Dirt bikers trampled a historic hay field in Grand Teton, officials say. Organizer fined
A Utah man held illegal dirt bike races in Grand Teton National Park and destroyed land, officials say. He now faces nearly $10,000 in fines, according to news outlets.
He also faces probation and can’t enter the Wyoming park for 18 months, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
Videos posted on social media in July 2020 showed the man leading riders around a course and them tearing through a field along Mormon Row, the outlet reported. About 50 people appeared to be participating in the event, either racing or helping set up and run the event, which damaged 4,000 square feet of the historic hay field.
They left behind 1,000 feet of tracks between 2 and 10 feet wide, McClatchy News previously reported.
“The historic hay fields along Mormon Row are part of a 10-year project that started in 2014 to remove the non-native grasses and replant the area with 37 species of native plants to restore the site to sagebrush steppe habitat,” National Park Service officials said in July 2020.
It took NPS staff “several years” to collect native seed and “treat invasive plants prior to seeding the native species,” and several herbivores, including elk, bison, pronghorn and moose, depend on the habitat, park officials said.
Park officials determined it would cost over $3,500 to restore, which the man has to pay for on top of $6,000 in fines, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
He pleaded guilty to property damage and operating a car off-road, Jackson Hole Daily reported.
He originally faced charges of destruction of plants, failure to report an incident and injury to a historic monument, but those charges were dropped, the outlet reported.
He faced 27 months in prison and up to $25,000 in fines for those charges, Cowboy State Daily reported.
This story was originally published October 19, 2022 at 10:06 AM with the headline "Dirt bikers trampled a historic hay field in Grand Teton, officials say. Organizer fined."
