ABOUT THE Sustainable Recreation work group
The Sustainable Recreation Work Group will make recommendations to the Washington State Legislature on a long-term vision for the future of recreation on land managed by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The work group will provide its final recommendations to the Washington State Legislature in December 2009.
What has the work group accomplished so far?
- Developed preliminary recommedations for public input (September 2009).
- Reviewed summaries of more than 2,000 comments from 9 public workshops and online surveys that DNR conducted in the fall of 2008.
- Held 4 meetings of the work group.
- Presented a progress report to the Washington State Legislature (December 2008)
- Adopted a charter.
- Developed a vision statement for recreation on DNR-managed lands.
- Identified and ranked a list of the key policy issues to address in 2009, based largely on feedback from the public workshops.
In January 2009, work group members began conducting discussion forums addressing the key policy issues they identied last fall. These forum discussions continued through summer 2009.
For more details, including the vision statement, policy issues, and charter, read the Sustainable Recreation Work Group Progress Report to the Legislature.
Why does the state need a new vision for recreation?
DNR last officially addressed recreation on state-managed lands in 1971. Since then, the face of recreation has changed considerably. Washingtonians have embraced recreation on DNR-managed lands on a level and in ways no one could have anticipated.
- Newer forms of recreation such as ORV riding, mountain biking and paragliding are gaining popularity in addition to the more traditional uses such as hiking, camping, hunting, and fishing.
- Increased population in the state also means increased recreational use and competition for space from diverse recreational activities.
- Development is encroaching on the fringes of open spaces commonly used for recreation.
Work Group members
James Donaldson was appointed as chair of the Sustainable Recreation Work Group in July 2008. He stepped down as chair during in Spring 2009 to run for public office. Two members of the group assumed the role of co-chairs: Rep. Brian Blake, (D-Aberdeen) and Rep. Judy Warnick (R-Moses Lake).
Work group members are from diverse backgrounds, all with a tremendous interest in recreation issues on state lands, including:
- Recreation user groups
- State land leaseholders and contractors
- Environmental organizations
- Corporate and community leaders
- Major landowners
- Local, state, federal, and Tribal governments
- Representative of the Governor
- Members of the legislature
Work Group members (42KB PDF)
Keep current with the Sustainable Recreation Work Group
Subscribe to the DNR Recreation News electronic newsletter to learn more about the progress of the Sustainable Recreation Work Group, as well as other recreation-related news. To subscribe, send an email to: RecreationENews@dnr.wa.gov