The Priest and the Nuns, near Moab, Utah Mike Painter
June 29, 2010
Dear CalUWild friends—
After taking a break from the news last month while I was on the road, there are a few items of interest to share this month.
You may recall a few months ago there was an uproar over a Department of the Interior memo, leaked by Utah Rep. Rob Bishop (R), mentioning some places that the administration might consider for national monument designation. If you’d like to see for yourself what all the fuss was about, Sunset Magazine had articles on the 14 that were mentioned. Unfortunately, the Interior Department has not done a good job of supporting the suggestions. Secretary Ken Salazar told Utah lawmakers that there would be no designations without consultations with local interests. Since many, if not most, local officials are opposed to federal management, what this might actually mean is open to interpretation. Of course, the President could designate monuments over local objection, but it seems unlikely given the generally cautious approach the Administration takes to things.
In other political news, former representative and Chairman of the House Resources Committee, Richard Pombo (R), lost his congressional comeback bid in the California June primary. Though a resident of Tracy, he was running in the adjacent 19th District for the seat of retiring Rep. George Radanovich (R). Mr. Pombo is remembered for his stalwart opposition to wilderness and to endangered species. Needless to say, supporters of both issues were not disappointed by the result.
I hope that Summer is off to a good start and that you’re able to get out sometime for a visit to a wilderness area or other public land. It’s your birthright as an American—enjoy it!
Best wishes,
Mike
IN UTAH
1. Red Rock Wilderness Act:
Status Report &
Two New California Cosponsors Added
Thank You Letters Needed
(ACTION ITEM)
2. New State BLM Director for Utah
IN CALIFORNIA
3. Update on State Parks
(ACTION ITEM)
4. Pleasant Valley Trails Lawsuit
Information Needed
(ACTION ITEM)
5. Wilderness Stewardship Internships
IN NEVADA
6. Wilderness Stewardship Trips
IN GENERAL
7. America’s Great Outdoors
Listening Session in Los Angeles
July 8
SHORT REGISTRATION DEADLINE: July 1
& Website Comments
(ACTION ITEM)
8. Free Days for Public Lands
9. Wilderness Volunteers Service Trips
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
IN UTAH
1. Red Rock Wilderness Act:
Two New California Cosponsors Added
Thank You Letters Needed
(ACTION ITEM)
There are few things to report regarding America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act.
There has been no further congressional action on the bill following the hearing before the House Natural Resources Committee last Fall. Unfortunately, when Interior Secretary Salazar made his comments regarding national monuments in Utah (see introduction), he also said that the Administration does not support ARRWA, but favors a county-by-county approach instead. The problem is that wilderness boundaries do not follow county lines. In addition, county commissioners tend to focus only on local issues and concerns. Larger (state or federal) interests are likely to be overlooked or opposed. Since these are federal public lands after all, belonging to all Americans, those larger interests need to be considered.
In addition, the county-by-county approach is now in question. Sen. Bob Bennett (R) has been behind proposals in San Juan and Emery Counties. Utah Republicans, at their state nominating convention in early May, declined to nominate him for a fourth term in the Senate. So it’s not clear that those processes can be furthered while Sen. Bennett is still in the Senate. Sen. Hatch has been working on a proposal for Piute County, but again, it’s not clear whether that will make progress, either. That the local political situation can stall progress illustrates why the whole county-by-county idea is flawed to begin with.
The Red Rock bill, however, continues to gather support in Congress. Several representatives have added their names to the cosponsor list in recent weeks. Two of them are from California. They are:
• Rep. John Garamendi (D-10), who was elected to replace former Rep. Ellen Tauscher when she joined the Administration. Rep. Garamendi is a former Deputy Secretary of the Interior, serving in the Clinton Administration from 1995-98. Rep. Tauscher was a cosponsor before she left Congress.
• Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-39). Rep. Sánchez is a returning cosponsor.
Letters and phone calls saying thank you to both are needed. If you (or anyone you know) live in their districts, please send a message.
Rep. John Garamendi
Phone: DC: 202-225-1880
Walnut Creek: 925-932-8899
US Mail: 1981 N Broadway, Suite 200, Walnut Creek, CA 94596
Webform here. Other contact info may be found here.
Rep. Linda Sánchez
Phone: DC: 202-225-6676
Cerritos: 562-860-5050
US Mail: 17906 Crusader Avenue, Suite 100, Cerritos, CA 90703
Webform here.
Thanks!
2. New State BLM State Director for Utah
BLM Director Bob Abbey announced last month that he was replacing Utah State Director Selma Sierra. The move was one that conservationists have been hoping for, for a long time. Ms. Sierra was originally appointed during the Bush Administration, and her policies gave precedence to energy exploration and off-highway vehicle use rather than conservation, even in and near wild areas.
Juan Palma will be the new director. He comes from Virginia, where he served as the BLM Eastern States Director. Prior to that, Mr. Palma served as director of the Las Vegas office and in Oregon. Ms. Sierra will take his position in Virginia.
We hope that Mr. Palma will bring a more balanced approach (maybe even pro-conservation!) to the issues facing Utah’s BLM lands.
IN CALIFORNIA
3. Update on State Parks
(ACTION ITEM)
The initiative to permanently fund California’s State Park System via an $18 annual motor vehicle fee was officially placed on the November ballot. It provides that passenger vehicles registered in California would not have to pay entrance fees at state parks. (You can read the text of the initiative here.)
The Sacramento Bee has started a section on its website for stories, pictures, and other items related to the State Park System, and it plans on adding to it throughout the Summer. The newspaper sent out the following message:
You can read the full story at: www.sacbee.com/stateofstateparks. We hope you enjoy it and welcome your feedback now and as our coverage continues with stories on crime, encroachment of civilization, and creative ways to pay for parks.
We’re looking for your help getting the word out about the parks guide linked to this project, which includes public information available nowhere else online related to maintenance and crime – and asks those interested in the parks to upload photos showing their favorite areas, walks, views and any problems they uncover during their visits. We’ve been getting a lively response from park enthusiasts and photo hobbyists already, but there is great potential for this becoming a focal point in the debate about state parks.
Our goal is to get at least one photo uploaded for each of the 278 state parks and we know we can’t reach that goal without you. Would you be able to let your acquaintances/friends know about this effort? If you or your organization has a Website, would you be willing to link to it? Ditto with Tweets and Facebook updates?
The direct link for the parks guide, filled with information and the photo uploading form, is www.sacbee.com/stateparks.
I appreciate any attention you can help us draw to state parks.
Amy Pyle
Assistant Managing Editor/Investigations & Enterprise
The Sacramento Bee
apyle@sacbee.com
(916) 321-1050
4. Pleasant Valley Trails Lawsuit
Information Needed
(ACTION ITEM)
Sometimes the only access to public lands is across private property. It is a long-settled principle of law that public use of a path over private property for a specified period of time creates a public easement that is permanent and cannot be revoked by subsequent owners. We recently received the following notice from a citizens group in the Sierra Nevada south of Lake Tahoe regarding access issues. If you have information that might help them and are interested in helping out, please get in touch with the people mentioned in the alert. Thanks.
Pleasant Valley is a beautiful meadow south of Lake Tahoe that for well over 100 years had served as a major access point into Alpine County high country, including the Pacific Crest Trail and the Mokelumne Wilderness Area. Access to Pleasant Valley was gated shut by a private landowner in 1999 who no longer wished to have hikers, anglers, and others cross his land. In the years following the trails’ closure, Friends of Hope Valley (FOHV) worked hard to persuade the landowner to voluntarily reopen these trails for public use, but after eight years of working for an amicable resolution this gateway to public lands remains closed. With no other recourse, FOHV has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California in an effort to reopen the trails.
FOHV is working to find members of the public who accessed the Pleasant Valley trails in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s. Potential witnesses will be interviewed by FOHV’s legal team, possibly deposed by the defendant’s lawyers, and may be asked to testify in court in Sacramento. The deadline to discover witnesses is fast approaching and is essential to building the case for the trail’s historic use.
The public’s right to access public trails, even if people have to pass through private land to reach them, is firmly grounded in California state law. Any land in California that was used by the public for five continuous years before March 1972 cannot lawfully be closed to public access at the whim of the landowner. There is ample evidence demonstrating lengthy historical use of Pleasant Valley for hiking, fishing, and other recreational uses, including prior use by the Washoe tribe for more than a century.
Securing trail users from the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s as witnesses is crucial to asserting the public’s legal right to access these pristine trails. Hikers, anglers and others who used Pleasant Valley from 1950-1980 are asked to contact Friends of Hope Valley by emailing info@hopevalleyca.com or to call FOHV’s lawyer, Matthew Zinn of Shute, Mihaly and Weinberger LLP, at 415-552-7272 as soon as possible. For more information about the Friends of Hope Valley lawsuit, visit http://www.hopevalleyca.com/issues.html.
Feel free to email with additional questions or for more information.
Sincerely,
Severn Williams, on behalf of the Friends of Hope Valley
Severn Williams, Principal
Public Good PR – Communications for a Better World
510-336-9566
f: 510-588-4641
sev@publicgoodpr.com – www.publicgoodpr.com
5. Wilderness Stewardship Internships
The following came in from our friends at the California Wilderness Coalition.
WANTED: TWO INTERNS INTERESTED IN SPENDING THEIR SUMMER IN THE YOLLA BOLLY-MIDDLE EEL WILDERNESS!
The California Wilderness Coalition, Mendocino National Forest and Student Conservation Association are seeking two full-time, paid interns to serve as volunteer coordinators this summer/fall in the rugged and remote Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness. The Yolla Bollys form the spine of the Coast Range in Mendocino, Tehama and Trinity counties, roughly 30 air-miles west of the town of Red Bluff and 12 air-miles northeast of the little community of Covelo.
