Arne Naess, Norwegian philosopher, dies at 96

Naess coined the term 'deep ecology' to indicate that humans are no more important than other species, ecosystems or natural processes.

By Patricia Sullivan
Los Angeles Times


Arne Naess.


Arne Naess, a Norwegian philosopher who coined the term "deep ecology" to indicate that humans are no more important than other species, ecosystems or natural processes, died Jan. 12 in Oslo. He was 96.

The philosophy drew adherents as diverse as the radical Earth First! activists of the late 1980s and Douglas Tomkins, co-founder of the Esprit clothing line.

"Naess presented us with a way of approaching problems that will continue to be used in environmental work," Light said. "That is, look for the real origins of environmental problems and not just their surface impact."

Marines want to take over Amboy Road

By JIM MANIACI
Mojave Daily News / News West

LAUGHLIN - The U.S. Marine Corps wants to expand its Twentynine Palms, Calif., air-ground combat training base to the east, taking over Amboy Road, which Southern California drivers use to reach the Colorado River cities.

The Laughlin Chamber of Commerce recently found about the military's expansion effort for its live-fire training and is concerned that eventually the key artery from the Palm Springs to Laughlin will be closed permanently.

Friday is the deadline to submit concerns, which would be addressed in the environmental impact statement of the withdrawal of territory owned mostly by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the state of California.

Chamber manager Janet Medina describes the route from California Highway 62 to Old Route 66, which connects with Interstate 40 at Interchange 115, as “a leisurely drive to and from Laughlin.”

“If the road becomes clogged with military convoys or closed during training exercises, travelers will change their driving patterns and detour past Indian casinos prior to their arrival in Laughlin,” she advised her board of directors.

Medina added, “If the road is permanently closed, visitors will have no alternative but to detour and (it) definitely has the potential to negatively impact Laughlin” and its neighbors to the east and south.

Alternative three would add 22,000 acres (more than 34 square miles) to the south and 224,000 acres (about 350 square miles) east of the existing sprawling base.

There are five other options which don't affect the key travel route.

The draft impact statement is scheduled to be issued next year and the final EIS with the record of decision in 2011.

Battle over desert power line escalates

An environmental group asks the state Supreme Court to review PUC approval of the project.

By Marla Dickerson
Los Angeles Times

An environmental group has asked the California Supreme Court to review a controversial power transmission project that was approved last month by the state Public Utilities Commission.

The petition filed late Wednesday by the Center for Biological Diversity alleges that the commission violated California law by failing to ensure that the proposed Sunrise Powerlink would be used principally to carry renewable energy and by rejecting alternative routes that would have avoided fragile wilderness areas. The group wants the court to void the decision and order the PUC to reconsider the proposal.

"Sunrise . . . would sacrifice sensitive public lands and vital habitat without any guarantee the line will be used to deliver clean energy," said Ileene Anderson, Los Angeles spokeswoman for the group.

The center also plans to ask the PUC for a rehearing on the $1.9-billion project, which it contends is unnecessary and too costly, Anderson said.

Wednesday's filing, which was expected, is just the latest development in a lengthy dispute over Sunrise. Proposed by San Diego Gas & Electric, the $1.9-billion ratepayer-financed transmission line is slated to run 123 miles from Imperial County to San Diego, crossing remote areas of the San Diego backcountry and the Cleveland National Forest.

SDG&E said the line was necessary for it to meet state mandates to boost its use of renewable power by ensuring there is enough transmission capacity available to get energy from remote wind, solar and geothermal projects to urban areas where it's needed.

Opponents say it's a costly boondoggle that will destroy unique desert habitat while allowing SDG&E to transport fossil fuel-generated electricity through the lines. They contend that funds would be better spent developing urban solar projects that use existing transmission infrastructure.

PUC spokeswoman Terrie Prosper said she couldn't comment on a pending appeal of a decision. The court can take as long as it wants to decide whether it will hear the petition.

Saving the tortoise

Feds sure have spent a lot of money over the years

EDITORIAL
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Back in 1973, Congress enacted the Endangered Species Act. Fifteen years later, someone looked around and realized there was no way to do a cost-benefit analysis on how much was being spent to "protect" the proliferating list of weeds and bugs in question, so Congress in 1988 added a section to the ESA requiring an annual species-by-species expenditure report.

And about eight years later, the appropriate federal agencies finally got around to issuing them.

And which endangered species do you suppose these government agencies spend the most tax dollars "protecting"? The grizzly bear? The bald eagle?

