for the OHV community. If you look at the Paiute Trail in Utah. This is a series of individual trails that were connected to create a long distance trail experience for OHV's that benefits the surrounding communities economically as well as attracting users from thousands of miles away. NO MONEY SPENT ON OHV! It\'s ALL about hikers and bikers. A very small amount of money being spent on developing OHV trails in our forests!what about rails to trails opportunities? many of the old narrow gage RR right of ways would make great trailsstatewide bicycle infrastructure. Why should Equestrians help with this unless everyone also works with them? You seem very bike centric.It would be wonderful to have bicycle trails that connect from the west to the east and from the north to the south of the state.We have so much open area there is no need to infringe on land of others for public use. A trail such as the Rio Grande trail needs to have a staffed person not only for maintenance but for security.The more trails are connected with other trails and open spaces, the more interesting they are and the more use they will get, I believe.Yes do secure funding for staff positions for all of the parks. Many of them need more than just a couple for camp hosts. What about a cluster of staff for each park? I have been to Bottomless Lakes when the local crowd was rowdy and they differently needed more hosts on duty. I love my camping experience at each park. Model a state OHV trail network after Utah's ATV network which goes from town-to-town starting around Richfield, UT Or, model West Virginia's trail network.There are tons of public lands which are land locked by private and have turned into virtual playgrounds for those landowners/companies (who lease them) while denying access to the citizens who pay the taxes for those lands and personnel who manage them. There needs to be clauses for all NM SLO leases, at least at the state level (NM SLO) which allow for public access when the land is leased (regardless of use). This activity should be cross-walked at the federal level for all public land (BLM, etc.).The main roads to and from the Organ Mountains are sandy dirt roads, paved road would make the trip more accessible to people that don't have truck or 4x4 it's a rough drive up to the Organs. Also we need more information on how to get to the Robledo Mountains with access road it's rough getting there if you can find them. Also on Saturdays in Ft. Selden Radium Spring NM, they sometime they have some outdoor cooking, and they also have class and some only if they know you do they provide you with an invitation. This isn't advertised you only find out about it if you go. And on Mother's day they have tea and sandwich for mothers you need to advertise this, they also have birding adventures with the park ranger or stargazing I only know about it if I pass there sign, that's in radium springs I live in Las Cruces, you need to get the word out to people in Las Cruces. You have some wonderful thing happening at your parks but where's the advertisement I would like to know where to get the information. you could sell the pitch such as Adopt A Highway to civic organizations to help build and maintain the long trails.I don't support acquiring private land, trail easement or land swaps. I believe the gaps can be closed by including local landowners and government in the planning process early on in the processThis might become much more important should transportation using motorized vehicles become limited by fuel shortages. Expand the birding trail map and guide to include the Northeast. The Southwest Guide is extremely popular and is a great way to promote economic development and ecotourismThe Rio Grande Trail has many obstacles including tribal lands, private lands, opposition to taking of lands for parking areas, increasing traffic adjoining private lands, etc. One thing that seems to fail in consideration is that the people that must live with these trails have concern about increased access to their private property, increasing the risk of theft, predator behavior, and increased nuisance behavior such as drug and alcohol use. These trails cannot be adequately patrolled in order to diminish these concerns. Even in Albuquerque, there are many incidents of these behaviors that MRGCD for one has to contend with. Most if not all of these trail plans were developed without adequate input from those directly affected, the adjacent property owners.Hi importance to secure access for continuous trails through new developments near recreational areas. An example are housing developments near the Volcano Open Space and Petroglyph Park.Spend some time creating trails in rural areas. It may surprise you how travelers would respond to such a plan.Implementing long distance trails by 2020 is not realistic. State Government doesn't move that fast. I gave that a low priority because of this.Long distant trails would do a lot for the New Mexico economy there are a lot of people that would do a long trail like the Rio Grande Trail, maybe a trail through the Jemez Mountains From Bandelier National Monument to Cuba or beyond, Or a trail fin the Lincoln National Forest from north to south, and / or a trail from Smokey Bear Museum and Park to The town of Lincoln. A Billy the Kid Trail From Silver City to White Oaks to Lincoln to Cimarron. Health Objective 3.1: Increase use of outdoor recreation resources and physical activity levels by engaging youth, especially via the schools and summer programs. Action Item% High% Medium% LowContinue supporting Safe Routes to Schools programs and partnerships582913Create partnerships and support local community programs such as Healthy Kids New Mexico and Elev8.523117Encourage parents to be actively involved in their children’s education and physical activity goals through school-based extended-learning programs and providing services to parents (English learning, employment services, accessing healthcare).632116Extend physical activity and learning opportunities for youth beyond the classroom and traditional school year.702010Help schools correlate environmental education and physical fitness programs to the state common core standards.562420Help schools develop effective plans to improve the health of students by implementing district wellness policies and strong health programs and practices.592516Comments:ResponseAnything that gets kids outdoors is great.Create and Maintain More Disc Golf Parks and Bicycle lanes and trails DO IT, DON’T JUST PLANDo not waste your resources on the school systems. Stay in your lane. Exercise, Exercise, Exercise!!!Improve likelihood of use by improving the environment to maximize opportunities to see wildlifeLocal control and planning is always best. Keep State and Fed out of local schools.Our schools here really try with what they have in Sierra County.PE is a great class in Elem. but there should also be track.Should be the parents responsibility to raise their children, not the state.Some of these are getting into the realm of parental responsibilities.There's that word again--"encourage."Too much government in the education piece of wellness.Very good education is good for are kids more physical activities at schoolpartner with schools for outdoor education sponsor some cross country events between schools each year provide a trail to compete on.teach the forest service people with lung issues are NOT impressed with the burning of forests!Speaking from community engagement within San Juan County, these priority and actionable areas helpful. Yet, without community support via coalitions and parents understanding determinants of health and Health in All Policies approaches, many become gridlocked in moving toward democratizing equity. Help schools to develop good and fun physical fitness programs, such as volleyball, kickball, baseball, and other outside recreational activities. It also, creates, team work. Field trips that are educational, such as picking pinion, or allowing kids to take a half day off from school to take a skiing class for beginners at the local ski area. Also, towards the end of the school year, May/June, to provide one designated day, where the kids can walk to a local park near their school and have an outdoor fun activity day, and have activities such as, a gunny sack race, track race and this provides fresh air, good exercise and sunshine for the kids and teachers. I was a middle school teacher for 14 years and went to Outdoor Education weeks with the students. They learned so much in the outdoor environment..With obesity in the USA, developing something that will encourage kids to stay active is a good thing.All schools had PE programs, lately these have been reduced. Physical education is a lifelong need, leave time for it in EVERY school day. Teach the youth that being physically active helps in developing a strong mind & body.IDEAL-NM could assist in this alignment of plans and include them in our revision of PE and Health courses that are offered online statewide. Students need early introduction and the best place to provide that is in the home and in the schools.Our society is tech-focused. The promotion of physical activity and environmental education will only benefit both parents and kids. The biggest health factor you have right now is to clean up the bathrooms and showers before you start running school programs into the parks. When was the last time you went to a park, actually camped there and used the bath house facilities?Again the people developing these wellness policies and practices need to have common sense and use scientific background, not just because Michelle Obama (who has no background in this) says to. And through the state common core standards out the window. This is why our children are unable to learn. They are treated based on numbers and not individuality. We are raising uneducated children in our school systems. This is a big reason why there is so much home schooling. While these are all worthwhile, it seems most go well beyond the core responsibilities of a Parks staff that is now overworked and under-resourced. Work with the schools some, but these are really their job.Education is fundamental in youth training for life. There are already enough distractions for education. Stick to core standards. You can't train people to be healthy. They have to want to be healthy. Give them the means and opportunity. Don't try to make them be healthy.There a plenty of agencies in New Mexico to address education, health care, employment services and English learning. NMEMNRD needs to keep to its' mission and let others do their jobs.Capitalize on our state’s climate and natural surroundings; educate our youth -- especially through schools -- on outdoor recreation as a means to enhancing quality of life experiences.The public schools do not allocate enough time for students to eat and play during the school day. Kids typically opt for playing because the time is so limited for such activities. PED needs to consider how this impacts student wellness, academic performance (I would argue that it hurts) and health. The return on investment is huge for empowering the mind and body when adequate time is allowed to recreate throughout the day. Walking school bus programs should be compulsory for all schools that have the infrastructure to accommodate this type of activity. We are graduating students that cannot read or do basic math. We are, at the same time, eliminating functional PE requirements and de-funding music and art education. Creating extended learning programs rather than having a robust PE program that engages all students every year is not a good use of funds. Today, the only kids with reasonable physical activity are the small minority that can compete in a school sports program. Many still or would still ride buses to school, yet these programs require after school hours and supplemental transportation. Schools do not need environmental education, they need to teach kids to function as literate individuals capable of employment. Physical activity is best provided to all during the standard school year with a traditional PE program that teaches kids various sports.I see that you have collaborated with NMDOH's Healthy Kids New Mexico but I also recommend that you partner up with a representative from the agency itself as well. We have a lot of great programs who are striving toward the same goals as you all. It would be great to collaborate as two state agencies.Anything to maintain healthy bodies is important, especially preventive physical measure to reduce the cost of medical expenses present and future.Educating families on the importance of outdoor activities or basically activities that help their physical and mental capacities should be partnered through the school system.Physical health is a giving with activity, the space is here in NM however the State is behind with today’s trends. Alternative Core Sports need to be looked at which they will attract more people outdoors. A lot of yesterday’s ideas are surfacing, who do we contact to get more involved??? Kids need to be encouraged to unplug and learn about nature by unstructured activities and discovery.Department of Game and Fish needs to offer more youth hunter safety courses, also encourage more archery classes to youth in schools. These types of activities are done outdoors and gets children motivated to be outside.get a program with the high schools so kids can learn about this field and would be interested in applying for jobs or going to college and studying this subject. Our kids are our future; anything to give them better options and education on making good choices.Increase State Educational funds to incorporate: K-12 environmental learning activities; encourage the study of geology, archeology, and promoting understanding of Native American culture. Create 'extra credit' projects to help youth in schools and society for the betterment of us all. Encourage adults to mentor youth in anything that will help the youth stay in school and ultimately become assets in this State.As noted in comments on other sections, education is a failure today: nothing of substance is taught. Imposing curriculum additions such as the correlation of "environmental education and physical fitness programs", etc., is simply a further deterioration.It would be good if more New Mexico children could enjoy their own forests through snow sports. It's expensive to do but so many New Mexicans do not get to enjoy their own forests until they are older. I get tired of riding lifts with kids from other states whom don't appreciate it and do not really take in the beauty of these forests. New Mexico children from throughout the state should be skiing and snowshoeing in their state forests. There should be collaboration with the state health department on this objective. I don't think it is necessary to have outside groups to increase the use of outdoor recreation for the youth. This can easily be implemented by the local schools and teachers. Physical activity can be simply done, by designating a day/time to have the youth go outside on the school grounds and for example, play kickball, volleyball or any other outdoor sport. Objective 3.2: Get people walking and playing. Action Item% High% Medium% LowContinue mapping and disseminating prescription trails through the Prescription Trails Organization.394516Create events that combine play, exercise, and social opportunities that resonate with youth and younger adults. Integrate technology and social media into outdoor challenges and games.552718Develop a media campaign (TV, Social Media, Print) that promotes health via outdoor recreation.433522Develop partnerships between the healthcare community and local organizations and governments that will lead to increased activity through the use of parks and open space.473815Improve directional/wayfinding signage and maps to facilities on roadways and within parks Provide wayfinding at critical park areas.593110Improve the community infrastructure to create more parks, playgrounds, safe sidewalks, and bike and walking trails.642511Promote the “fun” aspects of outdoor recreation to change societal focus from exercise to play.542917Promote the development of a prescription trails program in more communities throughout the state and provide support to healthcare practitioners to prescribe patients specific activities in specific places404020Comments:ResponseAGAIN LET'S DO ITAgree with all Collaboration, partnerships and communication can make this possible.Coordinate city trails with natural areas.Create and Maintain More Disc Golf Parks and Bicycle lanes and trails Do things that directly encourage people to go outside. Include making them feel safe.Getting more people to walk and play outdoors is necessary to promote better health.HELP Sierra County!!!!Have a more opened place for roller bladeing and skating.Health care is NOT the purview of the of EMNRD.HighI don't know what prescription trails are. Most advertising is selling a lifestyle.Need more walking trails on the WESTSIDESpeaking from community engagement and community reflections. These parks should be cleaned daily and kept in order.Use social media for youth. TV isn't effective. Why change from "exercise to play?" Why not both?and Equestrian!inform the medical field so they may get patients out to areas to assist in their recovery.media promotion and improved community infrastructureproviding opportunities and promoting outdoor recreation as "fun" should be the first step.I never heard of Prescription Trails. Maybe the Martinez administration should lift the gag order and you people should tell us about it.It would be useful to disseminate information on areas that are accessible including trails to healthcare providers and other organization who work with individuals who have a mobility disability. Providing information on trails that are easier to navigate to service provider that deal with individuals with a cognitive disability would also be useful. organize bicycle trips for all ages. Bicycle from Alb to Las Cruces for example. build a solid and scenic but safe route We need dedicated bicycle paths. Many of the multi-use paths are dangerous for cyclists. We need better promotion and support for major New Mexico road bike events such as the Santa Fe Century, the Tour of the Rio Grande Valley, the Tour of the Gila, Tour de Acoma, and Enchanted Circle.Media campaign is key here. Why not develop a partnership with the New Mexico Sports Hall Of Fame and promote getting kids outside and being active. have the trails marked with distance markers and when the kids check off a list of markers how far they got on the trail they would get a refund of some of the fee they paid to get in. like 5% per marker or some such incentive program to hike further. close the Valle Caldera to the general public as some idiots should not be allowed out of their house and they come to pristine areas and trash them!There seem to be quite a few trails. More would be great but the biggest barrier is the fact that the trails are not connected and are fragmented.If I could go into my doctor's office and find a New Mexico publication that showed the different trails or the other outdoor activities in the state, I would think that was awesome.Have you considered working with the state's aging department on this objective? What about the senior citizen centers and senior service programs? What about including social service providers in the prescription trails program (HSD, CYFD, WIC providers)? People who are of low-incomes could benefit from knowing how they could safely get from place to place by walking or biking since transportation tends to be a barrier to accessing services and getting to parks to exercise (and accessing good nutrition sources). we need to take care of what we have first and how it's going to be taken care of in the future, before we create anything new and don't have any means to maintain them. "Promote the fun aspects of outdoor recreation to change societal focus from exercise to play"-I think that people are going to exercise or not...and that promotions are a good idea but I don't think that you can change people's inclination to get off their duffs and go outdoors to enjoy the beauty that lies outside the doorstep. And I am an avid exerciser/outdoor person. Just my opinion.You want healthcare practitioners to prescribe patient specific activities in specific places? If you prescribe it they aren't going to do it. And dictate where they have to do this? Offer information on these places but do not tell people they have to use these places. We have parks and playgrounds. All of our sidewalks are safe, where we have sidewalks. Most people walk in the street on the back streets because there are no sidewalks. Lots of people walk for exercise here. Get the parents to take more of an interest in their children and take them for walks, preferably without social media.Prescribing trails as part of a health care program ignores the fact that many people have legitimate issues with using some trails. Most health care professionals looking at a map have no idea what the conditions on the ground are, including safety issues individuals face. Expanding trails without the means to ensure safety from people and wildlife alike, is irresponsible. Mandating trail use as part of a health care program should not be done. Improving community infrastructure to create trails and parks ignores the fact that there would be a takings involved. This should never be an option; taking a person's home by force unconscionable.Reevaluate the existing programs. Are they working? If not dump them, don't continue them. Get the Doctors to prescribe specific activities in specific places. Are you kidding? Stay out of medicine. Focus on most do-able, resource efficient activities clearly supportive of the agency missions while building partnerships with others having related missions.If "play" above, includes use of recreational vehicles, that would not be good - they are dangerous (compared to other uses) and disturbing to other users. I'm not familiar with the Prescription Trails Program but if it's a self-explanatory title...I'm all for it!Are you aware that a population of homeless people camp there year round? Many of them camp in tent communities in the outer most primitive camping areas. As a former infection control nurse who has taken care of many homeless in around San Antonio, Texas, I have taken the time to watch them hike up the bathrooms from their camping areas when I have been at Brantley. These people are migrants and homeless combined pooling their resources. Since the lake level was high this past year I have not seen them but the lake level is low now. Infrastructure additions, a media campaign, events, etc., etc. all require funding. Again, government is broke and this type of nonsense must stop.Omit technology and social media from outdoor activities.. We need to go back to the basics, and encourage the youth to be outdoors more and less on technology. New Mexico initially started great with the biking (BMX) movement but has it fallen behind throughout the years. We need to reestablish the core sports (BMX) (MX) for other sports will follow. Take a look at what mountain biking has become. You must respect, support, and encourage core sports and HEALTH is a given. Promote youth volunteers to help create cleaner parks, trails, and even on the side of the road to pick up trash. Do "Pride in your Parks" weekends and offer drinks and sack lunches for volunteers, work with the schools to give extra credit for student volunteers or get merchants to donate movie tickets or pizza discounts. Get our youth motivated to enjoy the great outdoors.We currently have great parks, they just need to be maintained regularly. I would disagree in integrating social media into outdoor games. Having technology/internet/face book, etc. defeats the purpose of being outside. Providing large advertising bill boards on main freeways/ could provide more tourism for our state.Making physical awareness is important. Making ways or presenting methods for physical fitness is just as important. Physical activity is essential for maintaining good health.Provide safety to those using these parks & walkways. It's hard to convince someone to use the park if there are thugs selling drugs and mugging people there too.Promote safety in our parks. In my experience the parks we have are havens for drug deals and gang interactions.Objective 3.3: Continue creating partnerships with health care providers and leverage funding. Action Item% High% Medium% LowEstablish partnerships between recreation providers and health care providers383923Provide health care providers in every community with a database of outdoor recreation resources.463221Sponsor a session at the 2016 NMRPA annual conference on the keys to building successful partnerships with health care providers.293635Comments:ResponseA partnership with health care providers is a great idea.Establish...question - No, if that would include advertising or other distractionsHealth care is NOT the purview of the of EMNRD.Health care provider is a waste I f we can exercise more we might prevent some of the health issuesKeep health care providers out of recreational activitiesMediumProvide information, but stay out of partnership with family medicine.Sounds like a lot of meetings, talk and conferences.THIS IS OUT OF CONTROL, PROVIDERSThese all seem like good ideas.Working together makes good things happen.good ideas also partner with our native healing culturemy wife is in a wheel chair and idea's guidance for her use would be helpfulhealth care gets enough gov. money. use yours to work on the parks system and get them squared away. As above, suggestion exercise outdoors is one thing; making it a requirement in a program is unacceptable. Recreation should be a choice, not coerced via health care mandates."Cost" is a big factor in a lot of programs, other than outdoor parks and facilities. As some people hours of work do not coincide with the time for out of doors activities.Message for staying physically fit and in good physical condition can be aimed directly to public. No need to have medical profession telling you need to walk or run.If doctors could disseminate pamphlets that show the outdoor activities in the state that would be better than telling the patient that they need to exercise and lose weight. By giving them options they empower their patients to spend more time doing outdoor activities that count as exercise.I see no need in creating a partnership with health care providers; because the need here is to engage the youth to outdoor recreation. Groups like the Wounded Warrior Project are prime examples of people needing to connect with nature.Q 3 should be DEVELOP an outdoor recreation database TO SHARE with health care providers. Why limit it to communities that have the resources to develop these.conferences cost money that takes away from using them where they should be used, and the result or effectiveness is too unpredictable. These are all great objectives. I am heartened to know you are thinking this way. I can’t take any more time to fill in though. :-(I am calling your attention to this one factor since, being a border state, the infectious disease rate is high. Tackle this problem and then, yes please, show our future generations the beauty of our parks. Each county in NM has a health council that does community health assessments, community health assets surveys, and community health improvement plans. A partnership with recreation providers and the health council would enhance proposals for funding opportunities.See above. Do not dictate to people where they have to do their recreational activities. Offer them information on what is available and allow them to make their own decisions on where and what they would like to do. The State of NM should reestablish the physical wellness program of paid leave for state employees that was started by Governor Bruce King. We need to lead by example and make it a priority. The current initiative of wellness and screening for employees is helpful but more preventative initiatives could be helpful in improving health and wellness and simultaneously lowering medical expenses. We need to model the active lifestyle behavior and quantify the economic impact of better health through proactive wellness programs. Furthermore, the demographic of many in the medical community already includes awareness related to being active and fit and where to find the infrastructure to support it. Therefore, not sure health care providers need a database to articulate where the gym or local park is located.Santa Fe has several bike parks that are based on a volunteer basis that most people are not aware of. They need to be on NM maps and advertised as some are the leading parks in the Southwest....You might consider working with the state health department's environmental health bureau to incorporate messages about health and wildfires, camping and CO exposure, and drinking water quality (from streams, for example) into the health practices messaging. Have you considered working with the state's aging department on this objective? What about the senior citizen centers and senior service programs?Economic VitalityObjective 4.1: Support, promote, and encourage cultural festivals and outdoor recreational events. Action Item% High% Medium% LowContinue communication and meetings with partner agencies including Tribal Nations to showcase the heritage of the state.522820Develop and promote adventure racing courses to be used by residents and out-of-state visitors323226Develop facilities and interpretive programs that connect visitors to the history/natural history and culture of New Mexico.593011Promote New Mexico’s cultural events and festivals in neighboring states, especially in Arizona, Colorado, and Utah.463816Promote economic opportunities and build community marketing coalitions along regional, state, and national trails modeled after the scenic byway program.473419Promote events, such as adventure racing, mountain biking trail races and birding festivals to attract repeat visitors.433522Comments:ResponseConsider including the NM Department of Cultural Affairs as a partner.HighHow about Texas I appreciate the unmanned signage at state parks that describe characteristics of the area.I don't care about racing. Birding and wildlife festivals yes.I hate bicyclists/ bike racing teams because disrespect the land worse than most!Santa Fe trail Jam Buckman hot lap challenge T-pit Jam 100% volunteer events Texas gives a park pass to all disabled veterans no matter where they liveThe tribal nations need to fend for themselves. We should stress appreciation of state resources, not competitive events.What about marketing to Texans? They love NM.You forgot Texasadd additional advertising in Texassponsor some OHV races at Elephant Butte for the public and Pro racersI'm not anti-adventure racing, mtn bike races or birding festivals but if anyone is into that, I've found they know the event schedules without the expense of a lot of promotion.more private vendor opportunities, strategic alliances with the large companies that produce outdoor products and servicesWhen promoting NM cultural events to neighboring states don't forget Texas. We are in the line from Texas to Colorado and see a lot of tourists passing thorough. I realize a lot of NM is Hispanic, but how about some festivals and cultural events for other cultures. And add historical events to that.By providing businesses education on the local recreational areas increases traffic of visitation to areas because most people like myself are always observations the surroundings and if the surrounds represent to be deteriorating the visitation to the areas will become less habituated and will or may induce a heightened crime to the area.I don't think we need to invite out of state visitors to use our resources. Yes, they're welcome, but fewer is better..if you know what I mean.Nothing mentioned about OHV. Check it out OHV spends way more money in local towns than hikers or bike riders......Again, reflecting on community engagement conversations. This area is a new area where many leaders between economic and health are not yet understood from a SDOH and HiAP perspective. Focus on building a strong tourism support base, events, parks, and the facilities and supporting infrastructure to sponsor those eventsStay in your lane. promoting the tribes or culture is not what the parks are about. There are other agencies that do address those areas. Create an inner city plan that attracts developers to build condos/apartments in the rail yard neighborhood.Developing interpretive programs tied to our area’s rich cultural heritage is very much needed.Connect with Audubon, Scouts, non-profits, State agencies, land owners, Main Street communities, Economic Development organizations, counties and municipalities to figure out a way to make this work.This needs to include OHV recreation fun rides and races. The New Mexico Backcountry Discovery Route was just created and needs to be marketed. This is a connected primarily, off highway, road/trail system that highlights New Mexico's natural beauty running the entire length of the State. With the marketing material, provide bill boards that have beautiful photos of our parks and it probably would provide more tourism in our state. Not aware of the adventure racing courses so obviously they aren't being promoted well to residents of the state; therefore, any out-of-state promoting might not be so great until New Mexicans are made aware.Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. The state park reservation system for camping/rv ing is not efficient nor helpful for the public My wife and I have seen several instances where the system totally failed.Rural NM has many opportunities to offer visitors, however many smaller communities do not have the expertise to promote themselveswe really need to work together to improve all areas of our community I would be interested in participating and getting my family to also participate I ranked "develop and promote adventure racing courses..." as low priority because it seems it would use financial resources that might be better spent elsewhere considering that there is not an ever-flowing pot of money."Racing Events" are elitist, for elite participants and the very few folks who watch them. They should be severely minimized in state parks.Promoting rock hounding should also be included. NM is the only state with a state park that allow the removal of a set amount of rocks and minerals.Again, we need to maintain the forests we have so we can promote these functions to New Mexicans as well as repeat and new visitors.Birding festivals are not within a trail network's context. People can see birds everywhere. They don't need a trail to do that.Modeled after the scenic byway program? Try to be innovative and let NM be the model for other recreational economic opportunities. But nothing is going to survive if NM doesn't do something about the culture of trashing, graffiti spraying, stealing that is so prevalent. So many of the recreational opportunities are trashed and feel unsafe.As former NM park camp host/visitor center volunteer and interpretive guide for the Gila Cliff Dwellings...most tourists/visitors are interested in the history of the site and area. More events should be implemented to bring a hands on experience in learning for adults as well as children. More events and reasons to visit are desired. The racing trails I think would bring revenue but would also take away the beauty of the park and interfere with the peace and tranquility experiences that people seek by "getting away for the weekend." Birding tours would be a great experience as a variety of birds are in the parks.The promotion of "cultural festivals and outdoor recreational events" does to enhance "economic vitality." We need less government involvement, not more. We need to unshackle private businesses in order to enhance economic vitality. What is proposed here are essentially a few service jobs which are low-paying and seasonal.My main concern is to link the end of the Rail runner to outdoor recreation activities in Belen, and to improve Belen's outdoor recreation activities.Some events become a victim of their own success for 'locals' who don't want to deal with the hassle of large crowds and congestion so it's a delicate balance when promoting certain events.Objective 4.2: Link tourism with recreation opportunities Action Item% High% Medium% LowAdvertise snow sport opportunities more in Texas and Oklahoma; also consider highlighting OHV, hiking and biking on dirt trails, and to a lesser extent, camping and outdoor sports.363331Channel visitation dollars/lodging taxes, etc. into recreation facilities612811Develop more co-visitor centers to integrate administrative resources and a one stop shop for recreation materials thereby saving money and increasing cross awareness.423820Expand on New Mexico True activities to include more outdoor recreation information and promotion.553312Integrate the ability to “feel connected to nature” and “feel excited” in New Mexico into New Mexico True activities.572914Orient the New Mexico True campaign to highlight areas where New Mexico competes well, such as visiting cultural events, OHV opportunities, and camping.583111Target more New Mexico True activities and add campaigns to first- time visitors433918Comments:ResponseAdd Kansas and Nebraska to the snow sport opportunities advertising locations.All outdoor sport/recreation activities should be focused on, not just snow sports.Do not promote OHV opportunities! OHV use conflicts with other recreation.Don't forget to include rural areas in this planning phase as they are major players.Don't overlook hunting, fishing and wildlife watching in New Mexico True campaign.Equestrian opportunities!HighI think NM True is a clumsy phrase and it doesn't convey a clear message. Dump it.New Mexico True is a good program.No, No, NO!!! State Parks are for CAMPING first, all other uses are subordinate to it.OHV Opportunities? State Parks hasn't spent a cent on this!React and adjust to what makes financial viability.Tourism is not meaningful economy development.WTH is NM True?continue and expand "TRUE"entrance fees and watchful eyes are needed for NM lands!you really shouldn't use abbreviations on your survey. what is OHV?we just have to give back and do our best to keep things flowing in NM, my mother was very active in the community and would encourage us to give back it’s just hard to do things when most things are more for stay at home parents, retired it’s like we have a need to establish programs for the working class so we can also give back to our communities. OHV recreational use within the State needs to take a priority than it has. Hiking and biking can afford to be in the background (too much on that already). SPEND MONEY ON OHV TRAIL CREATION.Don't forget the open space found in the small, rural communities that can't afford to advertise their beauty and recreational activitiesTourism industry needs to take on a more active and supportive role in encouraging recreation in NMout of towers have little respect for our outdoors with trash and riding machines where they shouldn't. they'll leave and it's now our problem. unless there is more patrolling of the mountains, more out of town OHV should not be advertised more. OHV recreation opportunities (mapped, signed and posted on the Web) attract in and out-of-State tourism dollars. Many OHV'ers don't know where to go or how to get around once they get there. This could be tied-in with programs like Tread Lightly that focuses on good trail ethics and respecting other trail users. Our outdoors activities are great and we should continue to advertise them to generate revenue, unless we generate less revenue than is cost to advertise.might develop areas in existing parks that allow archery practice, paddle boat rentals, horse rental and trails, perhaps even well monitored shooting ranges. Offer more to do in the parks themselves.I have always felt the cost is a big issue for people visiting parks as it is my main reason for visiting. I am low income/disabled and high costs and taxes will deter me and others from continued visits. Most visitors cannot afford big trips especially large families. Low cost=more visitors and more time spent at parks.Why the advertising in Oklahoma and Texas? Afraid to compete with Arizona, Utah and Colorado. Your 4 corner neighbors? Look at Colorado’s funding for Parks and Recreation, lottery $$$ and hunting/fishing fees.Advertise more on snow sport opportunities in our state. Why advertise Texas and Oklahoma? We have such a beautiful state. Partner more with NM State Tourism, and local Chamber's in our cities We need to highlight all the great aspects with have in our state. Our state has great parks, such as the Sangre de Cristo's Mountains. Last year we went there to see the beautiful yellows of the Aspen leaves, and it was spectacular. There were a lot of people there. The tracks exist, forward funds to maintenance. this will attract people and provide safe sustainable parks. The MX OHV community is a major stakeholder as registration taxes will show proof, they need to be strongly looked at, the 2% cannot be real as registration will prove.... many of the co-visitor centers have very limited hours and are almost worthless to visitors in eastern NMEconomic and Health examples will provide the "buy in"; however, many policy makers are uninformed of community engagement and local voices as the precipice for action and embody health as part of considerations to policy. I live in Colorado and find it difficult sometimes to get information. In some ways that makes for more adventure but always wonder what we missed.I have never seen a new Mexico commercial for ski areas, fishing, hunting , OHV, like Texas has on all the time, Utah does tons of ads in the ski season. about all new Mexico advertises is state fares and native American dances.Too much focus on OHV, this is not a good thing. We need hiking, biking, & equestrian trails, not OHV trails. Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. We do need infrastructure at the parks to handle 50 amp and 30 amp travel trailers. And they must build them LARGER to hold 40 foot rigs.Our state’s NM True campaigns should focus on our rich cultural and natural heritage and once potential visitors to our state have been oriented then the campaign can educate those visitors to the recreational opportunities -- skiing, hiking, golfing, etc.-- that our state offers.Your concentration on OHV is not necessary. I have been to Red River and Eagle Nest and seen the steady stream of vehicles coming from Texas and Oklahoma. You should build a bridge on the Red River at the Goose Lake Trailhead to keep the vehicles out of the stream. Those vehicles pollute the water and this demonstrates the need to coordinate efforts so that OHV use does not undo the work downstream river users are currently doing on the Red River (Questa).Texans know about the skiing in Colorado. Some even know about Angel fire and Red River. More advertising is needed in Oklahoma and Kansas to bring visitors to NM and not just Colorado.New Mexicans really need to know how they can access NM forests for snow sports. Also, when I ski in other states I am amazed at how many guests from other countries are there. I ask why they don't ski in NM. They have no idea we have skiing. These are high-income visitors. There is a Tourism Department to orient the New Mexico True campaign. How big an empire is EMNRD trying to build?Utilize local tourism boards to assist in deciding where tourism dollars would work most affectively in community.Work on banning coyote hunts as they are not appealing to east or west coast tourists. It is a serious problem here. I would market to New Mexico citizens too, as many have gone outside of the state to recreate because of the profound drought affects. It was not a ton of fun to swim in the Butte when it was at 5% capacity. The same can be said for canoeing on Heron Lake when you had to walk 1/2 of a mile through the muck to get to water. Not sure about the NM True campaign though it's great to see there's a comprehensive effort to message. TSV slope side ski lodging has priced themselves out of most NM's budgets too so there're many locals going out of state over the Holidays.If OHV means Off Highway Vehicles you should say that. I oppose all such vehicles in state parks as they cause incredible damage to the land, air and water, as well as result in a lot of drunk crazy people on motorized vehicles causing accidents and litter. I have picked up a lot of their litter - food wrappers, beer cans over the years.Our rest stops need to be revitalized and be better able to promote out state at the borders and within the borders offering written and oral help. Mississippi is doing a great job. These are all important, and it seems that they are getting considerable attention presently with reasonable payoff. I'm not sure how much more can be done given other areas of action.Objective 4.3: Promote recreation’s contribution to economic development to state and local governing bodies and elected officials. Action Item% High% Medium% LowPrepare data on visitation and dollars spent in the local economy and share it with our legislature, elected officials.563113Comments:Response4.3 Isn't that data collection already being done?As a rural state we need officials to "buy-in" and support for tourism and its infrastructureCheck out what Colorado estimates how much OHV people spend. Three Billion Dollars! Do we not do this now?Local officials need to be able to see & understand how tourism impacts their communities.MediumNew Mexicans don't realize what an economic gold mine they have. They need to see a return on their legislative investment.Very important!utilize the DOT to maintain better roads to encourage more road trippers Too little, too late, here. The State has already lost that battle by not influencing the national forest services (SFNF, GNF, etc.) to keep all trails open and add more trails to the inventory. You could have saved the State a lot of money by just keeping those forest trails open. Our recreation is more important than protection of a salamander, wolf or an owl.The OHV community has approached the State's OHV Advisory Board that oversees the State's OHV fund, which is fed 100% by OHV registration money. This would help direct funds to the right places as well have an impact on legislators when making related decisions. It would also help local communities better understand the impact and import of promoting this form of recreation.yes, but with the intention that the money raised goes back to maintain the program, and doesn't get sent to the general fund to be used elsewhere. Perhaps even better would be to identify active and fit representatives to promote the benefits of health and wellness in the state. Although he's no longer in the Legislature, Senator Tom Taylor (Farmington) would have been great!The elected officials need to get off there lazy @#*!!! and go hiking, camping, fishing so they can realize how important all this is...Please differentiate between hunting and other forms of wildlife and outdoor recreation. It is important for all to know how much wildlife is appreciated by non-consumptive users,; viewers and photographers. In addition, share with community partners so mobilizing efforts provide opportunities for growth. If this is meant to receive funding for parks then YES. State Parks are a priceless gift that is provided for people to enjoy nature= camp, fish, hike, etc. If there is a potential to receive government funding to help FUND more activities for parks then sharing this data would be helpful. If not, what is the purpose. Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. Be sure to provide data that is more 'true', as opposed to including/considering residents' business trips within the state as tourist-related. Unfortunately eco-tourism can't replace new businesses and the jobs they create :-( But recreational opportunities can aid economic development.You need legislation to obtain money. the Government can't give us anything that they haven't taken from someone else. Grants, funding, growth won't happen without Legislative help.am lucky to have parents who worked hard as because they assist us financially to do extra activities like camping and getting outdoors. By providing a dollar amount of upgrades and maintenance and providing dollars of increased visitation brings more money into the area.Tourism is an ideal way to generate revenue, create jobs, increase community beautification, engage youth, encourage entrepreneurship and bring communities together.and keep the dollars in the hands of the people who appreciate the lands -NOT the idiots in the round house who play favorites --giving monies to other pet projectsFor a while we had a good Main Street America program, but it doesn't seem to be doing much to get the travelers to stop instead of driving right through. Too often our legislators go without important information and continue to pump money into programs that are failing. Objective 4.4: Continue providing a wide spectrum of recreation resources, but recognize there are unmet demands for specific facilities, such as camping and boating. Action Item% High% Medium% LowCreate an online resource for boaters that shows the managing agency, acres, expected season, updates on reservoir levels, and desired capacity for water bodies throughout the state.394021Identify the best areas for developed camping and construct additional campsites602911Work with New Mexico Tourism and other agencies/businesses to establish campsite categories that correspond to levels of development to help visitors locate the types of campsites they desire.563113Comments:ResponseHighInclude BLM, Forest Service and state lands in this planning process for campsites.More marketing should be done to RVers.More organized campgrounds please.Objective 4.4 directly contradicts Objective 4.2!RECONSIDER OHVState Parks for the most part can provide boating information.There is a great need for more campgrounds in the more undeveloped areas.There is an underutilization of state resources for rv camping. Work with the federal agencies to better control the letting of water at Elephant Butteinstalling more electrical sites in parks would increase visitation.work with the Forest service and other agencies to make the catalog totally comprehensive. This is probably the most important issue that you have to address. This state has the ability to bring in a great deal more recreation & tourism dollars if the state would provide more & better camping facilities. more camping opportunities are needed. target campgrounds with-in 90 minute drive of ABQ or other regional communities.I feel that money should be spent developing New Mexico's current campsites, as opposed to developing new campsites. The State Parks website has poor descriptions of what is available. Boost fees to improve the agency's communication. Better yet, consolidate the communication efforts of Energy, Minerals, Game and Fish, and Cultural Affairs to provide meaningful products. Look at Wyoming and what they offer. Online newsletters in my email.Need to develop a funding source to assist and partner with local communities to leverage high quality activities and offeringseverything is important it’s just hard for someone who works 8-5 Monday thru Friday to get out and participate and come weekends you’re doing the things that you couldn't do because of weekly responsibilities.My experience has been there are sufficient camp sites but underutilization and I think a part of that is attributable to a lot of NM cannot economically compete with the rigs and boats at Elephant butte and there is little for them to do when they do go camping. Nice tent sites and entertainment options would help. a swim beach that underwater hazards are removed from would be a big plus, complete with concession stand and even tube rentals would be nice.Nonresident annual camping permits would go a long way to capturing some of the "Snowbird" full time campers that pass through NM going to other states. out of state campers almost live here during the camping season, giving little chance for "locals" to enjoy the activity in our lands. we spend the same money to camp as an out of towner would in terms of camping and OHV use. also, consideration for reserving a space (or section reserved specifically for locals) should be given to a local new Mexican, especially on the weekends.Having this information accessible to the tourists will only benefit our state economy. Tourists will enjoy this very much.Again, the State lost this battle already. There is no rational reason why the larger part of Cochiti Lake (US Army Corp reservoir) is open for boating recreation (its no-wake policy is stupid). Influence the Army to reverse this.Focus attention on maintenance issues of existing state park campgrounds, and accessibility to campgrounds. An example of particular concern to me and the MANY campers that camp at the Cottonwood Campground at Navajo Lake State Park; is the terrible condition of the ONLY access road to the campground. It is a dirt road that washes out numerous times each year. The wash outs create an unsafe access or exit from the campground; particularly in the event of an emergency situation such as wildfire, flooding, or medical emergency. The road is 2 miles long. It needs to be paved so that 2 vehicles coming to or from the campground can pass each other without sliding off the road. Some places in NM are more desirable because those are areas are not "developed." It is okay to let the tourists know where developed sites are but New Mexicans like their forests a little less urbanized.With the drought in this area, though El Nino may be taking care of that, online reporting of water levels in the lake would be helpful.This sounds like turning parks into "small cities", with the ideal being like crowds of 100,000 people, like at Elephant Butte ...I'm opposed.Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. NM Parks has always been about the "camping experience." More campsites, more variety of sites would bring MORE revenue. Holidays are BIG revenue times and the limits on availability losses tourists especially those seeking established camp sites with facility options. There are more RV's than campers but limited places for RV's to camp. reserve America has better information on nm campgrounds than the new Mexico site has. I make all my reservations thru them, pay in advance and avoid dealing with the camp hosts who are usually 3 days behind the reservation list and people can’t find the spot they paid for because someone else’s tag is on the pole.We simply don't have the water levels to invest too much money on boating. Not to mention, seadoos, jet skis, etc. are a complete nuisance and danger to others on the water and even the shorelines. I think picnic sites should be included. I took my son up the road to the ski basin and found very few spots that allowed picnics. We pulled off the road and went into the forest, It was wonderful, but a little rugged.Promote more small campsites with utilities. For families and those unable to afford large rv's. It would also be helpful to offer and promote camping and park benefits towards ALL disabled veterans, regardless of their state residency.NM highway conditions need to be improved, thus allowing tourists the ability to take their expensive campers and RV's to the areas they're interested in visiting. Take a drive off of the freeway, poor road conditions are the norm of many state highways.I would consider upgrading some of the existing facilities using some of the other neighboring facilities as a template. Especially, the rest-room facilities. These should be top-notch.More and better camping sites could be offered for RVing. As we have traveled in our RV all over the United States we see great offerings and the RV community does spend money where they stay. Both in grocery and gas purchases as well as in sightseeing and they travel and talk to others so a great experience will lead to more people coming to share our state Some campgrounds don't list enough information. Water and or electric sites. Maybe site pictures or better site pictures.I had family driving the Route 66 trail this past summer and the closest camp site they found was in Moriarty so spending money for updated material would be money well spent.We need more campsites, It is terrible to go and not have a spot to camp. Also we need larger spots to handle LARGER Travel Trailers. And 50 Amp electrical plugs. Also need room to park your boat next to your camper.The apache trail campsite up in Cloudcroft and all gov camp sites need to stay open up to November at least. They close to early once school starts. But there are still lots of campers that want to continue camping into October and November.we compete with Texas with boating and fishing Texas does not require a fishing license if you are in one of their state parksGetting/anticipating good water data is nearly impossible but an important goal in NM. Additional developed campsites are needed.At times I still have problems deciding if camping spots will be suitable for my handicapped wife. So if close enough we take a day trip to check them out if not we just don't go. I have been camping in NM for over 30 years & still haven't been to some places because of this. Places we would like to visit.Mills Canyon in Harding County is the best kept secret in New Mexico. A recent article in NM Magazine provides an invitation to visit and enjoy a magnificent outdoor experience.Objective 4.5: Promote quality places for residents, which then attract employers and retirees. Action Item% High% Medium% LowDevelop local “adopt a recreation facility” programs that encourage communities to assist with maintenance and up keep of local facilities.483715Develop strategies to brand outdoor recreation and facilities to businesses looking to relocate413425Comments:ResponseA safe, healthy, beautiful landscape is a huge draw to young families looking to relocate.All new concepts to San Juan County.Businesses are going to care far more about taxes and education.First we need recreational facilities.HighI believe we have a great potential for improvement. Just make a state-wide trail network. You build it, they will come.Our state parks and open lands need volunteer help to keep clean and safe.See comments for Objective 4.4WORK WITH THE FS TO CREATE TRAILS IN OUR NATIONAL FORESTS Although volunteer groups are great for accomplishing many activities, an over reliance on them may not move the ball forward. The state needs to evaluate the potential ROI of providing facilities and make the appropriate investment.the nearest fishing shop to Navajo is 4 miles away, as is nearest cafe. parks could make good money having fishing gear and ice at the check in office at main gate. doesn’t have to be a super store, just basic stuff, like line or hooks and some bait or lures. When I travel I try to do business with places that are locally owned and operated. How can we help locals start their own businesses to meet the demands of retirees and tourists? If we could tie the effort into job creation that would create tax payers rather that tax eating facilities it would be killing 2 birds with one stone.high for volunteers however working for free can sometimes be overwhelming. some sort of funding needs to be considered for sustainability. You already have Friends groups that have "adopted" park facilities. Look at Rockhound State Park. Those Friends buy the tires for state vehicles because the state budget is too tight. And cutting back the number of employees to seasonal positions only hurts the parks and the people who use them. I am one of those people, and I know many more.There is a great need for an "adopt a trail" program. State needs to assist SPs in obtaining personnel that can find and start Adopt Programs for trailsBig problem is that the State and Fed currently own property that they cannot afford to own. I'd like to see more private development.YES. Everyone needs a "getaway" and promoting/advertising the parks in a relocation packet is a great idea. I would definitely move to an area that has park accessibility.Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. There a mass amount of retirees in this state that are looking for something useful to do. Target our retired citizens to volunteer. Do a "Pride in our Parks weekend with both older citizens and our youth. They would both benefit from being outdoors and our youth have the chance to learn from our senior folks, not only their vast knowledge of culture, and life experience as well as their individual talents and skills.Attracting outside businesses to area will help generate income to help the community and tourism.You attract businesses by offering incentives like tax breaks, development fees, etc. Not by telling them they have a great place to get their vehicles robbed at trailheads. Or they have a great opportunity to get their business spray painted by gangsters.Problem with adopt a recreation facility arise since most visitors do not live close enough to the site to assist with maintenance. More signs to alert visitor to keep the areas clean would be helpful.Objective 4.6: Actively engage the private recreation industry to promote, sponsor, and deliver outdoor recreation services. Action Item% High% Medium% LowBuild regional industry coalitions modeled after the Get Outdoors industry partnership in Albuquerque and Santa Fe.383824Work to develop partnerships with large employers to provide and promote outdoor recreation opportunities.523216Comments:ResponseHealthy employees are happy employees. HighI worry that it will become too commercial and remove the "natural" component for many.No more government advertising programs. Put the money on the ground.Please do not promote hunting specifically. It is a turn off for a lot of people.This appears to be a conflict of interestWhat would benefit the locally owned businesses? never heard of the get outdoors industry partnershipConversations are a great beginning to building relationships, creating innovative programs, partnering and working collaboratively.To keep the Parks competitive with other recreation industries more activities are needed for revenue. Large events can bring quick funding that would take months to accomplish.if they would provide security and caretaking people daily it would free up the park rangers for enforcing the stuff they are supposed to be doing daily now and aren’tEducate People on what’s in their state there are a lot of people that live in Albuquerque that have no idea what is in the state outside of the city.WAY TOO MUCH MONEY SPENT ON HIKING AND BIKING WHILE IGNORING THE 25% OF YOUTH THAT RIDES OHV......Your intent to privatize state parks is obvious. That's a shame. You should be working to promote the parks, NOT a political agenda.Keep our forests HEALTHY, and CLEAN and our parks and trails will follow naturally. No one wants to visit a dirty or overgrown area. People always return to the places that are clean and beautiful and they recommend those places to their friends and families, and that is the BEST advertisement out there. A picture is worth a thousand words!!Promote catch and release fishing to maintain a higher fish population and larger fish. Fly fishers bring a great deal of money and prosperity to a region. We only have two 'large' employers and they don't have the economy to spend on outdoor recreation opportunities.More private investment in outdoor recreation is a good thing. Never heard of "Get Outdoors" though.volunteer built parks come by once and great while. The history Behind Santa Fe falls within MOTOCROSS bikes and BMX (core sports). All other bike sports followed. La Tierra, Dale ball, Museum trails, etc were initially created by core sports. Currently maintenance is an issue where volunteers is not 100% sustainable. Get state government to promote use by state employees. Increase state employee participation in cycling events such as the Santa Fe Century.If local companies would sponsor more outdoor activities for their employees then those pictures could be used to show companies that there are so many outdoor activities to enjoy.Partner with ski slopes, golf courses, etc. But this only provides recreational opportunities that cost the user. Where is the public, fee free, family option in your economic plan? You should look to see what Yosemite, yellow stone, grand canyon what are there parks doing so vastly differently. Out outside NM and see what the world is offering its visitorsyes, but with constraints on the administrative costs of having such coalitions, that doesn't take money away from keeping these outdoor activities