The Sand Flats Recreation Area near Moab became a major recreation destination for mountain biking and camping in the early 1990s.  Increasing recreation pressure, however, quickly overwhelmed BLM visitor facilities and staff. Soils and vegetation at Sand Flats were impacted, and the site’s scenic values were threatened.  Given the importance of tourism to Moab’s economy, the natural resource values at stake, and the immediate need to provide quality visitor management, the BLM and Grand County implemented an innovative cooperative agreement to protect the heavily used

Slickrock Bike Trail and the surrounding Sand Flats area.

At the time of the cooperative agreement, Grand County, the BLM, the USDI National Park Service (NPS), and the USDA Forest Service (USFS) had separate visitor facilities, all of which were open during standard business hours, and all of which faced increasing challenges in providing full-service information to over two million visitors annually. The county, the federal agencies, and the Canyonlands Natural History Association (CNHA) developed an interagency agreement to cooperatively develop and operate the Moab Information Center (MIC).

Under the cooperative agreement, the BLM authorized the county to act as its agent for fee collection at Sand Flats, and to use those funds to provide both visitor services and recreation management in the recreation area. In addition, the county was able to use fee revenue to lease in-held state lands, bringing the 7,240-acre Sand Flats area under unified management. The county received additional support from Americorps and Utah Travel Council grants for development of visitor facilities. The BLM contributed planning, law enforcement, and construction. A Citizens Stewardship Committee, established by the cooperative agreement, now advises Grand County on fee levels and expenditures.

For the MIC, Grand County purchased the land and borrowed facility construction funds that it is paying back with a transient room tax collected from area visitors. The county leases the facility to CNHA. As managing partner, CNHA covers all operating costs from sales revenue collected from over 200,000 visitors annually.  Each agency provides annual staff training. The Federal agencies and Grand County each fund one CNHA employee to provide

information. A local inter-agency board oversees MIC operation.

Both partnerships—the cooperatively-managed recreation area and the co-managed Moab Information Center—meet visitor expectations, help conserve the environment, and generate revenue to cover most expenses. They are models of innovative local/federal financing, ownership, and management, providing long-term employment and a world class visitor experience.