No.

The 2006 report, the latest released by the Fish and Wildlife Service, estimates $884 million were directly spent "protecting" more than 1,100 species on the list. But there's a wide disparity in how money is doled out.

The top recipients have been salmon in the Pacific Northwest and the Steller sea lion. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on those species since reporting began in 1996.

The pallid sturgeon, a prehistoric-looking freshwater fish, topped the 2006 list at $39 million. But a mere $6 was expended "protecting" a rare Utah herb called the Barneby reed-mustard, which sounds like it might be tasty in a salad.

Another critter ranking high on the list of money spent by state and federal agencies trying to keep it from extinction, according to an Associated Press analysis of the past 11 years of available data, is Southern Nevada's own desert tortoise. From 1996 to 2006, more than $93 million was spent on managing the long-lived reptile, The AP figures. That's more than was spent on the grizzly, the gray wolf or the bald eagle.

There are some odd things about the case of the Mojave Desert tortoise, though. For one thing, its "critical habitat" stretches across 9,600 square miles. Jurisdictions include four states, seven military installations, four national parks and scores of federal, state and county agencies.

For another, for a supposedly "threatened" species, there seem to be a whole lot of them out there. Roy Averill-Murray, desert tortoise recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Reno, estimates there are 111,000 to 187,000 adult desert tortoises in areas designated as critical habitat.

Government agencies spent $10.5 million on the desert tortoise in 2006 and more than $11 million in 2007 -- on monitoring, fences to keep them from wandering onto highways, studies on a respiratory disease and stacks of long-range plans.

Problem is, no one's sure if it's done more good than harm.

One of the most ambitious plans was to relocate 770 of the reptiles to Bureau of Land Management land to make way for the expansion of Fort Irwin, a national military training center near Barstow, Calif.

The move started last March, but was put on hold in October after most of the tortoises "relocated" to date -- about 90 of them -- were promptly killed and eaten by coyotes.

"Nobody thought it was going to be an inexpensive proposition," says Ileene Anderson, a biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity, the radical and lawsuit-prone environmental outfit. "But the desert tortoise is a bellwether for the health of our deserts."

One wonders if the Fort Irwin tortoises wouldn't rather be alive than serve as somebody's "bellwether."

One of the region's few surviving ranchers, Cliven Bundy, argues that when federal officials required a comprehensive tortoise population survey before allowing the Kern River gas pipeline to be run through Southern Nevada a few years back, they discovered by far the densest concentrations of tortoises were not out in the dry and barren desert (though there were somewhat more where cattle grazed), but right here in the suburban Las Vegas Valley.

What if it turns out tortoises love lawns and golf courses and other man-made improvements to the environment? What would that do to the theory that mankind and his "development" are some of the things from which the desert tortoise needs to be "protected"?

Court rules on ownership of 97/10,000ths of an acre

By Paul E. Pfeifer
Ohio Supreme Court Justice

Throughout history there have been countless border disputes, great and small. Germany and France battled over Alsace-Lorraine; Canada and the United States once got testy about the border of Alaska; even Ohio and Michigan squabbled over Toledo and surrounding territory. Now we can add to that list the Evanich-Bridge boundary quarrel.

It all began in 1965, when William Evanich bought a piece of land in a residential subdivision with his wife, Roselyn. The Evaniches built a house on the property and began landscaping in 1967.

Before he started landscaping, Evanich surveyed the property by running string from a survey stake at the rear of his lot to a stake at the front. Evanich assumed that the resulting line marked the edge of his land.

With his boundary defined, Evanich installed a split rail fence, decorative railroad ties, stone blocks, bushes, flowers and at least one tree. All of that landscaping was in place when, in 1977, Steven and Margaret Bridge bought the property next door.

In 2002, twenty-five years after moving in, the Bridges had their lot surveyed and discovered that Evanich's 1967 self-survey had included 97/10,000ths of an acre that belonged to the Bridges. Evanich had unwittingly landscaped along what he assumed was his lot line.

Upon making this discovery, the Bridges sent a letter to the Evaniches requesting removal of the split rail fence and other landscaping. The Evaniches refused, and instead filed a complaint in court to obtain a declaration of their rights through adverse possession.

What is adverse possession? It's a legal doctrine that says a plaintiff -- the Evaniches in this case -- can acquire legal title to another person's real property if he or she proves exclusive possession and open, notorious and continuous use adverse to the owner for a period of 21 years.

