Burning Man: Drug searches 'gravest' concern from BLM report, urges better trash disposal

No shocker here: Burning Man is deeply concerned about the possibility of federally-sanctioned screenings for weapons and drugs at the event. 

On Thursday, the Burning Man organization responded to a more than 300-page report from the Bureau of Land Management that will largely determine future conditions of the 80,000-person event in Northern Nevada's Black Rock Desert.

The BLM, which issued the report late last week, suggested that it was going to hire a private security firm to screen all vehicles, participants, vendors, contractors, staff and volunteers upon entry into the event. 

Burning Man organizers, in response, said screenings were one of its "gravest concerns" and the screenings subject "a peaceable gathering of people to searches without probable cause other than a desire to attend Burning Man," the statement said. 

The potential screenings are a "massive shift from Burning Man’s 30-year history running our own operations," the statement said. 

The organization reassured Burners that screenings would not begin in 2019; BLM officials likewise said they did not foresee any major changes to its law enforcement routine this year.

"Screening process and procedures are just one facet of a multi-jurisdictional law enforcement approach to ensure the safety and security of the event. These procedures will be carried out in a manner similar to previous Burning Man events. At this time, BLM has no new announcements on changes to law enforcement and security policy or procedures related to Burning Man 2019," said BLM spokesman Rudy Evenson. 

The Burning Man organization added that it might have the opportunity to prevent screenings from occurring in the future altogether, but Evenson said he could not comment on Burning Man's assertion.

'Screenings' vs 'searches' 

Further information about the contracted security firm and the nature of the "screenings" is not currently available, Evenson said.

BLM officials have been careful to call the security measures screenings, which they insist are different from searches. 

"Screening includes a broader range of methods. When you get on an airplane, everyone is screened, but only a few people have bags opened after the belt," Evenson said. 

Burning Man to Burners: Clean up your trash

The final environmental impact statement, which details the conditions of the event moving forward for the next decade, restricted the Burning Man event from growing to 100,000 for the time being. 

The Burning Man organization noted that Burners previously were concerned with concrete barriers and dumpsters at the event, which, for the time being, will not be included in the 2019 event planning. 

Still, the organization pleaded with Burners to improve their trash and waste disposal efforts post-event. 

"We’re simply not doing a good enough job disposing of our trash after we leave Black Rock City. Trash can NOT be left in a pile on the roadside in the Paiute Nation; it can NOT be left at an I-80 or any other public highway rest stop or dumpster; it can NOT be left in the trash behind a business in Reno, Sparks, Winnemucca, Nevada City, Salt Lake City … or any spot on your drive home from Black Rock City," the statement said. 

We must all do better — even one person’s misstep affects us all — to prevent dumpsters in Black Rock City from becoming our new reality."

Jenny Kane covers arts and culture in Northern Nevada, as well as the dynamic relationship between the state and the growing Burning Man community. She also covers the state's burgeoning cannabis industry (Check out her podcast, the Potcast, on iTunes.) Support her work in Reno by subscribing to RGJ.com right here.