About the area: This region consists of steep, old-growth shaded canyons and windswept, open ridges which form the headwaters of the South Fork Trinity River and the Middle Fork Eel River, two very important salmon and steelhead trout streams. Important tributaries of the Sacramento River also originate in the wilderness area’s eastern side. As the northern end of the interior Coast Range, the southern end of the Klamath Mountains and the western rampart of California’s Great Central Valley, it is a rich ecological melting pot with a wide range of plants and animals. For more information visit: http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&WID=661
About the job: From 2007-2009 we had interns for the Yuki, Sanhedrin and Snow Mountain wilderness areas. Volunteers were recruited and trained to erect wilderness boundary signs, restore areas damaged by illegal vehicle use, monitor recreation impacts and conduct a host of other important activities in the three wilderness areas. Full-time interns who served as volunteer coordinators were essential to these efforts. This year we want to carry this successful partnership to the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness, so we are seeking two volunteer coordinators who can:
–Recruit potential volunteers by giving presentations to groups and by using the phone, the media and the Internet;
–Plan and complete volunteer projects;
–Ensure that volunteers are properly trained and provided with necessary equipment; and
–Supervise volunteers in the field.
Interns will receive:
–Stipends of $160/week for six months;
–Medical insurance;
–An education scholarship worth $2,360 at the end of the internship; and
–Free housing and on-the-job transportation.
Qualifications: The volunteer coordinators must be self-motivated, willing to work in remote locations for up to 4 days at a time and must have excellent written and oral communication skills.
For more information please contact Ryan Henson of the CWC at 530-365-2737
or at rhenson@calwild.org.
IN NEVADA
6. Wilderness Stewardship Trips
Friends of Nevada Wilderness always have a nice list of trips and service projects for people looking to do a little work and explore some of the wild places of the Silver State. Check out the listing of their current trips here and sign up for one!
IN GENERAL
7. America’s Great Outdoors
Listening Session in Los Angeles
July 8
SHORT REGISTRATION DEADLINE: July 1
& Website Comments
(ACTION ITEM)
We’re following the progress this Summer of the Great Outdoors Initiative. So far there have been listening sessions in Montana, Maryland, and South Carolina, with another scheduled for Seattle tomorrow. Los Angeles plays host to one next Thursday, July 8. With the 4th of July holiday, there is a short registration deadline, tomorrow July 1. This announcement just went up yesterday on DOI’s website. EPA told me today that all are welcome, even if not registered in advance.
The Department of the Interior’s announcement says:
Senior national and local leaders from US EPA, CEQ, USDA, DOI and DOD will be present to hear your recommendations and to participate in a conversation with you about America’s Great Outdoors.
Please Register:
This event is free and open to the public. For planning purposes, please register by Thursday, July 1st by sending an email to sun.nelly@epa.gov with your name, the name of the organization with which you are affiliated, if any, your telephone number and email address. We will endeavor to accommodate everyone.
When:
Thursday – July 8, 2010, 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Where:
Thorne Hall
Occidental College
1600 Campus Road
Los Angeles, CA 90041 (See map at http://www.oxy.edu/x6062.xml)
If you live in the Mojave or east of Los Angeles, California Wilderness Coalition will be providing a bus for attendees. Here’s information regarding the bus:
To get a ride on the bus, you can meet at:
1.) 11am at the Victorville Park n Ride 16838 D St. Victorville 92392
or
2.) 12:30pm at the REI in Rancho Cucamonga 12218 Foothill Boulevard Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91739
Both of these locations are easily accessible from I-15 and/or I-10 for folks coming from the high desert, the Morongo Basin, Coachella Valley, Riverside, San Diego, or the Inland Empire. From there, the bus will take us to the Listening Session in Los Angeles. For bus riders, we will provide lunch and dinner.
RSVP to Laurel:lwilliams@calwild.org or 909.260.8833 or Monica at margandona@calwild.org to reserve your spot on the bus. We strongly encourage everyone to join us on the bus to reduce traffic and pollution!
We just need to know that you’re coming by FRIDAY, JULY 2nd.
If you are not able to attend a listening session, there is a page on the GOI website where you can submit your own ideas, vote on others’ suggestions, and make comments.
It’s not totally clear how the website is operating. Previous suggestions have disappeared off the main pages, and their comments have been removed, such as Overturn the “No More Wilderness” Policy , KEEP IT WILD, and Protect the National Conservation Lands. The links take you to the original pages, and you can still vote for them, but they are no longer listed under their authors’ names. I’m trying to find out what’s going on, but so far have no answer.
One idea that hasn’t disappeared is Protect Wilderness-Quality Public Lands.
These are all suggestions that CalUWild supports, and it can’t hurt to vote in their favor, whether they are active or not. To vote, though, you need to register. It’s an easy process, starting with clicking on “register” in the top right corner.
We’ll keep you posted as the Initiative moves forward.
8. Free Days for Public Lands
The public lands agencies, as part of a concerted effort to get Americans outdoors and aware of their lands, have announced that entrance fees will be waived on several dates in the coming months. This applies for the National Parks, National Forests, BLM lands, and National Wildlife Refuges. The dates are:
August 14 & 15, Back to School
September 25, Public Lands Day
November 11, Veterans Day
9. Wilderness Volunteers Service Trips
Besides Nevada (above), there are many more opportunities for service trips in wilderness areas and other public lands. Our friends at Wilderness Volunteers keep a busy schedule around the country. You can see their trips here.