Grant could put target on ATV users

May 6, 2005

DAWN DE BUSK/Frontiersman reporter

PALMER - A federal grant given to the Knik River Watershed Group will help supply the lifeblood for scientific studies of waterfowl habits and documentation of damage done to natural resources in the popular recreational area.

The information, to be gathered this month by a field team of collaborating agencies, could lead to land-management changes that would restrict the use of ATVs in some areas of the wetlands.

"This will be a neutral baseline study that will help the whole community and agencies better discuss land management," said Catherine Inman, district manager with the Palmer Soil and Water Conservation District.

PSWCD played the role of grant administrator, helping the environmental group obtain more than $19,000 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

According to the grant objectives, the in-field research and documentation should yield a prioritized list of wetland areas most appropriate for restoration work.

Some members of the KRWG say they don't believe ATVs should be on wetlands, because they are fragile ecosystems, and that the outcome of land-management planning is to find suitable routes for ATV-users in order to minimize damage to wetlands.

ATV users, however, say adding more rules isn't going to fix the problem.

"We don't think multi-user trails should exclude motorized-vehicle users," said Mike Erickson, with Alaska ATV Club. "Knik River Watershed Group is blatantly anti-motorized-use - everywhere."

Erickson said members of his group care about the sites where they recreate; the club sponsors a cleanup day twice a year. "Last year, we hauled over 10 tons of trash out," he said.

The Jim-Swan wetlands, situated between the Chugach Mountains and gravel flood plain on the north shore of the Knik River, expands into 7,600 acres with more than 20 lakes, ponds and streams. The multi-user recreational area boasts the Knik Glacier, located at the eastern end of the wetlands.

On weekends, campers flock to the river's banks, bringing tents, RVs and barbecues. Off-road recreation toys - dirt bikes, four-wheelers and dune buggies - dominate the landscape.

Many of the outdoor enthusiasts respect other trail-users, said Erickson, who says he pulls over and turns off his ATV engine when he sees someone approaching on horseback. He says he also slows down for foot traffic. He says ATVs remain the best way to access the area, since the glacier is 26 miles away.

It's well-known to community members that stolen cars are vandalized and set on fire in the area, according to Erickson, who added that those violators are seldom caught.

"The existing laws are not enforced," he said, referring to littering. He suggested that people caught littering should be sentenced to community service, picking up trash around the Knik River.

For a number of years, community members, environmental groups and land-management planners have struggled with solutions to deal with protecting the natural resources of Jim-Swan wetlands.

Now, with federal money almost in hand, the collaboration of many agencies will lay down the groundwork for bird inventory and damage assessment. That collaboration includes Rob Lipkin, a botanist with the University of Alaska Anchorage; Tom Rothe, a wildlife biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish & Game; Brit Lively, general manager of Mapmakers Alaska; Suzanne Hayes, fisheries biologist with Fish and Game; Eklutna Inc.; the Native village of Eklutna; Mat-Su Birders and retired biologist William A. Quirk III.

"When we got word we got the grant in mid-March, we were really excited then. Now, we've been so busy. Things just happen so quickly in the natural world, so we have to time everything," said Cecily Fritz, founder and chair of the KRWG.

Last month, nesting swans arrived, said Agnes Quaas, who lives in the area.

Some residents and bird watchers have said one pair of trumpeter swans moved away, according to Frankie Barker, education coordinator for PSWCD.

Inman, also with PSWCD, said she heard the same report. Why the swans moved on can only be speculated at this point.

Tuesday (MAY 3), a field team of scientists and bird watchers will start determining which birds are breeding and which are migrating. The purpose of this week's survey will be to work out the bugs in the protocol for data collection, which was developed by Rothe, with Fish and Game. Mat-Su Birders plan to assist in documenting species and numbers.

For the next three weeks, a field team will navigate through the wetlands once a week.

The Knik River wetlands support the nesting habits of trumpeter swans, loons, ducks and other water-dependent species.

The last official study of birds in the watershed was done in 1981, according to Fritz.

"The wetlands will be assessed for damages by airboats and four-wheelers, uprooted vegetation, compacted soil, campsite development, erosion, alteration to natural springs and sedimentation into adjacent water bodies," according to the grant proposal paperwork submitted by the KRWG.

The data can be used for education programs and to supplement Fish and Game fishery information. The public may also access the information. The Web site is info@knikriver.org, and the Web site for the Alaska ATV Club is www.alaskaatvclub.org.