People can testify at a public hearing before Okanogan County commissioners on Monday (Feb. 5) about a proposal to remove 11.5 miles of roads in the Tunk Valley from a list of roads that were recently opened to all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).
After input from neighboring landowners, the commissioners determined there is a “high likelihood of illegal ridership which can cause damage to private property and critical areas,” according to a proposed amendment to the ordinance adopted by the commissioners last November. In particular, concern was expressed about endangered sharp-tailed grouse in the area.
The roads don’t connect with any other ATV routes and lead only to private property and could adversely affect environmentally sensitive areas, according to the documents.
If the changes are approved, the roads that would be closed to ATVs are Knox Road, Knox Road Extension, Ed Figlenski Road, and J.H. Green Road, all in commissioner District 3. Two of the roads are connected and the other two are in close proximity but don’t intersect. The roads would remain open to all other vehicles.
There would still be more than 350 miles of routes for wheeled ATV riders in the northern part of the county.
The Okanogan County Planning Director has found that closing the roads to ATVs wouldn’t have a significant impact on the environment.
The hearing is at 1:30 p.m. in the commissioners’ auditorium in Okanogan. People can provide up to five minutes of verbal testimony or submit written comments at the hearing or in advance to Laleña Johns at ljohns@co.okanogan.wa.us
Documents about the proposal are online at www.okanogancounty.org/planning.