from happening. Environmental Health Objective 5.1: Expand volunteer capacity and volunteerism among local, state and federal land managers. Action Item% High% Medium% LowCreate volunteer opportunities that will get users outside in an active way and will strengthen a desire to protect the outdoors.68239Prepare a volunteer program blueprint by conducting interviews and writing up case studies344124Comments:Response5.1 sounds like an academic exercise.And Health Impact Assessments or adopt Health in All Policies (HiAP) approaches. Community involvement is a key aspect for maintaining state parks & trails.I do think involvement with nature increase respect and love of the environment. MediumNO COMMENTPerhaps get school age children involved to educate regarding pollution and preservation.Should be able to find a model already utilized to implement programs.Some older folks and retirees prefer more inactive roles and opportunities.These groups only cause conflict. The best managers of the land are those living on it.This is very important to keep are parks clean and management To keep in my the traditional values and family usage by local families in the process.Very few volunteer opportunities are made known, if many exist.Volunteer programs already exist. YOU just are not aware of them.We can only be as healthy as the environment we live in We should have some PAID employees to be doing this and not count on JUST volunteersdevelop incentives or perks for volunteers keep the communities cleanless studies more doingthe advertising for volunteers needs to be more transparentAsk. Building a volunteer base requires an ask, it should be diverse, and it should be fun and rewarding. Is a blueprint needed for that?Volunteers are great (I volunteer for the USFS), but I would rather see you provide paid jobs to environmental scientists.What is meant by "protect the outdoors?" In my experience, this mantra is an excuse for preventing the use and development of natural resources and should be opposed, not promoted.More Summer Youth Conservation Corp opportunities. Youth are paid to learn about the outdoors and develop skills/knowledge. Get the word out for volunteers, retirees, concerned citizensThere are plenty of blueprints already available. Instead of wasting time & money reinventing the wheel, pick one.Credit admin or comp time hours for state employees who volunteer as an incentive to get involved.Hands on education. Text book is fine, but you can't understand until you physically experienceThis is a matter of local importance, not a UN driven Viva program. Who is authorizing this in the state?You need volunteers. They need some structure and goals. But don't make it a job. Take a look at an OHV group in Colorado providing trail stewardship as a good example. Recruit help from service organizations to maintain facilities and trails as well as to encourage their meetings/activities in parks.TRAINING, TRAINING, TRAINING is needed to utilize volunteers. Volunteers are most likely not land owners and hold different perspectives. the volunteer program should go after the youth and retired as they have more time on their hands, as well as, the power to influence the middle aged people to act. Promote volunteer projects directed towards specific recreation groups. I recall volunteering, a number of times, as an OHV user for the BLM and our cleanup project was picking up debris from recreational target shooters. While this was a good thing. It would have been far better to utilize our efforts towards trail work or cleaning up any areas where debris (which it rarely is) is associated with OHV's. Asking for volunteers and conducting interviews to determine the ability of those volunteers would be good but spending a lot of time on writing up case studies takes away from the time needed to provide direction to the volunteers. Please work with Boy Scouts of America. They have local districts all over the state and I know they have boys needing service hours. They would be a great partner.if we don't help activate this generation outside and away from screens, in 25 years there won’t be anybody left to care about natural places. volunteers are important! Training the volunteers is of super high importance, whether they are young or elder :)This is ranching area. They provide great stewardship of the land and preserve the beauty on their land.In the area where I live (Pecos District) it is a shame how bad the condition of our forests are in. There is no maintenance of new growth, or dead trees and shrubs. This is why we have had extremely bad fires in the area in the past few years. A lot of people in the Pecos area burn wood for heat in the winter, yet a lot of the dead trees both down and standing are rotting in the forest becoming fuel for the next fire. A better plan is greatly in need!!The YCC program my worth looking at for a blueprint. Another thought is to reward volunteer with a NM yearly Access Pass for participating with an improvement project.exactly what I am thinking, if you would work with other agencies such as CYFD and get youth who have a history of criminal behavior out with their staff maybe we could turn at risk kids around and get them focused back to their education and interest that would deter them from using drugs and participating in criminal behavior.The residents of our state should have opportunities to volunteer on local environment improvement projects. This will increase awareness and increase an interest and understanding on the importance in preserving our state landscape.We camped at a Heron Lake State Park over 26 nights this year. Our favorite campground is Brushy Point. But the trees slowly this year are being " trimmed, cut, gathered for fire wood" and Brushy is not as brushy as it was last year. I have photos to show this. The rangers are diligent in issuing citations, but impossible to "catch" offenders as only have time or money to drive through the 40 site area once or twice a day. Signs have been placed at entrances to each camp group pay stations but cutting still continues.. Solutions??More of those individuals that are promoting the great outdoors actually have to prove that they are among the rest of us that enjoy outdoor activities.high schools now give kids community service credits, why not have them clean up state parks or river banks or lake shores. all it would cost is some plastic bags and a garbage truck and some grown up supervisors.You want to ask the state health department epidemiology for data that could be used in planning and promotion.Some parks utilize volunteer well and other seem to not want to deal with volunteers. Train park managers about the value of volunteers.Recruit volunteers to encourage others to participate in activities that support the roles hunting and fishing play in wildlife conservation and natural resource protection.There are RVers out there who would gladly work for their site and utilities. Arizona promos this in places like Quartzsite during the winter months. I don't have community planning experience to say how to increase the volunteer opportunities best, but would volunteer at the level of my capacity (age 66, moderate health)Volunteers are wonderful. It happens that they are very hard to come by in Santa Fe because there are SO MANY nonprofits here. I am one of the handful members of Friends of Hyde Park. New Mexico outdoors has tremendous potential to be expanded and used. There is a growing momentum of people who are genuinely concerned about the health of our wildlife and open spaces. Parks would do well to seize on this momentum and in a very meaningful way. Objective 5.2: Preserve scenic areas and special places. Action Item% High% Medium% LowConserve the special places in and around each community through fee-simple acquisition or conservation easements.533116Encourage federal land managers to offer a diverse spectrum of recreation settings583210Preserve views and areas that are quiet and “away from it all,” and create separation or barriers between these places and socialization areas (e.g. group shelters).602416Provide technical assistance to local governments to initiate open space programs562915Update development regulations, such as wetland regulations, to conserve environmentally sensitive lands and improve resiliency to natural disasters.622315Comments:Response Very good strategy "Diverse spectrum of recreation settings" should not include motorized vehicle use."Regulation" and "restriction" are very often interchangeable terms. Engage private landowners. Get market value for grazing on public land! Stop the subsidies to this destructive industry.HighI am troubled by the language. This is straight out of UNESCO documents.I'm an avid outdoorsman. Protect our environment at all times. KEEP THE DITCH BANKS UNIMPROVED!!!NO COMMENTParts of New Mexico, especially Santa Fe, are in danger of serious overgrowth.See above comments on Cottonwood Campground, Navajo Lake State Park.The Rio Grande corridor/flyway is too precious to lose to overdevelopment.There are too many wilderness places in NM already. Those need dismantling and de-commissioning.What about endangered wildlife...more preserveskeep all areas safeEncourage state land managers to pay attention to the will of the people instead of focusing on resource development. Focus on income from recreation instead.I camped Elephant Butte several times this summer. The large RV crowd that are towed in bring in a level of arrogance with loud music, generators running all night and leaving piles of trash. Have trails that allow bikes and other trails that don't allow bikes. Have off leash dog trails, and no dogs allowed trails.Ask simpler questions for survey. Did not understand question #2. Example what does Fee-Simple mean?Please spend time & money on the development of new scenic areas & special places along with the preservation of the excising ones. it really bothers me when people aren't held accountable and trash an area - fee's and watchful eyes are neededEven though it brings money, I think hunters should be limited to small areas and on a few licenses issued. I have seen vehicles in SF with jeeps and 4 wheel drive vehicles in tow going hunting. The animals do not have a change to survive. It looks like they are going to war against the animals. We need to protect the habitat so animals do not have to be killed or starve to death.Who designates "special places"? I have no further comment on your continued use of "encourage”. It meaningless.return control of lands to local government and give local government more input in the use of "special" places. who decides what is "special"? Allow local government to develop regulations that best suit local culture and needsPreserving and protecting wetlands and open space are best left to landowners that have a vested interest in preserving them. Everyone knows the federal agencies don't take good care of the land they already have. Local buy in is important to your success!!Ideas like paving the Bosque in NM are terrible! We do not need more amusement parks but natural settings away from it all. It is vital to maintain undeveloped areas in the environment and to protect our diverse wildlife. We need that state and other governments out of the way of the citizens of our nation. Less Gov. is better.Again, in my area the forests are crying for attention. I have traveled to other areas this summer and it abundantly clear that our forests suffer from severe neglect. The forest in Mt. Taylor is a perfect example of what a forest should look like. They deserve kudos for the fabulous job they are doing, and the rangers in our area need to learn from them before we have another massive FIRE.Encourage conservation-related recreational activities such as hunting, fishing and wildlife watching and go light on land access restrictions solely based on "protection."Make more primitive campgrounds with access to bath houses, dumps, safe drinking water for those of us who have park passes. My husband and I chose NM for retirement because of the wildlife and special places. We brought our pension here from out of state. Wild places are extremely important to us for wildlife viewing and photography.Have an area that is "generator free" for those of us who like to enjoy the "peace and quiet" the state parks offer, away from urban areas. This is becoming a problem at Brushy Point CG as folks get RVs use portable generators outside vehicle for "us" to enjoy while they sit in insulated sound proofed RV. Formerly most went to plug -in areas for power. We enjoy tenting, and camping in a camper van with NO power i.e. recalling "Boy Scout and Girl Scout days of yore". Please ease keep our parks natural so we can enjoy the sounds of nature!All this is in place, especially with the BLM and the NARKS. both have established successful programs that do what you are suggesting.There are folks that drive and get out of the car for a quiet setting and a view and socialization......and there are the folks that love to be in the back country! We all deserve to have quiet settings and to socialize.The EPA and Federal Laws provide enough regulations for clean air, wet lands etc. Don't complicate things further. Partner with them. Do you want to promote use or restrict use? Then be careful of "away from it all" areas. Those are called wilderness and back country.the ability to have a space where families can enjoy the river more often in alb is a must, for water activitiesThe Federal Government already does that. There was a time when people fought to preserve the Petroglyphs, the Bosque and the west face of the Sandias here in Albuquerque.Need to "control" non-acceptable use in Natural Areas such as Sonoita Creek where cattle are running free because of lack of State funds for the ParkThe federal government owns 1/3 of this nation's land mass, most of such ownership being in the western states. Words such as "conservation" and "protection" are euphemisms for "control" and "mandate" on private lands.You want to ask the state health department epidemiology for HIA data that could be used for this objective. Also encourage State Land Office to participate in volunteer access program described above. When discussing development regulations for open space, please include Firewise design for nearby communities.Ecotourism dominates hunting in terms of dollars spent for the purposes you outline above. The latest data shows hunting contributing 5-6% to overall revenue, with the majority of dollars flowing into states and territories for wildlife photography and observation. I used to come here from Cincinnati annually to do the same, and then moved here because I loved the state and its wild vistas so very much. Data strongly suggests we can do more to nurture and grow this opportunity that we have. Do not encourage more Govt ownership of lands. Keep land available for outdoor recreation and future development and on the tax rolls. Govt owning land is a BAD THING.too bad we can’t work better as a team, other agencies such as CYFD or the corrections department could get crews out with staff and offenders to better their environments and give pride to individuals who have felt like losers and maybe our state would see improvement so we don't have kids killed by repeat offenders senselessly.The environmental compliance requirements are already prohibitive to many economic development opportunities, including in regard to agricultural practices. If the object is to drive rural livelihoods out, then adding regulation will be a fine way. These scenic areas that are privately held must still provide a living for generations of families into the future. None of the scenic value provided by rural lands is compensated to the owners. Yet the suggestion of additional regulation will assure that these lands can no longer remain open. Preserving views sounds good until it’s your land that must be static regardless of your ability to survive on that land. If the owners were paid to preserve views that benefit others, then that's another idea to pursue. But anyone who suggests there be more regulation has no clear idea of exactly how much regulation already exists, and endangers the continued existence of those views.There is no way for me to indicate an "I don't know," "No," or "Oppose this policy/strategy/approach" as opposed to "Low Importance" for the answers in this survey. The "low importance" implies it may be important, just not as important as other priorities. It feels like I am unable to provide the answers I truly want to provide. I am concerned about the night sky and all the unnecessary lighting. Would love to see an activity where all lights in Taos are turned off for 2-3 minutes just to display what we are missing.Use your resources to maintain and improve current recreation areas. NM has an abundance already. Priority should be to keep them from falling into disrepair.Land managers need to address all user groups. The OHV community is ready and willing to pitch in. But, we want to do it on trails that are open to OHV's! Over 50% of the state of New Mexico is held in the hands of governmental entities including state, federal and tribal governments. NO MORE LAND should be taken off the tax rolls. NO MORE LAND should be purchased or acquired by any means, especially conservation easements!!! NO MORE REGULATION!!! Landowners and land stewards are already being driven from the land and/or put out of business due to federal and state regulation. Private ownership provides the best stewardship of resources. If you have a choice, do you go to a public restroom or a private bathroom?Preservation of natural spaces is of key importance, and preparing them for recreation might actually be detrimental.Most of what groups like scenic byways do is detrimental to the people who own the ranches and surrounding areas. Until the government uses some common sense and learns that not every mud hole and cattle tank is not a wetland, keep them out of this. All we have here is open space. One can drive along any road and see it. They don't have to take it away from the people who have owned this land for generations. I was a city kid. I still love seeing cattle and antelope on fenced land along the highways and back roads. I think the USFS is going too far in trying to force people off their land in the name of national monument and national forest that nobody can access or use. USFS and the national park service can't take care of what they have, let alone getting more land. Let the people traveling see the ranches and farms. Too many of these travelers have no idea where their food comes from or how it is grown or raised. It is extremely important to respect and conserve all sacred lands in the state and those places that hold a special meaning to residents of the areas.When you take some something it nothing but free nor is it simple, taking someone's property is not the right thing to do, even is the funding is there, this isn't where I need my tax dollars going to.New Mexico is already over-regulated by the federal government because so much of the state is owned by the federal government. New Mexicans do not need any more regulations.Response 1: Be careful here: you can't do it all in one place/"recreation setting" without diluting/ruining the experiences for participants. Objective 5.3: Identify and restore wetlands that contribute to large-scale conservation of wetlands and recreation opportunities. Action Item% High% Medium% LowContinue and expand on strong partnerships through state-sponsored programs such as the proposed Healthy Rivers Initiative, and through partnerships associated with New Mexico Mapping Consortium and NGO and Agency Wetlands Roundtables.543016Develop and adopt simple, effective and efficient monitoring methods to determine the success of wetland restoration projects and establish best management practices.493615Develop and improve ordinances and jurisdiction at the state or local level that protect wetlands, riparian areas, and the buffers around them at the local level, and that ensure that vulnerable and isolated wetlands are protected from impacts.582517Develop and integrate efficient and accessible data management with other water databases414217Develop sustainable funding sources including wetlands banks, in lieu fee programs, obtain matching grants through foundations, organize and assist voluntary programs, and obtain in-kind resources and assistance through the efforts of watershed groups.563113Work towards a complete inventory, classification and baseline assessment of New Mexico’s wetland resources.523315Comments:ResponseAgain, lets prioritize the balance between future development of water resources and recreation.All this infringes on private property rights.Emphasize user-pays recreational opportunities, not restricted access, to promote conservation.KEEP THE DITCH BANKS UNIMPROVED!!!Monitoring must follow the scientific method and be based on the most current research available.Please make wetland date available to all agencies.Protection of our state wetlands should be a priority for our future generations.Riparian areas are critical. It's about time you do this.Set up more trash bins to prevent/discourage littering/pollutingStop unsustainable development. The Nature Conservancy must be driving this objective. What does this have to do with parks???Utilize Revenue Bond programs for sustainable facility and resource improvementsWe need to give back and try to get people involved so they can better themselves. Where is the water coming from for these wet lands, and at whose expense?keep all wetlands clean and safeless new regulation and more common sense use of exciting regulationI believe that ordinances and jurisdictions are important but they can't be so restrictive the outcome is less accessibility. Management criteria is already available for everything you listed. Just not being done. It appears you want to reinvent the wheel. If we do not protect our wetlands now, as time viciously flies by, these precious lands will be forgotten.Where is local soil and water conservation district input? Nothing should proceed without their authority.People travel to see birds and animals in the wild and the benefits for protecting our wildlife are well worth the costNM would benefit from working with groups such as the Ricky Mtn Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation, Girl Scouts, and Boy Scoutestablishing jurisdiction is essential for the upkeep and funding of these areas. who's responsible and make them accountable. Not when the definition of “wetlands”; can be used to restrict access or remove people from their property. As I said above, when somebody gets some common sense and can define what a 'wetland' really is, then they can look into maintaining it. The ranchers and farmers in NM have better maintenance of the wetlands on their property than these other partnerships. If they don't maintain their wetlands, they don't have a livelihood. If someone would stop and ask, they would find that most all ranchers and farmers are conservationists, by choice besides necessity. Being in the desert should make the residents of the state more aware of the wetlands and the importance of maintaining them.You might want to work with the state environment department and the state health department epidemiology on the water initiatives. There should be a standard for local ordinances to establish consistent and similar rules, to reduce confusion.One of the biggest ways to keep our rivers healthy is to control forest fires! The destruction of our resources to fires is amazing! Not just to the environment, but our water, natural habitats, wild life, not to mention human life. We can't offer or expand additional recreation areas if the forests all burn down! We need better maintenance of the forests we still have.It's all about water. It's all about local people being involved to protect and manage wetlands and waterways. Private landowners are critical in the process.You have more specifics here than you have stated in other sections of this survey. I suspect that this is biased and influenced toward a special interest. If you put this much thought, planning, funding, inventory, regulation and preservation into the recreational opportunity in the other sections of this survey I would not be thinking this. Water is the purview of the Office of the State Engineer and/or the Environment Department. Stay out of it!!! There are already enough laws and regulations on the books. Stop making work for bureaucrats. A "complete inventory, classification and baseline assessment of New Mexico's wetland resources" is, like most of the proposals in this survey, designed to exert control over private lands. Wetlands on private lands are not owned by New Mexico and the state has no businesses inventorying, classifying, and assessing private wetlands. Such activity is a step toward controlling and regulating such privately owned resources and effecting a taking without complying with the requirements of eminent domain.Wetlands are arguably the most important, and most vulnerable of all environments within the state.There is absolutely no consideration of the private property issues, including regulatory takings sure to arise. The costs would be prohibitive, particularly the requirement to defend against takings litigation. And this seems quite outside the purview of recreation and trails. Wetlands that exist within state lands are public, but these suggestions are not limited to publicly owned resources. Quite the contrary. Better served by building roads on state and federal lands to access these areas that are already in the public domain. Objective 5.4: Identify and restore critical wildlife habitats and migratory corridors that contribute to recreation opportunities. Action Item% High% Medium% LowContinue and expand on strong partnerships through state-sponsored programs such as the proposed New Mexico Mapping Consortium.453817Improve growth management tools by improving development ordinances and jurisdiction at the state or local level that protect critical wildlife habitats and the buffers around them to limit habitat impacts and fragmentation.602317Comments:ResponseAgain, follow the science.Have internet conductivity in all New Mexico State Parks by the end of 2016,Mapping suggests prioritization. Even buffers should be considered high priority.MediumMost important - stop all trapping on public lands!NO COMMENTNew regulation is not needed. Once again, an attempt to control private lands.See above comment.Who is New Mexico Mapping Consortium?protect wildlifesee aboveBird-watching is drastically underutilized in many parts of the state as a way to drive economic growthI believe that ordinances and jurisdictions are important but they can't be so restrictive the outcome is less accessibility. Again, as in the above question / comment, this ignores the costs of the various types of takings that would arise. Additionally, there are many federal mandates limiting use of property already.Why are you so big on a proposed NM Mapping Consortium? Work with what you have. Again I think this survey is being influenced by special interest and not in the best goals for New MexicoMore federal management? Are they protecting what they already have?? I think not!! Bad idea! Nature Conservancy again??Keep New Mexico habitable for the future. Improve water policy to recognize our high desert environment and preclude unsustainable development, including development adversely impacting agriculture. This is starting to sound like a BLM land grabs. We want our parks to be clean and safe year round. We want the bath houses to be clean and hot water to take showers. We want the site electric to be updated and reliable. We want the water to be clean and safe to drink and the plumbing to updated and dependable when we hook up to it. We would like dump stations at each park please. We would come more and hike if the trails were better maintained. We would consider it an added plus to have seminars and presentations at each park and be able to plan what parks we could go to next for a music festival, seminars on how to park an RV in a campsite or best way to set up a tent. Show new RVers the freedom of primitive camping without hookups. Throw out the high paid bureaucrats and let’s get some people running our parks who RV for a living. Take care, God bless and.....Have a nice day. From D.M. Simonds See Ya in the next park down the road. I love that I live in a state where I can see and appreciate the wildlife here. I respect the wildlife and their habitats and we should continue to find way to protect it from outside invaders.Local people are often the problem, not the solution. But you need to involve them throughout planning processes.Given the literature worldwide, this is the most compelling of your topics. We need to move on this immediately before it is too late for some critically endangered species. You can lead the charge to educate and be proactive, and many will follow. You restore wildlife and then allow people to kill them when they begin to over populate and come into the cities, why invest in this makes no sense at all.Habitat is so critical! Our farmers, loggers and other environmental people of the land can work together to keep our US habitats rich!Again, YOU need to take care of the resources we have so that we can enjoy what GOD has given us. Forest FIRES KILL: wild life, economies, natural habitats, people, and hope.Again, everything you want to do is in place, unless you are talking about taking more land out of private management/ownership. After completing the survey I have to ask, who is going to pay for all of this. Most of the information you talk about is available. We do not need to spend dollars needed by the state to do all the things you listed. Maybe a coordinator or two to organize but not a whole new level of government, that is what we need less of. We all need to be better stewards to the resources New Mexico offers. So much depends on what we do with protecting it today for the next generations to enjoy it for years to come. The New Mexico Department of Game & Fish, administratively attached to EMNRD, has a State Wildlife Action Plan that is intrusive enough and addresses these needs. EMNRD is attempting to double-dip the federal government in a nation that is nearly $20 trillion dollar in debt.Without private landowners, this won't happen. Engage landowners at the table and seek input from them - they provide a wealth of knowledge because they know the land from living on it. They have common sense. They have an emotional connection to the land. They deserve respect and gratitude for caring for the land. It is rare that they are included in the matrix, and that is a sad commentary. Local is most important.Engineer and/or the Environment Department. Stay out of it!!! There are already enough laws and regulations on the books. Stop making work for bureaucrats.See above twice. The people in your partnerships and programs have no common sense. They seem to base their ordinances on what is dictated to them by the anti-ag groups. Get some people in these programs who can't be bought and who can use their heads.Mapping can also be done through some courses that are set to be rolling out to high schools across the state in the 16-17 school year and into the future. give full time State employees a year round pass for camping or give at least the retirees a life time pass as they have worked hard for the State of New MexicoYou might want to work with the state environment department and the state health department epidemiology on the mapping projects. Additional Comments: In addition to her comments, on page 9 under the first bullet point under "Health, Physical Activity, and Preventable Illnesses," there is a reference to the "Kids n' Parks transportation program." If this is a reference to the National Park Foundation program, it is technically called "Ticket to Ride." If not, I would specify that there are transportation programs targeting youth both at the state and federal levels.?? Also, the case studies are a nice touch. I think it would be good to include a case study on partnership opportunities that exist for youth corps programs and transportation since several partners are expressing strong interest in those areas.. For instance, the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps partnered with Valle de Oro NWR, Petroglyphs National Monument, Cibola National Forest, Albuquerque Open Space, Pueblo of Isleta, and