Issues: Year in Review

Our annual meeting is Saturday, January 21st from 9AM-1 PM at the Joshua Tree Community Center. The first part of our program will focus on our 2012 goals, followed by a presentations on Dark Skies and Lighting Ordinances. We have an interesting meeting planned and many challenges ahead---Please join us!

Part of planning for the future is evaluating past efforts. In 2011, a number of concerns were presented to MBCA and our high desert community. Here is a partial list of issues that we acted upon this past year:

o    Continued to support S. 138, the California Desert Protection Act of 2011
o    Supported Joshua Tree National Park in the ongoing campaign against invasive Saharan mustard
o    Requested modification of CalTrans’s Hwy. 62 concrete highway divider to accommodate wildlife crossings
o    Commented, in cooperation with NPCA, against creating a County OHV Park in the Gold Park area east of 29 Palms
o    Continued to review and comment on development of industrial solar in inappropriate places in the Mojave Desert
o    Commented with concerns about Granite Construction’s expansion in 29 Palms
o    Supported the fight against the Eagle Mountain Dump and supported return of that land in that area to Joshua Tree National Park
o    Commented, in cooperation with NPCA, against the proposed Cadiz Water Project
o    Partnered with Twentynine Palms Water District in updating and improving the 10-year old “Let’s Go Native” brochures
o    Commented against AB 628, which would allow Inyo County to expand OHV traffic on a trial basis
o    Commented against adoption of SB 108, a mining bill that could reopen the possibility of a dump at Eagle Mountain.

More information about these issues is available here or on the MBCA website. Thank you for your continuing support.

Monthly Board Meeting

The next regular board meeting of the Morongo Basin Conservation Association is Thursday, January 12, 2012 at 5:00 PM at 7491 Barberry Avenue in Yucca Valley (NE corner of Pueblo Trail and Barberry Avenue).

Please join us and add your voice and experience.
 

Update on proposed Joshua Tree casino

On November 19, Cheryl Schmit of the group “Stand Up for California” gave a very knowledgeable and comprehensive presentation about the issues of Indian gaming facing us in Joshua Tree and the Morongo Basin.  We learned that several other California communities are facing this same off-reservation casino issue as the aftermath of recent approvals of such casinos in Yuba and Madera Counties.

“Off-reservation casinos are in direct violation of the promises made to voters that Indian gaming would remain on Indian lands,” said Stand Up for California’s Executive Director, Cheryl Schmit. “If off-reservation gaming is allowed, a dangerous precedent will be set, opening the floodgates for tribes across California to shop around for the most profitable locations to build casinos, with complete disregard for how our local communities are impacted.”

You can learn more in this article on Stand Up for California’s website: Stand Up for California

Perhaps the other most important point in her article is this:

The fate of the casinos already approved by the Department of Interior rests in the hands of Governor Jerry Brown, as off-reservation sites must pass through what is called a “two-part determination.” Although the federal government has mistakenly opened the doors for these casinos, the Governor has the chance to reject the proposals, keeping in line with what California voters agreed to when they passed Propositions 1A and 5 that allows tribal gaming to take place on reservation land only.

Anyone opposed to the off-reservation gaming facilities is encouraged to contact the Governor, asking him to not concur with the proposals.

If you are opposed to having a casino in Joshua Tree and have not yet contacted the Governor, please do so now.  We understand that a strong anti-casino message from the community may not have the desired effect in the federal process, but repeated and significant response directed at the state level may affect the outcome.  Email Governor Brown at this link.. You can write  or call the governor's office at:

Governor Jerry Brown
State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento CA  95814
(916) 445-2841
 

The Economic Relationship Between Natl. Parks and Gateway Communities

Joshua Tree National Park and Joshua Tree Gateway Communities Chamber of Commerce invite you to attend speaker series "The Economic Relationship Between National Parks and Gateway Communities", featuring National Park Service and Gateway Community experts.

December 6th, 2011 1:00pm to 4:00pm at the Twentynine Palms Community Center, 74325 Joe Davis Drive.  

