Eblast: March 30, 2025
Saturday Rally, March 22, Supporting Chuckwalla National Monument
National Monuments Guest Commentary
A guest commentary by MBCA Director Pat Flanagan on the importance of National Monuments to the County of San Bernardino and its desert communities was published on Wednesday, May 10, 2017. We have made available a printable version of Pat's commentary or you can view the story on the Sun's website.
Cadiz Water Project Moves a Step Forward
An administrative move within BLM management at the federal level has reduced the obstacles still in place for the Cadiz Valley Water Conservation, Recovery and Storage Project that seeks to move water from desert aquifers to urban areas of southern California. This April 5 story by our local radio station includes a map of the Cadiz location, and this LA Times article provides more details.
Turn off lights for Earth Hour
A worldwide effort to bring attention to environmental issues and climate change is represented by the act of turning off as many of your home lights as possible for one hour, between 8:30 and 9:30 PM, on Saturday, March 25. Much more information is available on the Earth Hour website.
Desert Sun Editorial on Eagle Crest Project
The Desert Sun Editorial Board has published an opinion piece criticizing Governor Jerry Brown's request for federal assistance to develop the Eagle Crest pumping station project. This is the "giant battery in the desert" hydroelectric project proposed for the Eagle Mountain Mine lands at the southeast border of Joshua Tree National Park. The privately owned mine area was not included in the recent study recommending return of about 22,000 acres of nearby land back to the National Park. Read the Desert Sun editorial to learn more about why the project is "not a wise use of precious desert water." You can also read more about the Eagle Crest project by scanning past articles on MBCA's Water Issues page.
Cadiz, Inc. Project Commentary
While MBCA and many other conservation advocates have spoken against the Cadiz Valley Water Conservation, Recovery and Storage Project, KCET recently published a commentary from Cadiz, Inc. in response to project criticisms.
Eagle Mountain Meeting Follow-Up
A number of MBCA members and supporters attended the January 18 meeting in Palm Desert in support of the process of transferring Eagle Mountain area lands back to Joshua Tree National Park.
Board member Seth Shteir, left, and President Sarah Kennington, extreme right
Please consider writing a supporting comment letter by February 16, 2017.
Cadiz Water Project Commentary
Published on the KCET Redefine blog, Joshua Tree resident Sant Khalsa's commentary, "Opinion: Water Project Would Hurt New National Monument" provides background and details on the current status of the ill-conceived Project.
Read more
National Park Proposed Land Transfer
The Department of the Interior recently announced the latest step in the process of adding about 20,000 acres to Joshua Tree National Park. The "Eagle Mountain Boundary Study" began about two years ago and the current action moves another step toward final action.
Read moreJoshua Basin Water District Receives Award
The Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) presented its Huell Howser Best in Blue Award to the Joshua Basin Water District on December 1, 2016, for its innovative outreach program encouraging the public to plant water-saving native plants.
Read moreMBCA sends Comment Letter on Eagle Crest Transmission Line Environmental Assessment (EA)
MBCA, as part of a coalition of 7 other organizations and scientists, has sent a detailed Environmental Assessment Comment Letter to the BLM State Director Jerome Perez opposing the Eagle Crest Pumped Storage project and requesting a full Environmental Impact Study (EIS) instead of the planned and less comprehensive Environmental Assessment (EA) on the Transmission Line. It provides a thorough and detailed record of all the stages of insufficient analysis that have been completed for this project.
Read more