Senate Joint Resolution 16 in support of Chuckwalla National Monument successfully passed a floor vote in the California State Senate and now moves to the Assembly for a final vote this summer. MBCA has strongly supported the establishment of the Monument. This measure would urge the President to use the Antiquities Act of 1906 to establish the Chuckwalla National Monument, and to establish a National Park Service managed Joshua Tree National Monument adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park. 

The iconic and unique history of Giant Rock brings visitors including ufologists, climbers, ragers, and spiritual seekers, sometimes to the disturbance of the site and its Landers neighbors. The LA Times reports on Giant Rock's unusual history as well as current tensions related to gentrification, short-term rental developments, site damages, and cleanup efforts.  

MBCA President Steve Bardwell shares the story of the years-long effort to improve San Bernardino County's regulations on lighting with 90 Miles from Needles podcast host Chris Clarke and local night sky photographer Mitch Miller. The episode was recorded during an art show with a night sky theme at MazAmar Art Pottery in Pioneertown. The 46-minute podcast is available here.

Joining with 113 state and national organizations, MBCA signed onto a letter in support of California's AB 59, a bill which would mandate that future electrical vehicles be bi-directional, providing a source of power to households when needed. As noted in our June 24 Eblast, "With the many recent setbacks to rooftop solar, this legislation would serve to encourage rooftop solar and micro-grid DG generation, while providing resilience to our increasingly stressed electrical grid."

Among the more than 700 people who attended the BLM public hearing on the proposed Chuckwalla National Monument in Indio on June 14 were a number of MBCA Board members. Dozens of public comments were made to the BLM, emphasizing the many environmental, cultural, and climate change advantages to conserving about 627,000 acres of desert land in southeast California. The Bird Singers of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians performed, and Joshua Tree National Park Superintendent Jane Rodgers received enthusiastic applause! A detailed report on the meeting can be found at the Protect Chuckwalla website.

Pictured below are MBCA Board member Pat Flanagan, Steve Bardwell, and Sarah Kennington; Pat and Sarah with Friends of Big Morongo Canyon Preserve Executive Director Kevin Wong; and the Bird Singers performance.

 
 

At their June 11 meeting, County Supervisors are set to receive the latest consultant report on Program 4, the Short-Term Rental study initiated by the state housing agency. MBCA has reviewed the report and is concerned that "the requirements of the Program 4 Study have not been satisfied." MBCA's June 11 letter specifies our concerns and states our expectation to continue "participating in the ongoing process of preparing the Program 4 study and view the current report as another step towards that end."

A June 9 opinion article in the San Bernardino Sun points to the continuing irresponsible actions of the Cadiz corporation in seeking to pump precious desert water from a key aquifer in the Mojave Desert. Their recent efforts to gain approval for their project within the Latino community is pointed out in particular as exploitative. Click our tag Cadiz below to find many past reports about the Cadiz water project.