The Anatomy, Physiology, Psychology and Economics of Desert Destruction and Restoration

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The Anatomy, Physiology, Psychology and Economics
of Desert Destruction and Restoration

• David A. BainbridgeAssociate Professor,
  Sustainable ManagementAlliant International
  UniversitySan Diego, CA dbainbridge_at_alliant.edu
  [phone]

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Play time!
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Introduction

• Desert degradation is usually caused by a set of
  interlocking factors
• These include the fragility of the desert
  environment, flawed economics, weak laws and
  regulations, and human "needs" for immediate
  gratification
• A doctor can't cure many diseases without
  treating the causes, neither can we

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Anatomy

• The desert remains under unprecedented assault
  from development, infrastructure, air pollution,
  nitrogen deposition, invasive species, military
  operations, mining, and OHV activity
• OHV activity is the least necessary, very
  extensive and very damaging
• The full extent of OHV damage remains unknown

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Hill climb damage
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Physiology

• Plant communities are disrupted by direct
  impacts, crushing, and damage to roots
• Weed invasions are may make desert ecosystems
  much more vulnerable to fire
• Compaction is often severe in heavily used areas
  and infiltration can be very limited
• Water flow changes and erosion increases
• Reduced levels of hyphae and bacteria are found

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Change in water flow
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Damage is extensive

• The most apparent level of OHV damage is total
  destruction of all vegetation in high use areas
• Even in areas of moderate use the damage is quite
  extensive, although to the untrained eye it may
  appear less severe if the larger shrubs are still
  standing
• Extensive use of desert washes for OHVs has been
  a disaster for wash ecosystems

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Dove Springs
Fence line
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Psychology

• Understanding the allure of OHV operation is not
  difficult its fun
• OHV exploration (the more sedate part of the
  population) enables families to discover new
  areas and enjoy the beauty of the desert
• It makes it easy to reach remote areas for camping

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OHV play areas

• OHV play is noisy, involves speed and power,
  danger, and requires intense concentration
• A small percentage of the OHV population needs
  the added "kick" of outlaw behavior
• Flouting route restrictions, damage of
  undisturbed areas, vandalizing gates, signs, and
  displays, smashing plants

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Hill climbs
Extremely difficult and costly to repair
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Failed education

• The OHV community, like most Americans, have
  "affluenza", falling prey to relentless and
  sophisticated advertising, "If I just have more,
  I'll be happy"
• Poorly educated by a failed school system, they
  also have no concept of Nature's Services",
  Natural Capital", and "sustainability"

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Economics Its the economy, stupid

• The OHV community of manufacturers, retailers,
  and suppliers and their advertising agencies and
  dependents is big business.
• The economic impact is 5-10 billion dollars a
  year in California.
• More than 40 of the money spent on OHVs is for
  vehicles and almost 10 is for fuel.

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Flawed accounting

• Existing economic analyses neglect environmental
  affects and uncompensated costs to taxpayers
• This provides a picture of OHV economics that is
  so misleading it would make Enron's accountants
  blush.

econ activity minus damage eco less than zero
Mojave


Japan
Detroit
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Autistic accounting

• Neoclassical economics says value is determined
  by sales price or use value, perhaps 500 to 700
  per hectare
• Ecological economics says a better way to judge
  value is replacement cost, perhaps 50,000 per
  hectare
• Knowing this we can say that a full size 4x4 can
  do 40,000 dollars of damage in a day of ripping
  across the virgin desert

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Restoration experience has illustrated the high
repair costs
Tall pots for revegetation At the Ant Hill Anza
Borrego
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Dove Springs

• Damage and repair assessment
• Condition Area/length Cost/unit Total ha
  denuded
• or dense tracks 194 50,000 9700000with
  OHV impact 740 20,000 14800000km
  route 576 12,000 6912000km wash
  routes 77 25,000 1925000 Net
  33337000 Damage assessment from Matchett
  et al., 2004. Repair estimates from experience.

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Other uncompensated costs

• Some could be determined, but haven't been well
  studied while others are quite challenging to
  cost
• Medical treatment, perhaps 20-30 million a year
• Enforcement
• Cleanup and repair of facilities and fixing
  vandalism
• The economic cost of Global Change
• The economic cost of weed control
• The economic cost of increased fire risk

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Cost related to Natural Capital and Nature's
Services

• What is the value of biodiversity? Of beauty?
• Of endangered species? Of natural hydrologic
  function? What is the ecological cost of exotic
  species invasion?
• What is the ecological cost of increased fire?
• The ecological cost of nitrogen deposition?
• What is the ecological cost of global warming?
• Almost certainly these are in the billions...

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Subsidies

• Subsidies - you gotta love em!
• Analysis of automobile operation in the U.S.
  suggests we all get about a 90 subsidy
• OHV operators are currently getting a subsidy
  closer to 99, but users complain heavily about
  existing fees
• An OHV green sticker costs only 12.50 a year,
  just 50 a year for an OHV park pass, or 90 a
  year for an Imperial Dunes pass
• In contrast 120 a year for a state park pass!

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OHV industry profits, taxpayers pay

• The OHV industry is mining the value of the
  desert at the expense of the desert owners (the
  American public) and future generations
• The value of the desert's scenic beauty, Natural
  Capital", and Nature's Services" is being
  exported to Japan and Detroit
• While the beneficiaries pay lip service to "tread
  lightly", advertising almost always shows the
  "tread heavily" mode

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The future

• Desert destruction and restoration is not
  primarily a technical problem
• The root cause of desert destruction is
  ultimately poor accounting
• It will be difficult to do anything about the
  enormous problem of desert deterioration until
  we address these drivers
• Until we do, we are as the Dutch say, "mopping up
  the floor without turning off the water

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The education problem

• Users need to be aware of costs, impacts, and
  responsibility
• Control of the outlaws is most important,
  responsible off-highway recreation is less of a
  problem
• I like OHV activity but dont ramble off route,
  just as I would like to shoot skeet in the
  Crystal Palace but dont

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Just because its fun, doesnt mean its right
Skeet shooting in the Crystal Palace would be fun!
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Manufacturers should play a bigger role in tread
lightly

• A special sales tax on OHVs (5- 10) might be
  desirable
• OHV manufacturers should be charged 50-100,000
  for each advertisement exhibiting "tread heavily"
  behavior
• If a park pass costs 120 a year, then an OHV
  pass should probably cost 1,000 a year
• If a ski pass costs 36 a day, then an OHV pass
  should be probably cost 100 a day
• Implementing this level of fee would be
  politically unfeasible, but perhaps 250 a year
  would be plausible

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Taxes and fees would help pay uncompensated costs

• Medical system costs
• Better management, enforcement
• Critically needed funding for research (Recovery
  and Vulnerability 50 million year)
• Active restoration program (50 million year)
• Money to develop new, high quality OHV play areas
  on lands removed from agriculture due to water
  transfers
• Funding for new OHV play areas closer to urban
  areas