The USMC is planning on taking over 424,000 acres of land, much of which is state or federal wilderness areas that are home to endangered and protected species.
PRESS RELEASE
Neighbors of the 29 Palms Marine Base expansion
29 Palms, Ca.- The USMC/ MCAGCC is planning on taking over 424,000 acres of land, much of which is state or federal wilderness areas, some of which is considered "Areas of Critical Environmental Concern". They are also going to displace thousands of people, virtually destroy the property values of several thousand other property owners, and negatively affect the quality of life of many thousands of local residents
Above and beyond the above-mentioned issues is the despicable manner in which MCAGCC has handled the matter. MCAGCC has not only violated Federal and Constitutional law, they have violated the basic laws of common decency and honesty, and have shown blatant disregard for the local tax paying residents. They have not made any public announcement of their intentions, in violation of Federal law, and Constitutional amendments, nor have the local residents and property owners received any notification. Their motivations are obvious, to avoid property owners being able to adequately organize, and to prevent environmental protections organizations from getting involved.
These wilderness areas are home to the endangered Desert Tortoise, and Bighorn Sheep, as well as other rare desert plants and wildlife. This area will become aerial bombing ranges and a tactical maneuver - live fire area. In other words, total obliteration of these species. Not to mention the increased water, air, noise and dust pollution in the entire region.
The MCAGCC base is already the largest military base in the world, yet they want to almost double the size. Why? So they can conduct "three brigade simultaneous combined maneuvers". They consider these maneuvers more important than the lives of the local residents, plants and animals.
The MCAGCC Land Acquisition Proposal, by it's omissions, makes it painfully clear that they could care less about the devastating financial, and quality of life effects this take over will have on local residents and property owners. Who wants to be forced to sell their property when the property values are the lowest in years? Who wants to own property, or live in an area that has constant air traffic, 24 hour a day live fire maneuvers, constant aerial and artillery fire, excessive air, water, noise and dust pollution, (all of which are part of the proposal). Examination of the MCAGCC proposals verifies that there is not one single word acknowledging the proposals effects on area residents, and the manner in which they are handling the matter is quite insulting.
To date, the MCAGCC has failed to adequately respond to the community’s complaints about over flights of military aircraft. The MCAGCC has already allowed too many over flights in Wonder Valley causing a disruption to wildlife and peace and quiet. Wonder Valley is already out of compliance with state air quality standards and any additional dust or other pollutants will only adversely impact the public health.
When developing the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), the MCAGCC must recognize that in my view, the proposed expansion cannot be mitigated in terms of visual resources, safety, biological resources, air pollution, traffic, noise, or impact on our water and our quality of life. But must include the devastating financial and emotional impact on local residents and property owners, The costs of moving would be unaffordable and unfair, especially when property values have fallen so drastically, and I am very concerned about how the base expansion will even further affect my property values.
MCAGCC has said that they have held the initial NEPA "public" hearings, but these hearings were not publicized, and were not open question and answer meetings. The NEPA hearings deadline is Jan. 30, 2009.
Detailed information can be found at:
The official Marine Corps Land Acquisition Study (LAS)