ELCR Library of Resources: Trails Reports and Web Sites All of the USDA Forest Service’s Technology & Development Program trails reports and web sites are now available electronically! read more... The Horse Owner and the Illinois LMFA A description of the law that oversees the construction and operation of new equine facilities in Illinois -- even those intended for only one horse. read more... The Role of Recreational Trail Horse Use In The Introduction and Spread of Invasive Species Scientific evidence fails to demonstrate that recreational trail stock significantly contribute to the invasives problem at the landscape level. read more... Unstable Times in the Bay Area How Bay Area Barns and Trails is striving to keep land available to horsemen in the Bay Area of California. read more... Two Ways to Save Open Space A discussion of conservation easements and tax incentive policy. read more... Developers, Government, and Conservation Groups Working Together? It Can Happen How the Millstone Trailblazers, an advocacy group only three years old, had their trail plan adopted and included in master plans. read more... Building a Horse Trail: Donald Park The cooperative effort of individuals, clubs, government agencies, and private groups make new horse trails available in the Madison, Wisconsin area. read more... What Does It Mean to Have Trails on Pittman-Robertson Funded Land? Many public lands use Pittman-Robertson funding. This article explains what that may mean to horseback riders. read more... Carolina Horse Park The story of how this new competition facility came to be. read more... This Land is Home to Us Why one family placed a conservation easement on their land. read more... Preserving Callithea Farm The preservation of Callithea Farm came from a handful of equestrian activists along with a concerned Callithea Farm heir. Here's how they made it happen. read more... Equestrian Community Zoning Zoning issues, "horse friendly", research, reviews and summaries of various communities and pertinent underlying provisions of a sampling of zoning and land use ordinances favorable to equestrians from throughout the country, summarizes approaches and actions the local equestrian community can take to foster such ordinances. read more... The $50,000 Pony Read the story of the $50,000 pony read more... Horizon Farm: Partnerships & Cooperation Save the Farm! Protecting 421 acres of Horizon Farm in Barrington Hills, IL, created possibly the largest private land conservation easement in the state of Illinois. This effort is the result of the joint efforts of the McGinley family, the Barrington Hills Conservation Trust (BHCTrust), The Conservation Foundation and the Equestrian Land Conservation Resource (ELCR). read more... Building a Horse Trail: Donald Park - Monday, August 30, 2004 How horsemen developed a new trail in metropolitan Madison, Wisconsin. read more... When is a Horse Farm Really a Farm? To many people, equine operations look, smell and feel like farms. In urbanizing areas where rising land values and low commodity prices are squeezing traditional agricultural enterprises, horse operations are emerging as a significant part of the working landscape. But are horses agriculture? read more... Fort Worth Skyline Ride Horses can be compete and ridden in the city. Learn how horses, history and competition meet at a special urban endurance ride. read more... North Bay's Equestrians Keep Parkland in Good Condition How one group works to clean and maintain open spaces and trails for use by the public, those with and without horses read more... Use It -- Or Lose It! How one group is working to preserve access to our national parks. read more... Results From New Hampshire Statewide Equine Economic Impact Study Economic impact statistics from New Hampshire taken in late 2002 and early 2003. read more... Cost of Community Services Costs of community services (COCS) is a term used to describe the relationship between local government taxation of, and community expenditures for, a variety of different land usages. There is a growing body of COCS literature that summarizes fiscal impact studies and determines whether various forms of land use either contribute to, or detract from, local government budgets. read more... Stream Bank Stabilization Project One ten mile marked loop in George Washington Management Area, Rhode Island. One stream crossing in Connecticut. (That’s how many agencies to deal with?) One group of riders who want to cross the stream. read more... Working with Your Legislator From notes taken by Janice Elsishans, Trails Representative of NJ Horse Council of a presentation given by Pennsylvania Senator Mike Waugh at the PA Equine Council Workshop and Legislative and Trail Issue Conference. read more... How We Do It: Volunteer Rangers in Maryland State Forests and Parks ELCR’s National Office receives routinely calls regarding volunteering at state facilities. The following article may offer guidance in setting up formal volunteer programs. read more... You Can Make a Difference After reading the latest round of horse organization newsletters, I was infuriated with a FEW horse people who are acting in a manner that directly affects ALL trail riders. read more... Saving Our Endangered Trails One key issue facing horse owners today is the loss of open space for trail riding. In Massachusetts, 16,000 acres of open space are lost to residential and commercial development every year. New home construction blocks existing trail access because developers are either unaware of existing trail systems or because the new land owners prohibit anyone on their property for fear of liability issues. What can be done? Here are a few simple suggestions. read more... Eventing in Suburbia? It's Not That Difficult The biggest little event in Northern Virginia - the Difficult Run Pony Club Horse Trials at Frying Pan Park - proves it can be done. read more... Local Governments Recognize Advantages of Land Acquisition Planning Corlands is the acquisition arm of the Openlands Project, based in the greater Chicagoland area. Much of their operations and research is directly applicable to all areas of the country – whether city, suburban, or countryside. read more... Warfield Equestrian Park Conservation easements – are they always a key strategy for preserving open space for equestrian use? The public debate in Billings, Montana proves they are not. read more... Grantsmanship Looking for funding in all the right places. read more... 2003 Wus Tevis Journal Riding the July 12, 2003, Tevis Cup race route. (no link, .pdf not found) read more... The Search for Sponsorship Sponsorship is one way to bring new resources to horse-related pursuits. read more... Building Your Individual Membership As you look to the new year, one thing is certain: this year is a great year to focus on your individual members. read more... Horse-Related Zoning Battles – How to Launch a Strategy so that Everybody Wins Zoning battles can arise in any community. read more... Minding the Membership Start-up and established organizations need to be responsive to their memberships. This article provides some "how to" steps. read more... B.S.T.R.A., Inc. Rides - What Are They? Bay State Trail Riders Association has a long history of organizing many trail rides each year to help them fulfill their mission. This article contains practical tips and etiquette for such rides. read more... How to Buy Horse-Friendly Real Estate Without Buying a Land Use Lawsuit Imagine spending many thousands – or even millions – of dollars to buy land with the goal of stabling your horses on it, only to learn after the fact that the zoning regulations forbid the use you planned. Or worse, imagine having to invest heavily in legal fees, abandon your plans, or sell the property because your dreams cannot become reality. read more... Hot on the Trail of Jake Crabtree A horse-friendly leader in the Forest Service. read more... Shared Stewardship A trail association and a county-wide greenway planning group partner to each group's advantage. read more... Activism Made Simple How one man spreads the word about saving riding areas. read more... Using Public Lands for Competition Once seen as the salvation of horse trials, public lands may offer wonderful competition opportunities -- but they come at a price. read more... Weed Free Feed Nothing will have a greater impact on horse owners using public federal lands than the federal agencies fight on weeds. read more... A Truly Unique Partnership -- Westchester Land Trust and Bedford Riding Lanes Association These two organizations have had a successful partnership since 1988 and provide a model for other organizations to follow. read more... Environmental Impact Statements An activist offers insight into Environmental Impact Statements. read more... Sprawl: Who are the Bad Guys? In our culture, we like clearly defined good guys and bad guys read more... California Hiking and Riding Trail The history of a threatened trail that is now hopefully being saved. read more... Politics and the Horse Industry Find out how much - or how little - you know about the horse industry and working with government. read more... Essex County Trail Association The story of a local group's success in Massachusetts. read more... Friends of the Ahnapee Partnerships at work in northeastern Wisconsin. read more... Riding in New Jersey’s Great Swamp Discover unexpectedly good riding near a metropolitan area. read more... Purchase of Development Rights: Conserving Lands, Preserving Western Livelihoods Free booklet available. read more... Testimony of Alan Hill to the House Resources Committee Alan T. Hill testified before the House Resources Committee on May 23, 2001. This testimony contains many points of interest and education to the horse community. read more... EPA Office of Water - Watershed Academy Web Most areas of the country are being examined on a "Watershed" basis rather than as individual ownerships or sections. The Watershed Academy Web offers a variety of information via six educational modules. All of them are valuable, but the principles of the watershed approach and the value of working at a watershed level are explored in the Introduction/Overview section. (www.epa.gov/watertrain) read more... EnviroHorse EnviroHorse publishes papers and research on the impact of horses and horsekeeping on the land. It is a valuable resource that you should be aware of and use when needed. read more... How the Clean Water Act Affects the Horse Industry Practical suggestions for you. read more... ELCR's Champion A bit of history. read more... Ripples A story of successful networking between a land trust and a steeplechase course development. read more... Multi-Use Trail Specifications Construction drawings and text (PDF document). (click here to download free Adobe .pdf reader) read more... Bikes and Horses: A Case for Sharing National Symposium on Horse Trails in Forest Ecosystems. Posted with Permission from the International Mountain Biking Association (www.imba.org). read more... Caledonia Conservancy Development of an equestrian friendly land trust that involves the entire community. read more... Roxbury Equestrians Organize for the Town's Future A group of equestrians deal with community development to maintain a way of life. read more... Horses & Motorcycles Together Dirt bikers and endurance riders successfully hold simultaneous events on the same trails. read more... Initial Open Space Survey Results Where does your community fit? read more... These Laws Are on Your Side A discussion of equine limited liability laws. read more... |