Research, Studies and Reports

Off-Road Vehicles (ORVs) and All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs)

Articles that are listed but not available through this site can be requested via email.

Fact Sheets

• Natural Trails and Waters Coalition Fact Sheet: Impacts on Soils and Plants
• The Wilderness Society Off-Road Vehicles and Public Lands Fact Sheets

Ecological Impacts

• Impacts of Off-Road Vehicles on Nitrogen Cycles in Biological Soil Crusts: Resistance in Different U.S. Deserts, Journal of Arid Environments, 2002.
• Seed Banks of a Rare Wetland Plant Community: Distribution Patterns and Effects of Human-Induced Disturbance, Journal of Vegetation Science, 1991.

Place-Specific Reports

• Taken for a Ride: How Off-Road Vehicles Damage the Nation's Wildlest Lands, A report by the National Off-Road Vehicle Coalition, 2001. Available here.
• All-Terrain Vehicles in the Adirondacks, Wildlife Conservation Society, 2003. Available here.
• Off-Road to Ruin: How Motorized Recreation is Unraveling California's Landscapes, California Wilderness Coalition, 2001. Available here.
• Motorizing Yellowstone: An Investigative Report on Off-Road Vehicle Use in the Gallatin National Forest, Sierra Club, 2001. Available here.
• Shattered Solitude/Eroded Habitat: The Motorization of the Lands of Lewis and Clark, Sierra Club, 2002. Available here.
• Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Use in Alaska National Park System Units, National Park Service Alaska Region, 2003.
• The Impact of Off-Road Vehicles on Coastal Ecosystems in Cape Cod National Seashore: An Overview, National Park Service, 1979.
• Off-Highway Vehicles in Minnesota, Minnesotans for Responsible Recreation, 1999. Also available here.

Noise Impacts

• Aesthetic, Affective and Cognitive Effects of Noise on Natural Landscape Assessment, Society & Natural Resources, 1999.

Impacts to Wildlife

• Effects of Off-Road Recreation on Mule Deer and Elk, USDA Forest Service, 2004.
• Impacts of Off-Road Vehicles on Wildlife and Habitats, Forty-Third North American Wildlife Conference.

Health, Safety and Social Impacts

• All-Terrain Vehicle Legislation for Children: A Comparison of a State With and a State Without a Helmet Law, Pediatrics, 2004.
• ATV Safety Crisis -- America's Children at Risk, Bluewater Network, Natural Trails and Waters Coalition, Consumer Federation of America, 2002.
• Environmental and Social Effects of ATVS and ORVs: An Annotated Bibliography and Research Assessment, University of Vermont, 2000.
• Consumer Product Safety Commission 2002 Annual Report: ATV-Related Deaths and Injuries
• Consumer Product Safety Commission 2001 Annual Report: ATV-Related Deaths and Injuries
• Consumer Product Safety Commission 1999 Annual Report: ATV-Related Deaths and Injuries
• Risk Factors for All-Terrain Vehicle Injuries: A National Case-Control Study, American Journal of Epidemiology, 2001.
• Neurologic Injuries Associated with All-Terrain Vehicles and Recommendations for Protective Measures for the Pediatric Population, Pediatric Emergency Care, 1998.