Residents from counties all around the DeSoto National Forest gathered Thursday at the Chickasawhay Ranger Station to discuss guidelines for off-highway vehicle use in the forest.

Jeff Gainey with the United States Forest Service, said, “The reason for the open public house is we’ve got new national travel management that requires us to go through a process to restrict cross-country motorized travel. The end result will be that motorized use will only be allowed on national forest land on designated roads and trails.”

Gainey said off-highway vehicle use in national forests, such as people riding all-terrain vehicles and dirt bikes, has increased across the nation leading to problems such as destruction of habitat and illegal garbage dumping.

The forest service was not changing any of the trails or roads at this meeting but getting input from those who use vehicles in the forest to see if any existing trails should be closed or new areas should be opened for vehicle use.

Robert Lee, another forest service official, said, “We didn’t want to come to this meeting and say, ‘Here is our proposal,’ because then it’s our proposal. You tell us what you want, and we’ll have to meet in the middle.”

Forest service representative Jason Noble said the forest service would also consider special exceptions such as driving off a trail to pick up a downed animal during hunting.

The forest service will take all the information gathered at this event and present its recommendations for the DeSoto National Forest at another open house meeting next month. It is tentatively scheduled for March 1.

Forest service representative David Berens said he has heard a wide variety of suggestions but not a suggestion common among a large number of open house attendees.