How All-Terrain Vehicles Threaten Our Health & Environment
Human Health Impacts
Noise generated by ATVs does more than annoy people. Scientific research as shown that relatively continuous exposure to sound levels exceeding 70 decibels (i.e. freeway traffic), can be harmful to hearing. ATVs routinely produce between 81 - 111 decibels. This is roughly the equal of a rock concert or busy street.
Noise also can cause increases in heart rate, blood pressure and blood cholesterol, as well as effects to the digestive and respiratory systems. Persistent, unrelenting noise exposure could cause these temporary stress reactions to become chronic stress diseases, such as high blood pressure or ulcers. The elderly, young and individuals with existing health problems are at greatest risk.
Environmental Impacts:
In a quiet forest or countryside, the noise from the average motorcycle can be heard from up to 7,000 feet away. The louder engines can be heard from over 11,500 feet, which is a distance of over two miles.
Like humans, exposure to ATV noise can result in hearing damage or even loss. This has severe consequences for animals dependant on their hearing for finding prey, avoiding predators, and breeding. Long term impacts include altered movement patters, behavioral changes, and stress related health problems. One study found that small mammals became unusually aggressive and disoriented after exposure to a motorcycle race.
Quality of Life Impacts:
Consider, activities like camping, hiking, bird watching, and family picnics can all occur in the same place at the same time. Bring in a single four-wheeler with its the noise and smells and the other activities are cancelled.
Legislative Background
The Off-Highway Vehicle Trust Fund was created and is maintained through taxes levied on ATV sales in Illinois and is managed by the IL Dept. of Natural Resources. Trust Fund monies are then spent promoting ATV usage by making grants to private organizations who wish to purchase land on which to operate ATV facilities. Grants are also made to improve/expand existing private facilities.
The IDNR is prohibited from using Trust Fund monies to build ATV routes on lands that it either owns or manages. Such lands include: State Parks, Conservation Areas, Nature Preserve, Natural Areas, and Fish & Wildlife Areas.
A Simple Concept
Illinois' state parks and other properties owned or managed by IDNR should be safe, quiet places for families to relax and recreate, as well as places where plants and wildlife - animals, fish and birds - should be protected. ATVs just are not consistent with this simple land-use concept.
The problem is clear. All-terrain vehicles, such as dirt bikes and balloon-tire four-wheelers, ridden in the wrong places can cause extensive damage to trails and natural areas, pose dangerous safety threats to riders and bystanders, and are the source of high levels of noise. The negative impacts of ATV use on human health are well-documented. The impact on wildlife, plants and the soil and water in natural areas, such as state parks, is equally devastating.
The IDNR generally supports maintaining the prohibition and keeping public lands safe and healthy.
Unlawful - Unsafe
Four-wheeler riders throughout Illinois also have shown themselves unwilling to obey land use laws and funds for enforcement are vital. Illegal ATV use has irreparably damaged Native American burial mounds at Cahokia Mounds (a World Heritage Site), many private lands adjacent to state parks and natural areas, and levees along the Mississippi River in Madison County, just to name a few examples.
Public land managers need money to pay officers who will enforce the law. Expenditures for law enforcement for ATV use must not be capped if Illinois intends to protect its forests, prairies, stream courses and citizens from the ravages of ATV use.
Historically, one full-time law enforcement officer is funded by the Trust Fund. Four-wheeler drivers have sought to reduce the funds available for law enforcement.
2003 News Item: Gov. Blagojevich Vetoes Dangerous Dirt-Bike Legislation
2004 News Item: Gov. Blagojevich Vetoes Will Protect State Parks From Dirt Bikes, 4-Wheelers |