by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on September 21, 2019
Join us on Saturday morning, September 28, for MBCA's Fall Desert-Wise Living Program.
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on September 12, 2019
Local resident Tom O'Key, who initiated and was critical to the success of the statewide campaign against bobcat trapping several years ago (see MBCA News Update "
End of Bobcat Trapping") has been a key part of a followup effort to end
all fur trapping in California. That campaign was successful and Tom is quoted several times in
this LA Times article describing the Governor's signing of this first-in-America bill.
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on September 06, 2019
In April,
MBCA submitted a letter in support of the Tubbs Canyon Desert Conservancy in their effort to convince the US Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) to seek new ways of controlling Saharan mustard. The Conservancy has alerted us of a positive response from the USDA, stating that their upcoming 5-year plan for 2020-2025
“will [emphasis added] include studies on identifying and assessing potential biocontrol agents that can be used for Sahara mustard mitigation and eradication." Here is the USDA-ARS letter for full details. (See MBCA's Invasive Plants page for more on Sahara mustard.)
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on August 21, 2019
We received word from MBCA President Steve Bardwell shortly after the decision on the afternoon of August 21 that the proposed Paradise Valley housing development planned for the southern edge of Joshua Tree National Park was voted down by the Riverside County Planning Commission, in a 4-1 vote. Read more details in
this Desert Sun article. Enjoy the photos below taken at the venue. MBCA Directors and supporters, especially Steve Bardwell, Sarah Kennington, and our stalwart science guru Pat Flanagan were vigilant in keeping track of the project, attending meetings, and
making comments against the ill-conceived project.
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on August 20, 2019
DENY PARADISE VALLEY!
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
Riverside County Planning Commission
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on August 15, 2019
The Riverside County Planning Department has thrown a roadblock in front of the huge "new town" of Paradise Valley proposed at the southern border of Joshua Tree National Park. The Desert Sun reports that Planning staff have said they cannot support the plan as submitted, in part due to questions not being satisfactorily answered by the project proponent, GLC Enterprises. The Planning Commission is due to vote on the project at its August 21 meeting. It may now either deny the project or direct staff to continue working to resolve issues. (Note in the second photo in the article that MBCA President and Immediate Past President Steve Bardwell and Sarah Kennington are sitting two rows behind the GLC representative Frank Bigelow at the May Planning Commission meeting. You can also read a lot more that MBCA has published on this issue by typing Paradise Valley into our Search button.)
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on August 12, 2019
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on August 07, 2019

This Thursday August 8, 2019
San Bernardino County Planning Commission to consider
Short Term Residential Rentals ordinance
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on July 31, 2019
Governor Newsom today signed
SB 307, a bill that requires that any water mining projects such as the Cadiz water project undergo new additional review processes to prove it will avoid environmental harm. Many thanks are owed to the many MBCA supporters who wrote comments and called the Governor's office in support of the bill. The
Governor's letter approving SB 307 outlines the reasons for his action.
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by Laraine Turk
1141sc
on July 29, 2019
Stop Cadiz: Call the Governor to sign SB-307!
SB-307 on Governor’s desk
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