RESERVOIR GREEN LIGHT GRANTED OFF-ROADERS CAN RETURN.Byline: Charles F. Bostwick Staff Writer ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST The Angeles National Forest (ANF) was established by executive order on December 20, 1892 as the San Gabriel Timberland Reserve. It covers over 2,600 km² (650,000 acres) and is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, just north of the metropolitan area of Los - Off-road vehicle off-road vehicle off n → véhicule m tout-terrain enthusiasts will be allowed back into the Littlerock Reservoir area for the first time since restrictions were imposed in 1999 to protect an endangered toad. Water levels have dropped enough to allow four-wheel-drive vehicles and motorcycles onto the reservoir bottom, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has concurred that letting off-roaders drive there will not harm any toads, the U.S. Forest Service said Thursday. ``This is not part of the area that has been closed for the toad. This is the area that is in the reservoir bed to the north of the toad closure. It's the area flooded in the summertime,'' said Rich Borden, U.S. Forest Service acting district engineer. Nearly five square miles of the Angeles National Forest and about 17 miles of off-road vehicle trails were closed in January 1999 to protect the arroyo southwestern toad Noun 1. southwestern toad - a uniformly warty stocky toad of washes and streams of semiarid southwestern United States Bufo microscaphus true toad - tailless amphibian similar to a frog but more terrestrial and having drier warty skin , a 2- to 3-inch-long amphibian amphibian, in zoology amphibian, in zoology, cold-blooded vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia. There are three living orders of amphibians: the frogs and toads (order Anura, or Salientia), the salamanders and newts (order Urodela, or Caudata), and the that lives along sandy creekbeds in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . Forest Service officials had hoped to open the reservoir bottom to off- roaders after Labor Day, which is the last day that water officials are required to keep water in the reservoir for anglers and boaters. But the opening was delayed by federal wildlife officials' proposal in June that Littlerock Creek - and 478,000 acres total in Southern California - was ``critical habitat'' necessary for the toad's survival. The Fish and Wildlife Service recently concurred that the reservoir bottom is poor habitat for the toad, and that letting off-roaders in there would not harm the species' chances of survival, forest officials said. Both the closure and the ``critical habitat'' proposal came after the filing of a lawsuit by an environmental group, the Center for Biological Diversity The Center for Biological Diversity combines conservation biology with litigation, policy advocacy, and an innovative strategic vision to secure a future for animals and plants hovering on the brink of extinction, for the wilderness they need to survive, and by extension for the , which said the federal government was breaking the law by not doing more to protect several endangered species endangered species, any plant or animal species whose ability to survive and reproduce has been jeopardized by human activities. In 1999 the U.S. government, in accordance with the U.S. . The opening takes effect Saturday. Vehicles will be allowed into the reservoir bottom by the boat ramp, officials said. Off-roaders will be able to drive around below the reservoir high-water mark, between the toad-closure fences at the southern end of the reservoir and the remaining water, officials said. Drivers must possess a Forest Service Adventure Pass, which cost $5 a day or $30 a year. CAPTION(S): photo |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion