BLM report: Proposed new Burning Man site may restrict desert access for other users

Martin Griffith

Sunday, April 30, 2000 | 4:25 a.m.

RENO, Nev. - A plan to move the annual Burning Man counterculture festival closer to the heart of the Black Rock Desert may adversely affect other desert users, a Bureau of Land Management report says.

But last year's festival site at the southern tip of the sprawling desert was unsafe because of its proximity to Union Pacific railroad tracks, according to the BLM's draft environmental assessment.

The agency, which has taken no stand on the site yet, is accepting public comment on the document through May 30. A decision then will be made on Burning Man organizers' request to move the site from three miles to 13 miles north of Gerlach.

The document was based on comments generated at three public hearings and on numerous written comments, BLM officials said.

About 28,000 people from all 50 states are expected to converge on the desert the week before Labor Day for the festival billed as the ultimate celebration of free expression.

The event on the desert, located 120 miles north of Reno, is known for art, dancing, concerts, nudity and drugs.

The BLM report says the proposed new site would be in the center of the most popular desert playa destination area, and could interfere with the activities of campers, rocketeers, land windsurfers, land-speed racers and off-highway vehicle enthusiasts.

"The proposed location may reduce or restrict access to the playa by recreation users other than Burning Man," it says.

Burning Man spokeswoman Marian Goodell said organizers have met with different user groups to try to come up with solutions.

To accommodate other users, organizers would reduce their setup and take-down times to two weeks before and after the festival.

"We're really committed to sharing that desert with everybody else," she said.

The report notes the proposed new site would be located well away from the Union Pacific tracks, which posed safety concerns at last year's festival.

Although there were no accidents, trains were forced to slow down or stop because of festival participants on or near the tracks, BLM officials said.

"Burning Man participants also were seen placing objects on the tracks, including propane canisters," the report says.

"These objects may affect train performance ... Derailment may create a huge safety issue if hazardous materials are being hauled and a spill occurs."

The proposed new site would allow for improved crowd perimeter control and superior drainage in the event of rain, the report adds.

The site also would be 13 miles from the historic Applegate-Lassen Trail followed by thousands of pioneers during the California Gold Rush.