The Los Angeles Times published a comprehensive article on the status of tortoises in Joshua Tree National Park. The reduction in numbers over past decades, and especially the deaths of a number of female tortoises in the southern area of the Park in recent years is of concern. The scientists interviewed share data and hypotheses about the current and future status of the Park icon. 

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.  

Here is a summary report of the most recent Commission meeting on June 11 in Sacramento (from the Project Bobcat Facebook page), which was attended by a number of Morongo Basin residents: