OPINION - INDUSTRIAL ENCROACHMENT THREATENS OHV RECREATION AT PRAIRIE CITY SVRA

FUTURE RIDING EXPERIENCE AT PRAIRIE CITY?

INDUSTRIAL ENCROACHMENT THREATENS OHV RECREATION

 AT PRAIRIE CITY SVRA

 

By Don Amador

4/9/26

 

The Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the White Rock North Mine project should represent the gold standard of public transparency and environmental analysis. Instead, it reveals a familiar and troubling pattern—one that raises serious questions about how recreation is valued in California’s land use decisions.

 

At the center of this issue is Prairie City State Vehicular Recreation Area—one of California’s premier off-highway vehicle (OHV) recreation areas. Prairie City isn’t just open space. It’s a state-designated recreation facility that supports major events, drives regional economic activity, and provides access to outdoor recreation for thousands of Californians.

WHITE ROCK MINE PROJECT ACROSS ROAD FROM SVRA

 And yet, in a document spanning hundreds of pages, its role is barely acknowledged. California law is explicit. Under Public Resources Code §5090.24, the Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation (OHMVR) Commission must be: “fully informed regarding all governmental activities affecting the program.”

 

There is no indication that the Commission was meaningfully notified or engaged during the early stages of the White Rock project. This mirrors what occurred with the Coyote Creek Solar Project—where recreation stakeholders were similarly left out of the process until late in the game.

 

When required coordination doesn’t occur, it’s more than a procedural misstep. It undermines the very framework designed to ensure balanced decision-making.

 

Despite its proximity to Prairie City, the report contains:

 

·         No dedicated recreation section

·         No analysis of impacts to OHV users

·         No evaluation of how mining operations could affect events, access, or safety

·         No coordination with OHMVR Commission

 

Even without a recreation section, the DEIR acknowledges impacts that matter.

 

It identifies significant and unavoidable air quality impacts from dust. It discusses groundwater concerns. It evaluates noise—but only for residential areas, not for recreation users.

 

Anyone familiar with Prairie City understands what this means in practice:

 

·         Dust affects rider safety and visibility

·         Water constraints affect track maintenance and events

·         Noise and industrial activity degrade the recreation experience

 

In the Coyote Creek project, stakeholders raised nearly identical issues—lack of outreach, failure to notify the OHMVR Commission, and inadequate analysis of impacts to Prairie City SVRA.

 

 

Now, we are seeing the same pattern repeated. That suggests a broader issue: recreation is too often treated as an afterthought rather than a core land use deserving equal consideration.

 

Prairie City SVRA generates millions in economic activity, supports jobs, and hosts nationally recognized events. More importantly, it provides accessible outdoor recreation in a region where demand continues to grow.

 

Projects that incrementally degrade its surroundings—through dust, noise, and incompatible land uses—don’t just affect one site. They erode a system.

 

This isn’t about stopping development. It’s about doing it right.

 

That means:

 

·         Following the law by engaging the OHMVR Commission

·         Fully analyzing impacts to recreation resources

·         Considering cumulative effects—not just individual projects

·         Respecting the communities who rely on these spaces

 

The White Rock DEIR represents a missed opportunity—not just to comply with CEQA, but to demonstrate that California can balance development with recreation and public access.

 

Outdoor recreationists and OHV enthusiasts deserve better, because once places like Prairie City are compromised, we don’t get them back.

 

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Don Amador has been in the trail advocacy and recreation management profession for over 33 years.   Don is President of Quiet Warrior Racing LLC. Don serves as the Western States Representative for the Motorcycle Industry Council. Don is Past President/CEO and current board member of the Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance. Don served as a contractor to the BlueRibbon Coalition from 1996 until June, 2018. Don served on the California Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Commission from 1994-2000. He has won numerous awards including being a 2016 Inductee into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame and the 2018 Friend of the AMA Award. Don served as the government affairs lead for AMA District 36 in Northern California from 2019 – 2023. Don is a Core-Team member on FireScape Mendocino.  Don served as an AD Driver at the FS North Zone Fire Cache for the 22, 23, and 24 wildfire seasons. Don is a contributor to Dealernews Magazine. Don writes from his home in Cottonwood, CA.