At trial, William Evanich testified that he had intended to landscape his own property only, and that he would not have planted where he did had he known that the property belonged to his neighbors.

The trial court concluded that the claim for adverse possession was proven by a preponderance of the evidence and judged in favor of William and Roselyn Evanich. But the Bridges appealed, arguing that the trial court had applied the wrong standard of proof.

The case was sent back to the trial court to apply the standard of clear and convincing evidence, but again the trial court ruled in favor of the Evaniches. So the Bridges appealed again, this time arguing that William and Roselyn were required to show that they took possession of the land with the intent to claim title to it.

Despite the Bridges' argument, the court of appeals affirmed the judgment of the trial court. After that, the border dispute came before us -- the Supreme Court of Ohio -- for a final review.

The doctrine of adverse possession is well established in Ohio, with Supreme Court cases on the subject dating back to the 1800s. Time and again we have determined that in order to succeed in acquiring title by adverse possession, the claimant must show exclusive possession that is open, notorious, continuous and adverse for 21 years. But the issue here is how the claimant's intent relates to the legal element of adversity.

We have never said that a claimant must establish subjective intent to acquire title to someone else's land in order to succeed in an adverse possession claim. Rather, the adversity element has been explained this way: "It is the visible and adverse possession with an intent to possess that constitutes the occupancy's adverse character, and not the remote motives or purposes of the occupant."

In a case on this subject from 1866, our court addressed the precise issue of whether the element of adversity requires that a person have the actual motive, the intent, to claim the property of another.

In that 1866 case, the court considered instructions that were given to the jury on adverse possession that stated: The person seeking adverse possession "must have knowingly and designedly taken and held the land... Occupancy by accident, or mistake, or ignorance of the dividing line, is not sufficient."

But that instruction was rejected as unprecedented, erroneous and "mischievous in its operation." Instead, the court in 1866 reaffirmed that possession is what matters.

The 1866 court said that if the adverse possessor "occupies what he believes to be his own, a similar possession gives him a title. Into the recesses of his mind, his motives or purposes, his guilt or innocence, no inquiry is made. It is for this obvious reason that it is the visible and adverse possession, with an intention to possess, that constitutes its adverse character, and not the remote views or belief of the possessor."

As Justice Judith Ann Lanzinger wrote in our majority opinion, "In other words, title may be acquired 'irrespective of any question of motive or of mistake.' In a claim for adverse possession, intent is objective rather than subjective in determining whether the adversity element of adverse possession has been established, and the legal requirement that possession be adverse is satisfied by clear and convincing evidence that for 21 years the claimant possessed property and treated it as the claimant's own.

"This has been the law in Ohio for over 140 years, and we are unwilling to alter a rule that has successfully directed the application of the doctrine of adverse possession for so long."

The court of appeals concluded that the Evaniches acted in a way consistent with true ownership by installing landscaping that included railroad ties, the fence, the tree and all the rest. The court determined that the Evaniches possessed the necessary intent based on their exclusive control over the property for 35 years.

We saw no error in the court of appeals' conclusion that the Evaniches took possession of the disputed property via adverse possession. We therefore affirmed -- by a seven-to-zero vote -- the judgment of the court of appeals.

Thus ends another of history's border disputes.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The case referred to is: Evanich v. Bridge, 119 Ohio St.3d 260, 2008-Ohio-3820. Case No. 2007-0863. Decided Aug. 5, 2008. Majority opinion written by Justice Judith Ann Lanzinger.

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Paul E. Pfeifer is a Bucyrus native.

Plenty spent on endangered species list's tortoise

By MIKE STARK
Associated Press

The Mojave desert tortoise is among the top recipients of money spent by state and federal agencies trying to keep it from the brink of extinction, according to an analysis of the last 11 years of available data. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Leathery, shy and a bit world-weary, the Mojave desert tortoise doesn't come across as a high-roller.

But among land-going critters on the endangered species list, it's among the top recipients of money spent by state and federal agencies trying to keep it from the brink of extinction, according to an Associated Press analysis of the last 11 years of available data.

From 1996 to 2006, more than $93 million was spent on managing the long-lived reptile, records show. That's more than was spent on other species such as the grizzly bear, gray wolf or bald eagle.

Not bad for a pokey desert dweller that spends most of its time in underground burrows in parts of Utah, California, Arizona and Nevada.

Not that preserving the tortoise is simple.

The tortoise's "critical habitat" stretches across 9,600 square miles. Jurisdictions include four states, seven military installations, four national parks and scores of federal, state and county agencies.

Add to that a long list of threats, from highways, urbanization and wildfires to disease, off-road vehicles and climate change.

"We don't have a good silver bullet for the tortoise," said Roy Averill-Murray, desert tortoise recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Reno, Nev.

Congress in 1988 added a section to the Endangered Species Act requiring an annual species-by-species expenditure report. Before then, no one knew how much was being spent to save plants and animals on the list, said Valerie Fellows, a spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Service.

The reports are an attempt to calculate how much states and 31 federal agencies — from the Coast Guard to the Federal Highway Administration — are forking over for threatened and endangered species.

By far the top recipients have been salmon in the Pacific Northwest and the Steller sea lion. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on those species since reporting began in 1996.

The 2006 report, the latest released by the Fish and Wildlife Service, estimates that $884 million was spent on more than 1,100 species on the list.

There's a wide disparity in how money is doled out. The pallid sturgeon, a prehistoric-looking freshwater fish, topped the 2006 list with $39 million. A rare herb in Utah called the Barneby reed-mustard got just $6.

About $10.5 million was spent on the desert tortoise. Spending in 2007 was more than $11 million, according to a draft report.

"Nobody thought it was going to be an inexpensive proposition," said Ileene Anderson, a biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. "But the desert tortoise is a bellwether for the health of our deserts."

Tortoises in southwest Utah were listed as threatened in 1980. That designation was expanded to Mojave tortoises in the rest of their range in 1990.

Since then, millions have been spent on monitoring, fences to keep them from wandering onto highways, studies on a respiratory disease and stacks of long-range plans intended to make sure the tortoise survives.

One of the most ambitious plans was to relocate 770 of the reptiles to Bureau of Land Management land to make way for the expansion of Fort Irwin, a national military training center near Barstow, Calif.

The move started in March but was put on hold in October after about 90 tortoises died — most killed and eaten by coyotes.

Averill-Murray estimates there are 111,000 to 187,000 adult desert tortoises in areas designated as critical habitat.

Getting them off the endangered species list means populations must increase or remain stable for at least 25 years.

But it's unclear whether progress has been made. In fact, many populations have declined dramatically.

The federal government is in the midst of revising its recovery plan. A final draft is expected later this year.

Averill-Murray said the tortoises' peculiar nature — secretive and slow to breed — means there's a lag in seeing results from all the effort to keep them from disappearing.

"We really haven't given the tortoise enough time to know whether we've done any good or not," he said.

Historic home items to be saved in Indian Wells

Mariecar Mendoza
The Desert Sun



Historic image of the Carl Bray Gallery and Home. Courtesy of Ann Japenga


The Indian Wells Historic Preservation Foundation is working with city officials to save an historical gallery set to be leveled.

Indian Wells city officials recently announced plans to purchase — then demolish — property off Highway 111 known as the Carl Bray Gallery and Home.

The land would then be incorporated into the city's future Highway 111 beautification project.

“There's no question it's a public safety issue,” said Councilman Patrick Mullany. “Truly, the building itself is a hazard. We inspected the building and saw it was a real danger.”

The Carl Bray Gallery and Home, named after the artist famously known for his desert landscapes and smoketree paintings, has been part of the Coachella Valley since the early 1950s.

Bray, who now lives in Banning after nearly 50 years in Indian Wells, purchased the frontage lot for $1,000.

Now the property, which lapsed into foreclosure last year, is priced at $258,000.

The city expects to close escrow on the property in the next few days.

Since learning of the city's plans, the Indian Wells Historic Preservation Foundation has committed to holding work sessions — with its first meeting held Friday — to create a plan to protect as many historically important items they can, including the Carl Bray Gallery sign.

The group will then present Council with a list of items to keep and ways to commemorate Bray such as erecting a monument or installing a plaque.

“We want to preserve the legacy of Carl Bray and preserve the integrity of the city, too,” said Adele Ruxton, foundation president.

No deadline has been set for when recommendations must go before City Council.

“Although the physical structure of the building is beyond repair, we're working to catalog all relevant artifacts, photograph the building and preserve the art for future generations to enjoy,” said City Manager Greg Johnson.

Response posted to Desert Sun:

As President of the IW Historic Preservation Foundation, I refer to the article in today's newspaper and have to say that portions of the article were true, but at NO time has the IWHPF said they would be satisfied with asking that ONLY items of historic importance be kept!!

There was misleading information presented at the IW City Council meeting (I could not attend due to another commitment) on January 15, and at the present time have sheduled another Work Session for Board members as well as Committee members this week.

