After three decades, Vermont is looking to change its primitive camping rules to help take more preventive measures against wildfires and land pollution, according to the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation.
Vermonters who participate in primitive camping typically stay in remote areas without modern amenities such as running water, electricity, trash cans, or bathroom facilities, forcing them to use the natural resources around them.
Under the proposed new amendment to the rule, campers will no longer be allowed to cut or burn any live wood for campfires. They will also be required to set up their campsites 200 feet from rivers, streams, lakes and wetlands, instead of 100 feet, to better protect water quality and shoreline habitats.
“I think a lot of Vermonters and our visitors really cherish the amazing forest ecosystems and other camping areas that we have here, and we want to protect them,” said Oliver Pierson, the director of forestry at the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation.
The rule was last updated in 1993 and is now being revised to make expectations for campers going primitive camping even clearer, Pierson said.
The proposed changes also establish stronger enforcement, allowing Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department wardens, along with other law enforcement, to issue trespass notices to campers who do not adhere to the policy.
The proposed changes are set to apply only to lands managed by the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, with lands governed by Fish and Wildlife under a separate rule.
Scott Ellis, a camper from Norwich who has been an avid camper his whole life, said he liked the changes to the rule and was surprised that campers were not already doing some of the practices, such as the “leave no trace” policy.
While certain primitive campsites in Vermont already had strict rules about picking up all their belongings and trash before leaving the campgrounds, the new amendment makes it obligatory.
“This update is in line with how we’re going to respect our land in a better way,” Ellis said. “I think they’re doing it all the right way, and I’m on board with their new policy.”
He added that he was also relieved to know the state would still allow campfires, even if there were stronger restrictions on the kind of firewood allowed.
Pierson explained that a big reason for restricting the use of live wood for campfires was to help prevent wildfires from starting and spreading, while also reinforcing campers to make certain their fires are completely put out before they leave.
“In most situations, we’re not prohibiting campfires because that’s obviously a big part of being out in the woods,” Pierson said. “But we are saying, ‘Hey, if you’re going to build a fire, please do it this way. Please extinguish.’”
However, Mike McDonagh and Karsten Kurvenko, who are also avid campers across New England, seemed hesitant about the potential new rule.
Originally from Massachusetts, the couple had been camping in Vermont for almost a decade when their daughter moved to Montpelier.
After learning about the proposed changes, McDonagh and Kurvenko said they had already been following most of the practices already proposed “out of respect,” adding that all primitive campers should be following them, too.
“You should definitely carry in, carry out,” McDonagh said. “I mean that’s kind of a no-brainer.”
Similar to Ellis, however, a major concern for McDonagh and Kurvenko was the restriction on using live wood, allowing only fallen wood.
Kurvenko emphasized the importance of campers making sure they weren’t in drought season when making fires, but suggested the state should make the rules apply only to certain times of the year instead of year-round.
“During drought season, fires could catch so fast even for a responsible person,” she said. “Maybe just sending out an alert is good enough.”
The parks and recreation department is allowing the public to give feedback on the proposed changes before Oct. 9 through an online comment form or the two public hearings held on September 22 at the Manchester Community Library and on September 24 at the Waterbury Town Offices.
“We’re happy that people are getting out there and enjoying those lands,” Pierson, from the natural resources agency, said. “But you know, as use has increased, better information about how to protect sensitive forest ecosystems has come to light.”
McDonagh and Kurvenko worry that the change could lead to stricter regulations that one day get rid of campfires altogether.
“Maybe you’re gonna get, out of 10 people, one knucklehead that doesn’t think about it,” McDonagh said. “So I guess there’s a risk there. But then, do you ruin it for the nine other people that are responsible?”
This story was republished with permission from VtDigger, which offers its reporting at no cost to local news organizations through its Community News Sharing Project. To learn more, visit vtdigger.org/community-news-sharing-project.