several other partners to fund the positions of 45 youth to complete the much needed trail/open space work in all of our individual sites.?? For transportation, Valle de Oro NWR partnered with Bernalillo County to receive 12 million in Federal Land Access Program funds to improve the road and trail gateway to Valle de Oro NWR. Although this is a federal program and it has to directly benefit a Federal site, the leveraging opportunities involved with this Federal funding also provides more connectivity to other state parks/open spaces too. Another example would be how Tent Rocks National Monument secured funding from the "Ticket to Ride" program. Providing a few more case study examples in the SCORP will highlight projects that are going on all around the state and it will also provide a resource for other communities to look towards when trying to develop or sustain their programs.Looking at the draft Environmental Literacy Plan may be beneficial for consistency with all objectives – here is the link to the latest draft: may also want to think about incorporating citizen science into this objective/action.Objective 2.1 Think about including youth crews to conduct this work.Include federal agencies in recommendations tables where appropriate. In general the biggest priority for cyclists, with regard to recreation planning, is to see long-distance routes in New Mexico that are bike-friendly.? Think of Colorado as an example.? This means five feet (minimum) shoulders on highways that are paved smoothly, without rumble strips.? We currently contend with partial paving, uneven shoulders, rumble strips, having to ride too close to high-speed traffic, pot holes, road kill and loads of rock and glass.? Cross over the state border into Colorado, and it's bike heaven.? NMDOT is the culprit as well as the potential solution to the problem.? If you have any advice for how we could pressure NMDOT to change their modus, I would be game to know how.? I have done ten long-distance bike tours throughout the country.? My least favorite states were New Mexico and Hawaii, despite the nice scenery in both.? Both states completely disregard bikes as transportation. ?My name is Ronald Schubert and am outdoor enthusiast-hunt, fish, camp, photograph, hike, ride All-Terrain Vehicles, and ETC.? I do have a passion for all but would like to comment about OHVS and you got some of right and some of wrong.? I ride atvs while encompassing other outdoor activities.? You got it right where New Mexico could be an attractive location as destination for Off Highway enthusiast.? Colorado, Utah and Arizona got it right and New Mexico is way behind.? Located in page 26 is this statement in Objective 24- “Actions Responsibility Create OHV parks in small, rural communities as an economic driver”.? Why and how would this be an economic driver for rural communities?? Would you drive 100s of miles and stay in a location for an OHV park?? Do you think this would work?? I don’t think so.? Working with land management agencies, tribal groups, state and local governments and you can connect the existing infrastructure that is already there.? You don’t have recreate the wheel to make things work.? Arizona, Colorado and Utah have done it and reap the rewards from it.? The adjacent states have given a person a reason to travel and stay for OHV recreation.? This has incredibly flourished and has added to rural communities’ wealth. ??I copied and pasted below some excerpts out of the Public Draft State Plan September 2015 concerning OHVs.?? Page 19: New Mexico is a clear regional leader in attracting visitors to participate in outdoor cultural events or festivals, an activity for which 87% of past New Mexico outdoor recreation visitors would travel out of-state. Compared with its regional competitors, New Mexico is well positioned to attract OHV riders, out of-state campers, and those playing outdoor sports, but not as well positioned to attract anglers, hunters, and those who participate in snow sports (see Figure 11).?Page 24: Motorized trails are recreationally and economically important to the state. OHV riders share some facilities with campers, equestrians and mountain bikers and desire similar experiences such as solitude and scenery, yet often have different objectives than most other recreating populations. This activity is attractive to out-of-state visitors and New Mexico is well-positioned compared with nearby states. New Mexico does offer many OHV trail opportunities, however additional advertising would expand these opportunities where appropriate and draw in the motorized tourism dollars that would help many rural communities. OHV organizations, such as the NMOHVA and national OHV organizations can assist with design, construction and maintenance of motorized trails, and assist management agencies with educational outreach to ensure appropriate OHV use.Page 26: Objective 2.4: Develop more sustainable OHV trail systems throughout the state. Actions Responsibility Create OHV parks in small, rural communities as an economic driver. New Mexico Game and Fish, the New Mexico RTP, Federal Land Management Agencies, New Mexico Off Highway Vehicle Alliance (NMOHVA), National Off Highway Vehicle Conservation Council (NOHVCC) Create dedicated OHV areas to give riders what they desire while minimizing conflict with other user groups. Federal Land Management Agencies, NMOHVA, NOHVCC Accelerate implementation of federal and county travel management plans to adequately designate and implement suitable OHV routes. Federal Land Management Agencies, Counties Increase education and outreach to OHV users to improve resource stewardship and Leave No Trace principles. New Mexico Game and Fish Department, BLM, USFS, NMOHVA, NOHVCC.We have the UNM Taos Klaur campus on C-110 with a parking lot unused on weekends. This would be a great place to start a bike path leading 4 miles down the road to meet up with the RG del Norte NM and its trails.?None of the State Parks i've visited offer WIFI to campers. Our fees are low so it should be available at an additional fee.In an effort to garner comments on the SCORP, I’ve circulated the links below including posting a link on the Santa Fe Road Riders Facebook page at ? Hopefully this will generate some interest.As a follow-up to my comments via phone, I have attached two images taken on 10/10/15 showing the dangerous shoulder paving practices all too common with the NMDOT.Image 1 is looking south on US 84 at the Rio del Oso bridge.? As you can see in the image, the shoulder completely disappears as you approach the bridge and any cyclist is required to vault a 3+ inch lip differential between the crumbling shoulder and the newly paved travel lane.Image 2 also looks south and shows multiple travel lane pavement layers next to old style rumble strips.? One may only conclude that the travel lanes have been paved at least twice previously without the shoulder being fully paved.In addition to the road hazard created by the partial shoulder paving, failing to pave the shoulders here did not allow the NMDOT to redo the rumble strips shown in the photo to bring them in compliance with Appendix D of the NMDOT’s own January 2009 Bicycle-Pedestrian-Equestrian Advisory Plan at ?Unfortunately, this type of shoulder paving is all to common in New Mexico and has caused injuries and worse to vulnerable road users.Champe and Sandia Landscape Team: I attended the August 12 public meeting at Carnue Land Grant hall, and was encouraged by the number of mountain bikers present. This 15 year re-plan is a special opportunity to think about the recreational relationship the N.F. has to an ever-growing metro Albuquerque. This re-plan is the time for out-of-the-box thinking, for it only comes around every 15 years.? What comes to mind is the Tahoe Rim Trail in California/Nevada. This is a destination for people from all over the states to hike, run, mountain bike, or horseback ride the 165-mile loop trail around the lake. A 100-mile organized run is one of their famous events. They had a vision and did the necessary to make it happen. They had hurdles to overcome... it bridged two different states, passes through the Desolation Wilderness area, state parks, high-end private land and nearby homes. See the Association website: ?? Why can't we do the same here with our Sandia? ... create a multi-agency, multi-recreational Sandia Perimeter Trail. The multi-agency Sandia Landscape Team already exists, and is comprised of just those folks. Make the Sandia a destination! Like the mountain bikers at the meeting, I too would like to keep the current number of acres of wilderness the same... no increase. But, going one step further, I would like to see wilderness boundary lines redrawn to permit judicious planning and layout of the Sandia Perimeter Trail. The current wilderness boundaries don't make sense. In many locations they butt up against people's back yards! There should be a N.F. buffer zone separating wilderness and private property. This buffer zone could be the makings of the Sandia Perimeter Trail.Please consider that an 80% trails target for LWCF may be something of a "self-fulfilling prophecy", in that waterways are in short supply in New Mexico, so that the "fact" that 3% of survey respondents participate in boating, etc. may be as much a reflection of limited opportunities as of actual needs. I urge you to look deeply for opportunities to improve recreational conditions on rivers and streams, not slanting future projects to activities that are already amply supplied. I would also welcome an opportunity to discuss river and stream access needs and opportunities with you.Thank you for the chance to comment on the latest draft of the SCORP. I appreciate the emphasis on transportation planning and collaboration with public health in this draft. The point is made (here or in presentations) that bicycling of all kinds is on the increase yet this draft all but ignores on-road bicycling and frequently makes reference to “hiking trails” or “trails for hiking” instead of “multi-use trails” for walkers and cyclists that maximize the diversity of healthy recreational opportunities that are facilitated. Comments follow by page or objective:p. 7 “Public access across private property is limited and advance permission is required to avoid trespassing”. There are in fact many cases of legal, permitted use of private land by the general public. Suggest “advance permission may be required” , or “..is often..” requiredp. 22 Under first activity under objective 1.3 I would recommend Increase transportation options to the outdoors via walking, bike, bus, shuttles, etc.orIncrease transportation options via walking, bike, and transit throughout New Mexico communities and to outdoor destinations in particularResponsibility: Local and regional transit authorities, schools, NMDOT, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, Safe Routes to Everywhere Local and tribal governments, other land and resource management agenciesStrikeout is because (1) NMRTC is a strictly local group in Cloudcroft, not focused on transportation though certainly building some great recreational trails and (2) this may be a concept as more than Safe Routes to Schools but there is no actual program or entity as far as I knowp. 24 “Motorized trails are recreationally and economically important to the state.28 OHV riders share some facilities with campers, equestrians, hikers and mountain bikers …”Question/Comment: This is a fairly “neutral”-sounding presentation of a controversial topic. Motorized recreation is not a benign activity. Can we control / tolerate the environmental degradation that goes with these activities? Not to mention other harm to the planet (greenhouse gasses), harm to motorized users (injury, death), conflicts with other users.Do motorized trails really exist in an organized managed way? Do we need more of this? Do NM governments really want to take responsibility for managing and even promoting this activity? The answer is usually no. Is off highway vehicle use a good thing for New Mexico and New Mexicans compared to other, lower-impact recreational activities? Similar comments for power boating.“Motorized trails” and recreational off highway vehicle use tend to have the opposite effects of non-motorized with respect to environmental conditions and humans’ appreciation of the environment. I would strongly recommend some kind of caveat statement recognizing major disadvantages to promoting this kind of recreation. E.g. “although it’s popular, it comes with a price to the environment and human health”I added “hikers” above as they are certainly not immune to this activity and walk the same dirt roads and trails that are used by off highway motor vehicle users, ATVs and motorcycles. p. 25 and on…Objective 2.1“Work with New Mexico Tourism…”Add Chambers of Commerce, local and regional tourism-oriented agenciesObjective 2.2: “Construct…” Add “local and tribal governments” under responsibility“Develop mountain bike trail systems and maintenance programs.” Add Local IMBA Chapters / local mountain biking groups Objective 2.3Include bicycle and pedestrian improvements meeting national engineering standards as an incremental integral part of larger projects.Add NMDOT under responsibility for this and next activity on funding sourcesObjective 3.1Continue supporting Safe Routes to Schools programs and partnerships.Add NMDOT, TAP to this. I am not sure that NMRTP (also part of NMDOT now) is up to this task, or other tasks assigned to NMRTP, but perhaps it can be a player. NMDOH/Healthy Kids NM is a key partner for many of these activities, particularly the last.Objective 3.2 What is the Prescription Trails Organization? This refers to a relatively small program within NMDOH/Diabetes (Chronic Disease Bureau) “Improve directional /wayfinding” Add local governments / public works departments“Improve the community infrastructure to create more parks, playgrounds, safe sidewalks, improved crosswalks, bike lanes and bike and walking trails.” Add NMDOT under responsibility as state highways are critical local infrastructure in most NM communitiesObjective 4.1Consider add local tourism depts., chambers of commercePromote events, such as adventure racing, mountain biking trail races, on-road bicycling events and tours, and birding festivals to attract repeat visitors.Is the Santa Fe Century discussed? Tour of the Gila? These are big economic development activities.Advertise snow sport opportunities more in Texas and Oklahoma; also consider highlighting OHV, hiking and biking on dirt trails, road biking, and to a lesser extent, camping and outdoor sports.SW Region FindingsTo better meet needs, balance improving and maintaining existing hiking, cycling, camping, and swimming facilities with building new facilities.The Pueblo of Laguna appreciates the opportunity to comment on the State ComprehensiveOutdoor Recreation Plan, Viva New Mexico: A Statewide Plan for Outdoor Adventure: Strategic Plan2016-2020 (public draft September 2015). The Pueblo of Laguna has developed master plans forbike and pedestrian facilities and for parks, playgrounds, and recreational facilities. We believe thatthe content of Viva New Mexico will have a significant impact on potential partnerships between thePueblo and the New Mexico State Parks Division, and the ongoing implementation of outdoorrecreation projects on the Pueblo's lands.The Pueblo's comments are provided below as substantive recommendations regarding the contentof the plan and minor editorial suggestions.ContentPage 6, Pueblos, Tribes, and Nations: This section describes recreation opportunities that supporttribal (and, to a significant degree, state) economic development. It should also note that tribes, assovereign governments, are responsible for the quality of life of their members, and must ensureadequate recreational facilities and opportunities for the tribal public. This could also beincorporated on page 7 (see below).Page 6, Pueblos, Tribes, and Nations: Note that the Pueblo of Laguna also operates Paguate Lake forfishing.Page 7, Local Governments: It is important to note the similar roles of tribal governments. In thefirst paragraph, please edit as follows: "on the weekends, local and tribal governments ... " Also seethe note