Why we need dark skies

The Morongo Basin Dark Skies Alliance is one of several local groups working hard on a new county ordinance that would reduce light pollution and enhance our night skies. Why do we need dark skies?
 Effective use of outdoor lighting that casts light onto the ground (and not up into the air) is important for a number of reasons:

1. Save money and energy.
2. Improve security. Bright lights create deep shadows and provide hiding places for criminals.
3. Improve the environment. A recent report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows excessive night lighting inhibits the breakdown of smog.
4. Improve your health and sleep better.
5. Tourism. Our dark night skies attract astronomers and tourists from around the world.
6. Wildlife. Excessive night lighting impact the health and behavior of animals.

For more information visit the Morongo Basin Dark Skies Alliance. Turn out a light... See the Night!

Annual Meeting Saturday January 21, 2012

Please mark your calendar for our Annual Meeting on Saturday, January 21, 2012.  We are planning another pertinent and high quality program focusing on aspects of conservation and wise living in the desert.  You may have attended our 2010 “Take the Step: Go Solar” presentation, or last January’s initial desert-wise landscaping presentation by Robin Kobaly. Details for the January 2012 program will be coming your way in December.... stay tuned!

News on Federal Lands Protection

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar on Thursday supported the legislation proposed by Senator Dianne Feinstein that would include Mojave Trails National Monument and Sand to Snow National Monument, north and west (respectively) of the Morongo Basin.  An article in the Riverside Press-Enterprise states: “Though the White House’s recommendations Thursday are simply an endorsement of the legislation, Feinstein, D-Calif., said in a statement that she hoped it would spur Congress to move her bill forward.”

Here is the article with more details, including a map: Riverside Press-Enterprise.

Succesful native plants workshop

The last in our 2011 series of Desert-Wise Landscape Events, held on November 5th at the JT Community Center, was well attended and enthusiastically appreciated.  Thank you to everyone who helped make this workshop a success! Robin Kobaly’s engaging presentation and hands-on displays of soils, plants, and landscape design and planning tools accented the lecture in addition to the DVD and workbook materials received by participants.  If you are interested in learning more about desert-wise landscaping, visit Robin’s website: Power of Plants.

"As a matter of fact, an ordinary desert supports a much greater variety of plants than does either a forest or a prairie." Ellsworth Huntington

Eagle Mountain dump developer files bankruptcy

After twenty-five years of struggle, it looks like the Eagle Mountain mine landfill project is dead. Kaiser Ventures (Mine Reclamation LLC) has filed for bankruptcy. Read more in the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

Donna and Larry Charpied, who have been in the forefront of the battle to stop the dump, sent a note to their supporters that includes this cautionary note:

We MUST now be diligent.  We need to pressure Secretary Salazar to once and for all restore the ole Kaiser mine, as well as the other approximately 24,000 acres of land in the Eagle Mountains back to Joshua Tree National Park, where it originated.  The Give It Back! Campaign is designed to restore the 29,755 acres.

MBCA will keep you informed when the “Give it Back!” campaign ramps up!

Free workshop: “Take the Step to Go Solar”

The Morongo Basin Conservation Association invites the public to “Take the Step to Go Solar” with a free workshop on how to use solar energy to produce the power for our homes and businesses. The workshop will be held Saturday, January 23, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Joshua Tree Community Center, 6171 Sunburst in Joshua Tree.

The workshop is an opportunity for residents to learn practical steps from those who have already made the move to solar in the Morongo Basin. Helping to demystify why and how we can go solar will be representatives from Southern California Edison, the California Public Utilities Commission, the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Copper Mountain College, and Joshua Tree National Park. Local homeowners and their solar equipment installers will also share their real-life experiences in team presentations.

“We believe that those who want to take the steps to ‘go solar’ will gain confidence by sharing the experience of users, producers, regulators, and installers and also by being connected to the resources that make it possible,” explains Ruth Rieman, solar workshop committee chair of MBCA.

“Take the Step to Go Solar” is free of charge and all Basin residents are welcome. The workshop is part of the annual meeting of MBCA, a 501(c)4 non-profit, community-based, all-volunteer organization dedicated to preserving the economic and environmental welfare of the Morongo Basin since 1969.

For more information on MBCA and “Take the Step to Go Solar” go to http://www.mbconservation.org/ or call 760-364-3455.

BONUS: Print out a Solar workshop flyer (pdf).