Outdoor Camping vs. Our Environment

By: Cindy A Christiansen Click author's name for more of his/her articles

My family and I are privileged to live in the spectacular state of Utah. We have been vacationing here for over twenty years, and there are still many more intriguing places to visit. Utah has every imaginable type of scenery from the eighteen majestic mountain ranges to the rocky landscape of Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. The weather is varied from a wintery wonderland for snow skiing to fantastic summers just right for hiking, camping and ATV trail riding.

This summer we returned to a canyon in the Manti-La Sal mountain range and was surprised to see that not only were there even fewer places to camp but that more people were out camping. Of course, some of that has to do with the economy and people doing staycations. It seems nothing has changed in the number of places to camp.

We drove around for three hours before we ended up camping just off from the main canyon road. This is difficult for us since we like to camp with our dogs, plus it is also very dusty with the number of RVs going up and down the canyon. As we searched for a camping spot, we found that places we had previously camped were blocked by signs which read, "Closed for wildlife habitat." Mind you, this range has over 1.4 million acres.

To give you a little history, in 1990 the population in Utah was 1.7 million. Today it has reached 2.7 million and our growth rate has more than doubled the rest of the nation. The projected population for 2030 is projected to be around 3.5 million.

Camping and hiking are activities enjoyed by 40 million Americans every year. It is the number one outdoor vacation activity. Camping participants made more than 597 million outings in 2008 alone. Also, one out of twenty US jobs is related to outdoor activities. Studies indicate that this industry generates roughly $730 billion annually and creates five times as many jobs as Wal-Mart.

To be fair, in Utah there are over seven-thousand improved campgrounds. Campgrounds with water hook-up and fire pits are called improved campgrounds. The problem for a number of campers is that what they enjoy the most about camping is getting out by themselves—away from the city, traffic, loud noises and enjoying the environment. You can't get that parked next to other campers you don't know who are playing loud obnoxious music and screaming in and out of the campground on their ATV's.

Back in 2005, ATV sales were right around 900,000 units. I'm positive sales have increased since then as the sport as become more popular. However, the number of OHV trails has varied—some have been opened up and some closed. The concern about camping and ATV riding is the impact it is having on our environment, which is very understandable.

Designated campgrounds are those without immenities. This year they were so over-camped, they were practically dustbowls. This couldn't be good. But isn't the reason these areas are so over-camped because they haven't accounted for the growing population and increase in outdoor activities? It's true that blazing trails in restricted areas as destroying our environment, but opening up more designated trails based on the growing popularity of the sport may be a solution.

It is as important to plan and project further growth of this popular activity as it is to plan our freeway and highway requirements to accommodate our growing population. In 2007, the US had over 192.8 million acres. Utah currently has over nine million acres of forest land. Why isn't it possible to provide more camp sites and still provide enough habitate for our wildlife.

By allowing us to see our beautiful country, won't we learn to respect it more? Somehow there needs to be a balance between the environment and us.

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About The Author: Cindy A. Christiansen is an avid camper, multi-published author and a mother of two autistic children. For more information, please contact her at: c.a.dragonfly.googlepages.com