Trump revokes decades-old public lands motorized vehicle protections (June 2, 2026 )
June 2, 2026 — President Trump on May 30, 2026 revoked Executive Orders 11644 and 11989, the foundational federal directives governing off-road vehicle (OHV) and over-snow vehicle (OSV) use on public lands — orders that had been in force for 54 years, since the Nixon administration.
The president simultaneously directed the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, and the National Park Service to rescind or revise their implementing regulations, a move conservation groups warned would create widespread confusion and management chaos across millions of acres of federal land.
The two orders had provided consistent standards for balancing motorized and non-motorized recreation while protecting streams, wildlife habitat, and quiet recreation opportunities. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance noted that Utah alone has tens of thousands of miles of dirt roads and trails already open to motorized vehicles. Critics across the conservation community — including the National Parks Conservation Association, The Wilderness Society, WildEarth Guardians, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Sierra Club — warned that removing the orders will damage waterways, displace wildlife from feeding and breeding habitat, escalate user conflicts, and degrade the public land experience for hikers, campers, hunters, and non-motorized recreationists alike. The repeal was announced late on a Friday afternoon.
| https://suwa.org/president-trump-revokes-executive-orders-protecting-public-lands-from-unmanaged-motorized-recreation/ |