I attended the public meeting held in Palmdale, California last night to find out what the BLM and other government agencies have in mind regarding access to our deserts under their "new" West Mojave Plan. Here is what I learned and my feelings on the impact of this new proposal.
In brief summary of the plan itself, what it addresses is the desires and needs of both developers and the city and county governments with an interest in various areas of the upper Mojave desert.
What the plan does:
Those who attended appeared to be composed of two groups. Those that wanted open access to most all of the affected areas and environmentalists that oppose any access to most of the areas. The number of people in attendance was small, approximately 35 to 40 people. Many are people who are following the meetings from town to town. Of those who spoke for public record, approximately 75 percent were for opening more areas affected by the plan and 25 percent were conservationists that were opposed to virtually any access to areas by the public (not themselves of course).
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I spoke with two of the government representatives to get a better idea of the need for the plan and its impact on the public. I pointed out that using the Mojave Squirrel as a method for land closure violated the original spirit of the Endangered Species law because it is not an endangered species. No defense was offered.
I pointed out that the legal precedent of "habitat destruction" as the primary reason for denying public access is the first step to total government control of all lands. No defense was offered.
I stated that the same tactic had been tried in the Central Valley of California using the Mojave Squirrel to control access to public lands and was thrown out in courts. No defense was offered.
I pointed out that neither the Mojave Squirrel nor the Desert Tortoise would qualify under the original intent of the Endangered Species act because of the sheer numbers of each (in the case of the Desert Tortoise, over 1 million reptiles covering the area from the upper California deserts, across Arizona, and down into Mexico). No defense was offered.
I asked if it was known what was causing the majority of the die-offs of the Desert Tortoise and the only proven reasons appeared to be disease and predation by ravens. There appeared to be little or no direct impact from people such as "shooting for fun" nor running over them. But access will still be denied because of stressing the populations in the affected areas.
The plan does not make any one group happy as usual. The OHV people were very vocal on the desire to open even more land to their hobby. They pointed out the already huge numbers of riders using the deserts now and the projected growth of the sport (something like 20% growth) as the reason for opening more areas. The problem with this strategy is that it will never end. The numbers of riders will just grow to fill the gaps. The sport is very popular and thousands of people enjoy the experience. The problems that arise are numerous though. They include noise and trespassing by uncaring riders (very common in remote regions), virtual destruction of all plant and animal life in affected areas, and the overwhelming of limited resources by the tremendous groups of people involved in the sport. Although I am not a fan of government closures of public land it appears that the only recourse will be some type of limiting access of OHV'ers to certain areas. If no limits are placed, I am afraid the impacts will be felt by all those that visit the desert. This one group has the potential to cause denial of access to virtually all of the public. The only way to prevent this from happening is a concerted effort by both the OHV'ers and the BLM to control the numbers of people in any one area and limit the trails that can be accessed. There appears to be no other solution that will work.
The conservationists are on the other extreme. They will seek to deny access by the public to any affected area. Using "threatened" species, they want virtually total closure of the desert. This is their tried and true method and they are very vocal about it. They are better organized than the general public and contantly use threats of legal action and continuing bombardment of public officials with complaints that make their small numbers appear much larger and louder. Most government officials don't want to appear anti-environmental and so give preferential treatment to this vocal group. It is these people that can easily cause complete and total denial of access to public lands if wanton destruction of certain areas is allowed to continue.
The next and final meeting will be held in Barstow on July 30 and all public comments regarding the plan must be submitted no later than Sept. 12. If you have an interest in the future access of public lands, I would urge you to make your feelings heard. Most of the public has been passive regarding the continuing closure of public lands. If this is trend continues, we who enjoy exploring the west will be denied that privalege. It is all up to you.
Send a letter with your comments on the Western Mojave Desert Plan to:
U.S. Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
California Desert District
22835 Calle San Juan De Los Lagos
Moreno Valley, CA 92553
Let your voice be heard or forever hold your peace.