Paper Calls For Park Service To Protect Wildlife From ORVs on Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Are these American Oystercatchers being harmed by ORV use on Cape Hatteras National Seashore? NPS photo by Andy Danneker.

A North Carolina newspaper has, figuratively, tossed some gasoline on the simmering dispute over the National Park Service's failure to produce an off-road vehicle management plan for Cape Hatteras National Seashore. In an editorial the Raleigh News and Observer says the Park Service is deferring to ORVers to the detriment of wildlife.

Since last July an interim version has been in place, but it's toothless. Some areas are fenced off, but nesting shorebirds and sea turtles still remain at risk from the hundreds of trucks and SUVs that carry anglers along Hatteras Island and elsewhere, writes the paper's editorial board.

Despite environmentalists' urgings and a kick in the pants last year from U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle, the Park Service continues on its meandering path toward a beach-protection plan. A final version is at least three years away, as the Park Service defers to motorists who claim, by tradition, the right to park right in front of their favorite surf-fishing spots. Meantime, shorebirds are taking it on the beak.

You can read the entire editorial here.