MBCA's letter to Governor Newsom outlines the growing environmental damage and safety issues accruing from the proliferation of illegal marijuana grows in the Mojave Desert and other rural areas of the state. Our request is for the Governor to convene a special session of the legislature to upgrade the current misdemeanor status in order to address the escalating problem.
MBCA's Board of Directors has kept abreast of the ongoing and worsening situation of illegal cannabis grows in the Morongo Basin and nearby desert areas. In May, the Morongo Basin Municipal Advisory Council (MAC), which includes two MBCA Board members, Pat Flanagan and Steve Bardwell, passed a resolution asking that more San Bernardino County resources be provided to fight the problem. In June, the Supervisors adopted a resolution urging the state to increase penalties for illegal cannabis cultivation. A July 21 article from the Desert Sun describes the increasingly dire water theft increase across the state, mostly due to illegal cannabis grows. The article includes a quotation (highlighted) from Marina West, former MBCA Board member and general manager of the Bighorn-Desert View Water Agency.
From the weekly newsletter The Revelator, published by the Center for Biological Diversity, here is a list of recent news stories focused on the negative effects of light pollution.
A workhorse of a shrub for Morongo Basin gardens is the native Sugar Bush (Rhus ovata). Use this plant as a windbreak, for hedging or by itself as a specimen plant. It enjoys full sun and plenty of space to spread out.
Young Sugar Bush in 29 Palms, CA. Photo by Cole Gibson
A recently-published research project by UC Irvine scientists reviewed 34 years of satellite data to analyze vegetation changes in the Sonoran Desert and nearby southern California mountains. They found a "widespread decline in perennial vegetation cover," that is, a significant reduction in even the hardiest desert plants. Researcher Stijn Hantson commented that "They're (desert plants) already so badly beaten by drought or heat that they're at the brink of existence." Read more in the Desert Sun article or view the research study, which includes a "Plain Language Summary."
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors approved an urgency ordinance at their June 22 meeting that significantly increases fines for illegally-operating short term rentals in unincorporated areas. The rural residential lifestyle in a healthy desert environment that MBCA works to preserve has been negatively affected by the proliferation of short-term rentals in the Morongo Basin. One problem is poorly managed or illegal properties with problematic guests and another is the greatly reduced availability of reasonable long-term rental housing for local residents. Articles in the Hi Desert Star and Desert Sun and KCDZ 107.7's report interview local hosts and residents and explore the problems and status of this issue.
Desert-Wise Landscape Tour Inspiration Contest Winners 2023
Congratulations to the winners of the Desert-Wise Landscape Tour Inspiration Contest!In this year’s Contest, we asked Tour participants to submit their reactions to the Tour in either a short essay or a visual creation.Winner of the essay category and a $200 gift certificate to Unique Nursery in Joshua Tree is Allie Irwin. Here is her essay, which captures so well the spirit of discovery, as well as lessons learned, that MBCA...
MBCA has submitted comments to the Bureau of Land Management's Las Vegas Field Office about the proposed Golden Current Solar Project's effects on bird migration. Research shows that birds are killed near solar installations because they are attracted to reflective panels they perceive as water. This solar project plus three others nearby would create an excessive array of danger for birds. MBCA's letter includes graphic data of bird presence in the...
MBCA Awards Scholarships to Three Local High School Seniors
Morongo Basin Conservation Association has awarded college scholarships to three local graduating high school seniors. All three high schools in the Morongo Unified School District are represented this year.Recipients were selected from a competitive pool of applicants with demonstrated commitments to include conservation and environmental interests in their education and career plans. Each $1,000 scholarship goes toward the student's higher education expenses in the 2023-24 academic year. MBCA's Conservation Scholarship is the continuation of...
MBCA joined more than 40 local, state, and national organizations in support of California Assemblymember Laura Friedman's AB 1573, the Water Conservation in Landscaping Act, introduced on February 17 and currently referred to the Committee on Water, Parks and Wildlife. Issues addressed include improvements to the existing model ordinance, and overall the bill's provisions would set "the strongest level of water conservation requirements for new or major rehabilitated non-residential landscapes." Read the letter and the bill....
2023 Desert Wise Living Landscape Tour
Attend MBCA and Friends of Wonder Valley Dark Skies event
Wonder Inn and Flamingo 640 appealed to Board of Supervisors
Speaking at an water industry event at the Salton Sea near Mecca on Monday, March 27, Scott Slater, the CEO of Cadiz, Inc, the company that wants to sell water from the Cadiz aquifer for enormous financial gain, shared that the company is considering piping water "to bring water to disadvantaged communities within our reach." Slater also revealed efforts "to pursue a relationship with the Salton Sea Authority...and the Torres...
Wonder Inn Resort Proposal Denied by Planning Commission
In a 4-0 vote, San Bernardino County Planning Commissioners denied the Wonder Inn project opposed by MBCA and hundreds of Morongo Basin area residents. Almost 50 citizens made their comments in person at the meeting. The citizens' group Stop Wonder Inn spent a year doing research to demonstrate how the project if built would have significant negative repercussions not only for Wonder Valley but the entire Morongo Basin. MBCA's initial...