Letter to the Editor: Passive management at YRSF?

To the Editor:

It seems that the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has adopted an unusual method - you could call it - to manage one of the state’s gems, Yellow River State Forest in Allamakee County. This ideology is being called “passive management.” The rationale for this change is their decision to take the full-time park ranger down to only 25% presence. The rest of his time is to be spent at the Volga River Recreational Area.

The Yellow River State Forest is 8950 acres, 51 miles of trails for a variety of skills and types of activity, and rustic campsites. Not one of these things can be “passively managed”. The need for a full-time Park Ranger is important. It is important to the people who count on having a great time when they visit, camp, ride bikes, hike, etc. and more importantly enjoy the surrounding communities. If it is important to you, please go to tiny.cc/yrsfranger and sign the petition to let the DNR know “passive management” is not acceptable.

Please contact Senator Klimesh at mike.klimesh@legis.iowa.gov  or 563-380-4224, and Rep. Anne Osmundson at Anne.Osmundson@legis.iowa.gov or 563-880-8227 to request the DNR show them where they have seen “passive management” prove successful; especially when dealing with a horse and rider being spooked by an ATV rider in the wrong place at the wrong time, or an overnight guest who has had too much to drink and is disrupting other campers. Somehow, “passive management” is not the plan of action that makes any kind of logical sense.

The Yellow River State Forest needs a full-time ranger. Please take a moment to sign and share the petition above, and contact our representatives to force the DNR to “make this, make sense”.

Thank you,
Beth Keehne
Clayton County