regarding page 6, above.Page 8, Population Changes: In the first bullet, please note that tribal population patterns maydiffer from non-tribal population patterns, since more tribal members may be moving back to ruralreservation lands.Page 11, Stakeholder Input, Stakeholder Interviews: The document notes that recreation providersfrom cities and counties were interviewed. If any tribes were interviewed, please state this in the document. Although the plan has no jurisdiction over tribal lands, it may serve as a tool to supporttribal recreation projects. Therefore, tribes should have a clear voice in the plan.Page 11, Stakeholder Input, Statewide Resident Survey: According to the companion report B, thesurvey ensured sampling across regions of the state, as well as gender, but did not ensure samplingacross races. The report does not indicate if any Native Americans, whether living on tribal lands ornot, were surveyed. Although the plan has no jurisdiction over tribal lands, it may serve as a tool tosupport tribal recreation projects. Therefore, tribes should have a clear voice in the plan.Page 20: The recognition of underserved populations is appreciated. However, the plan shouldacknowledge that some underserved populations, such as the Pueblo of Laguna, have alreadyanalyzed the issues and have recreational facility master plans but need funding to implementthem.Page 22, second action: The action to implement park, recreation, trail, and open space plans isappreciated. However, this action needs to include more details regarding implementation,perhaps noting the need for planning, design, and construction, and suggesting approaches toobtaining funds.Page 23, objective 1.3, first action: This action is not clear. Does it refer to increasingtransportation options just to get to outdoor facilities, or to increasing active/outdoortransportation options in general? We suggest that it be reworded to clearly refer to increasingactive/outdoor transportation options, such as trails.Page 24, trails: This section should discuss the importance of integrating recreation and activetransportation using trails. Many trails can serve both purposes.Page 25, objective 2.2, first action: The responsible party listed for this action, trail alliances, seemsto suggest that most trails are natural surface trails. Many previously-planned trails, such as thoselisted in the Pueblo of Laguna's Bike and Pedestrian Route Master Plan, are asphalt trails. They willbe constructed through the Pueblo of Laguna government. Other responsible parties, such as localand tribal governments, should also be listed.Page 25, objective 2.2, second action: How is "trail implementation" different than trailconstruction? Please clarify somewhere in the document, or edit this to be "Increase trailconstruction."Page 26, objective 2.3: The wording of this objective needs to reflect that local non-motorizedtransportation has many destinations, not just parks. This could be accomplished by deleting "toparks" or by adding "and other community destinations."Page 26, objective 2.5: The objective does not include tribes. Please edit as follows: "between cities.and towns. and tribal communities. where appropriate."Page 29, objective 3.2: The 7th action, "Improve directional/wayfinding signage and maps ... "should be listed first among these actions. This is a basic step and a precursor to some of the otheractions (such as prescription trails). Page 29, objective 3.3: Add an action, "Partner with the New Mexico Department of Health todevelop and distribute materials demonstrating the positive impacts of outdoor recreation onhealth and wellbeing," with responsibilities for the State Parks Division and New MexicoDepartment of Health.Page 3S, objective S.4, first action: Under "responsibility," please add "Native American Nations."Page 3S, objective S.4, second action: Edit the end of the sentence to read, "that protect andenhance critical wildlife habitats and the buffers around them to limit habitat impacts andfragmentation and increase wildland connectivity."Page 36, key findings, items 1and3: The Pueblo of Laguna supports the actions "build more trailsthroughout the state" and "build more playgrounds throughout the state."Page 36, key findings, item 3: This finding that "satisfaction with local outdoor recreation optionsfor youth is relatively low" should clearly explain that this is not simply a matter of dissatisfactionwith existing facilities, but in many cases is the result of a complete lack of outdoor recreationoptions for youth.Page 38, northwest region: The responses from the region may or may not reflect concerns ontribal lands, which are a substantial proportion of the land area (since it is possible no tribalmembers or residents were surveyed). The Pueblo of Laguna agrees that there is a strong desirefor new facilities, but believes that parks and playgrounds, trails, and sports fields are higherpriorities than campsites.EditingPage 1, second paragraph: "State Parks Division" does not need to be in parentheses.Page 2 and subsequent pages: The state funding program should simply referred to as "state," not"stateside." "Stateside" is generally used in contrast to another country, as when on a militarymission.I am submitting these comments on the Draft Statewide Comprehensive OutdoorRecreation Plan (SCORP) on behalf of the New Mexico Off Highway VehicleAlliance (NMOHVA). NMOHVA is a statewide incorporated alliance of motorizedoff-highway vehicle enthusiasts that promotes responsible OHV recreationthrough education, safety training, land conservation and access advocacy.NMOHVA represents motorized recreationists in New Mexico including 4WDenthusiasts, dirt bike riders, and ATV/UTV users.Let me first say that I applaud the State Parks Division and the State of NewMexico for finally giving official recognition to OHV recreation as a keycomponent of New Mexico’s recreational spectrum and economic vitality:“Motorized trails are recreationally and economically important to the state.”1NMOHVA has been actively promoting the same model to the State since ourinception in 2004. As stated in the Draft Strategic Plan, we believe thatNMOHVA is uniquely positioned to help the State achieve its goals:“OHV organizations, such as the NMOHVA and national OHV organizations canassist with design, construction and maintenance of motorized trails, and assistmanagement agencies with educational outreach to ensure appropriate OHVuse.”2Specific Comments – OHV Trail Systems, Not “Parks”, Are a Key Element Objective 2.4 is spot on target! New Mexico absolutely needs more sustainable OHV trail systems throughout the state. Unfortunately, not all of the Actions identified are consistent with the Objective nor will they support the State’s effort to support economic vitality. Specifically, “OHV parks” and “dedicated OHV areas” do not give riders the experience that they desire. OHV riders/drivers, whether they are driving UTV’s (side by sides), 4WD vehicles (Jeeps, trucks, and SUV’s), or are riding ATV’s or motorcycles typically desire a much more unconfined outdoor experience than that provided by a “park” or “area”: “OHV enthusiasts generally seek the same type of outdoor recreation experience as any other outdoor recreationist. OHV enthusiasts use their machines to access scenic vistas, view wildlife, access historical sites, take photos,and experience and enjoy the outdoor environment with family and friends…. OHV recreation is a dispersed recreation activity. Even though OHV enthusiasts may travel with their families or in larger groups, they still want to recreate in a dispersed setting where they feel some level of solitude and isolation. One key to successful OHV management is to disperse riders – spread them out; don?t box them in. When managers recognize the full range of user needs and desires, they are better able to develop a system that can satisfy those needs.”3 OHV users, especially those in the West have large amounts of public land available for use. They generally do not want to be constricted by the limited confines of a park or dedicated area. “Specifically, we found that “enjoying natural scenery” was the most important benefit desired across all experience use history groups. We also found social-psychological benefits related to stress relief were consistent and high across all experience use history groups. “Getting away from the demands of life”, “experiencing personal freedom”, “experiencing solitude”, and “releasing or reducing built-up stress was ranked as at least “important” to the majority of OHV riders sampled.”4 Small trail systems, “parks”, and confined “areas” won’t meet the objective of attracting out-of-state OHV riders: “Off-highway vehicle (OHV) riding is a small but promising niche. New Mexico competes well with other states in this activity group, and OHV riders tend to come back when they do visit.”5 “Also well positioned to attract more OHV riders, and outdoor sports enthusiasts”6 Arizona, Utah, and Colorado all have more extensive and better developed (mapped, signed, and maintained) trail systems than New Mexico. If we desire to draw riders from those states, we need to effectively compete with them in terms of motorized recreational trail system quality and quantity. The riders in those states simply will not travel to a neighboring state to ride in the restrictive confines of “parks” or “areas” unless New Mexico offers something that those states do not provide.7 In fact, we lose many riders and dollars from our own state as they leave to enjoy the better trail systems in the adjoining states. The same is true in attracting OHV riders from Texas and Oklahoma. Residents there, due to a shortage of public lands, can already ride locally in confined parks. The unconfined nature of New Mexico’s OHV opportunities on public land is what draws them to this state. We strongly encourage the agency to re-state the first two actions under Objective 2.4. We offer these suggestions: ? Create sustainable trail systems linking small, rural communities as an economic driver. ? Create sustainable trail systems to give riders the trail features and attributes they desire (day-long rides, multiple loops, a variety of challenge and skill levels).We also suggest that Objective 2.5 include this additional Action: ? Work with partners to identify and develop OHV trail system opportunities for multiple days of recreation, creating a tourism destination for participating communities. The Outdoor Recreation Participation analysis does not capture New Mexico’s OHV use. The following table from the draft report claims OHV use is 2%. This an order of magnitude (ten times!) less than OHV use reported in SCORP’s from our neighboring states and the results of the state-by-state surveys by the U.S. Forest Service: In studying the underlying documents, we found that the “2%” figure was drawn from the recent study by Corona Insights. Their data conflicts with existing credible sources. The 2008 “RECSTAT” Report prepared by the US Forest Service found the percentage of New Mexico’s population participating in OHV recreation was a whopping 27.3%; more than ten times the rate reported by the Corona Insights survey.8 Corona Insights’ reported OHV participation rate for New Mexico is a mere fraction of OHV participation in our neighboring states: 22% for Arizona, 25.6% for Colorado, and 47.5% for Utah. “Based on the Arizona Trails 2010 Plan, OHV users represent almost 22% of the Arizona population which include residents who use motorized vehicle on trails for multiple purposes. Of that, 11% of Arizona residents reported that motorized trail use accounted for the majority of their time and are considered ?core users?.”9 “Power boating, snowmobiling and riding off-highway vehicles (OHVs) are popular activities in Colorado. In fact, 10 percent of the state?s population participates in power boating annually, 5.4 percent in snowmobiling, and almost 20 percent in ATV/Four-wheel drive activities.”10 [Please note that this does not include an additional 5.6% that is listed separately for “off-road motorcycling”.]One would expect there to be some amount of variation in OHV participation between Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico. However, seeing participation rates in the other three states all in excess of ten times higher than the New Mexico should raise obvious red flags about the credibility of the survey and it’s results. How the question was presented in the survey and how the “participation” was defined varied somewhat from state to state but even the briefest review of the data from our fellow “four-corner” states compared to New Mexico’s reported “2%” raises some grave and legitimate questions about relying on the Corona Insights survey and it’s results. In our neighboring states, the RECSTAT numbers are pretty much in line with their SCORP participation percentages. The differences are just few percentage points. In contrast, the discrepancy between the New Mexico RECSTAT and SCORP is a full order of magnitude (ten times different). Something is definitely not correct! We urge the agency to review and compare the data provided by Corona Insights and the data used in other state’s SCORP documents. Before proceeding further towards a final report, the agency must determine if the current data is accurate, appropriate, and defensible. Wilderness Numbers and Statements are Misleading The Wilderness sidebar on page 4 has some misleading information. It gives the designated Wilderness acreage for the State and calculates it as 2% of the land mass. But later in the paragraph it claims that: “…mechanized and motorized recreation are allowed on the majority of the remaining 98% of public lands.” The agency is inadvertently mixing jurisdictions of land in the statement by using the term “remaining”. Wilderness is 2% of the total acreage of New Mexico but 3.7% of the federal public land. The agency needs to correct this serious error. It is also largely incorrect to claim that mechanized and motorized access is allowed on the remaining public land. In reality, mechanized and motorized recreation is very limited on public lands; it is limited to designated roads and trails on numerous large tracts which severely limits the acreage that the public can practically access unless on foot. The recent implementation of the Travel Management Rule also severely curtailed camping opportunities. For example, the Santa Fe National Forest closed public acres along 381 miles of system routes for the purpose of motorized access to dispersed camping. “Public land” in the SCORP includes state lands where currently no motorized use, or indeed any general public access, is allowed. The State Land Office does not consider the lands it manages to be public lands. Their website states, prominently, on its home page: “STATE TRUST LANDS ARE OFTEN MISUNDERSTOOD IN TERMS OF BOTH THEIR CHARACTER AND THEIR MANAGEMENT. THEY ARE NOT PUBLIC LANDS, BUT ARE INSTEAD THE SUBJECT OF A PUBLIC TRUST CREATED TO SUPPORT THE EDUCATION OF NEW MEXICO'S CHILDREN.”12 NMOHVA is Ready to Assist! “OHV organizations, such as the NMOHVA and national OHV organizations can assist with design, construction and maintenance of motorized trails, and assist management agencies with educational outreach to ensure appropriate OHV use.”13 Our Mission Statement states, “We cooperate with public and private interests to protect and preserve public land access and work to ensure a positive future for OHV recreation in New Mexico.” We believe we can be of significant assistance to the agency in crafting the Strategic Plan and implementing it for the benefit of the people of New Mexico. In addition to the elements identified in the draft statement above, we can serve many additional functions: idea generators, volunteers, technical experts, liaison to the OHV community and networkers within the national OHV community. I am personally available to meet with you discuss the draft Strategic Plan, our comments, or any other subject of interest and benefit to your office. I am also currently serving as the Chair of the Recreational Trails Advisory Board here in New Mexico and can provide insight and liaison capabilities to that potential funding source. ................
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