A ban on target shooting at Miller Quarry is still a possibility, according to
John Huston, Cascades Field Manager for the Bureau of Land Management’s
(BLM) Northwest Oregon District.

The effort has been complicated, however, by Secretarial Order 3356, signed
by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke in September, which in part
seeks to increase access to public lands for hunting, shooting and fishing on
land run by the BLM and other agencies.

A community effort, spearheaded by Mt. Hood RV Village resident Warren
Bates, began last fall when issues with target shooters at the quarry, including
noise, safety risks and pollution, were raised at a series of meetings. At a Dec.
21, 2016 meeting, BLM Cascades Outdoor Recreation Planner Zach Jarrett
noted the agency finished a new Resource Management Plan in August 2016,
which included designating the quarry as a recreation management area and
opening the door to closing it for target shooting within the year.

Huston noted the Oregon State Office of the BLM is now preparing a briefing
paper to be presented to congress, but they want to be careful and do it right.
“It’s still moving forward, it’s just at a higher level,” Huston said, adding there
is no timeline for the paper.

Bates noted that he is “hopeful,” but is also not getting ahead of himself.
“I’m not going to hold my breath,” he said. “When you get into this
government bureaucracy stuff, it’s a whole new world, in my opinion.”
Bates added that in the meantime, gun noise has “slowed down immensely”
at the quarry.

“Why, I don’t know,” he said. “But it’s not near as bad as it was at the height
of it. I think we quelled some of it just by letting people know that we will
close it.”

Other project updates
The BLM has also completed an economic analysis and a draft Recreation Area
Management Plan for potential development of the Wildwood Recreation Site,
according to Jennifer Velez, Public Affairs Officer for BLM’s Eugene and Salem
Districts. Velez added that the hope is to release the plan by “late winter,”
followed by an official comment period.

The plan will include at least two development alternatives for the site,
including a “no action” option. Development options include possibly adding
campsites, yurts, cabins and RV sites. That could help the site increase the
number of visitors utilizing the area each year, currently at approximately
50,000, a fraction of the 375,000 it was built to accommodate.

Meanwhile, the trailhead at the Sandy Ridge Trail System has reopened,
although approximately half of the parking lot remains inaccessible due to
contractors continued work at the site. Work is expected to continue through
the winter.

“We’re really looking forward to when the main recreation season kicks off
next spring for mountain bikers to really enjoy the improvements they’ll find
out there,” Velez said.