History, extent, and future of Arizona BLM-managed roadless areas in the Madrean Archipelago

Abstract

Roadless areas of southeastern Arizona managed by the Bureau of Land Management are becoming rare. Fragmentation by roads and development, all-terrain vehicle use, erosion, and altered hydrology are a few of the causes of loss and degradation of roadless areas. The history of BLM and publicly identified roadless areas includes the passage of the Wilderness Act of 1964, the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act of 1976, the development and passage of the Arizona Wilderness Act of 1984, the Arizona Desert Wilderness Act of 1990, the efforts of the Arizona Wilderness Coalition in the 1980s, and Sky Island Alliance’s survey work in 2001- 2004. Analysis of BLM and AWC wilderness studies, findings, and recommendations along with data from road surveys indicates the potential persists to protect many of the last high-quality roadless areas. Policy shifts, continued all-terrain vehicle abuse, road building, and other impacts presently threaten many of these areas.

Parent Publication

• Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: Biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II

Citation

Hare, Trevor; Jones, Cory. 2005. History, extent, and future of Arizona BLM-managed roadless areas in the Madrean Archipelago. In: Gottfried, Gerald J.; Gebow, Brooke S.; Eskew, Lane G.; Edminster, Carleton B., comps. Connecting mountain islands and desert seas: biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago II. Proc. RMRS-P-36. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station: 371-374