We want to work with Council and City staff and wish to carry out the business regarding the Carl Bray property in an utmost and respectful manner. Carl Bray is LIVING legend, not only to be identified with Indian Wells but to the world of ART and ARTISTS! - Adele Ruxton

Senate passes sweeping public lands package

Sally Schuff
Feedstuffs

In one of its first votes of the new Congress, the Senate passed a major public land omnibus bill 73-21 on Jan. 15. The bill, which included delineated new wilderness areas and scenic rivers in several states, passed with bipartisan approval despite a filibuster attempt by Oklahoma's Sen. Tom Coburn, a Republican.

The bill was applauded by environmental groups and coalitions within states that had worked out compromises on some of the controversial land issues. However, in December it was opposed as a "land grab" by the unlikely combination of the conservative Competitive Enterprise Institute and by R-CALF USA.

The bill will now go to the House for action. Eventually it must be signed by the President, however the Bush Administration did not issue a Statement of Administration Policy, presumably since the final legislation would go to the desk of President Obama.

The Senate bill includes a sweeping package of more than 150 previous bills. Congressional sources report the new bill authorizes programs and activities in both the Interior and Agriculture departments. Interestingly, the Obama nominee to be the new Interior Secretary, Sen. Ken Salazar (D., Colo.), voted for the bill; while former Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, who is now the junior U.S. Senator from Nebraska, voted against it.

Congressional sources reported the bill authorizes a host of actions, including: national wilderness preservation, boundary adjustments, national rivers, the national landscape conservation system, national conservation areas, land conveyances and exchanges, watershed management, watershed restoration and enhancement, wildland firefighter safety, forest landscape restoration, national trails, paleontological resources preservation, wolf livestock loss, national parks, studies, infrastructure, advisory commissions, national heritage areas, national heritage corridors, water projects, tribal water rights, ocean exploration, NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) undersea research, ocean and coastal mapping integration, the integrated coastal and ocean observation system, federal ocean acidification research and monitoring, and coastal and estuarine land conservation.

Marine Corp Plans Invasion, Targets American Citizens, Endangered Species

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)

Pork-filled 'wilderness' bill gets Senate approval

EDITORIAL
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Calling a rare Sunday procedural vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., moved the U.S. Senate closer to passing a 1,300-page lands bill that would allocate $5 million in federal tax dollars on botanical gardens in Hawaii and Florida and $3.5 million to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the founding of St. Augustine in 2015 -- and place an additional 2 million acres in nine states off limits for any productive economic use by labeling them "wilderness" and/or declaring new and additional rivers to be wild and scenic.

The legislation -- which would allow the state of Alaska to build an airport access road through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge -- pulls together 150 public lands, parks and water bills in one package. It passed 66-12, well above the 59 votes needed to allow it to proceed to a formal vote later this week.

"Everybody holds their nose" and votes for it
- Sen. Tom Coburn

The bill advanced over the objections of Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who objected to what he described as questionable priorities and wasteful earmark spending in the package. The measure is also opposed by Nevada Republican John Ensign, though he was in Nevada and did not return to Washington for the procedural vote.

"Everybody holds their nose" and votes for it, Sen. Coburn said, because so many senators have individual projects they want to see passed in their states.

Despite the purportedly unprecedented provision to allow an access road through a wildlife refuge, many conservation groups supported the package as a whole because it had so many provisions to "protect" rivers and designate wilderness.

"It will be a most welcome action by many Americans who face so much uncertainty in their lives," explained Mike Matz, executive director of the Campaign for America's Wilderness. "It will be nice for them to know they can visit their most treasured spots and see them just as they are. They will be able to continue to hike, hunt, fish, camp or canoe amid this natural splendor, and that is no small consolation in these difficult times."

And there you have it.

Yes, Americans who live so far away they will likely never see the "wilderness" areas in question -- all in the Western states, you understand, none throwing anyone out of work in Georgia, Illinois, Connecticut or Massachusetts -- may sleep more cozily now, believing that, far away in the distant West, something nice has been done for the birds and the bunnies.

But those who actually live in the affected regions may not find it much of a "consolation" to be deprived of gainful employment in any number of resource industries -- mining, ranching, lumber -- that will now be barred from making any productive use of yet an additional 2 million acres.

Such legislation is "necessary for the day-to-day functioning of the Western economy," intoned Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the top-ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee, and among the Senate's largest, second-generation pork wranglers.

Oh, hogwash. To the Americans actually attempting to make their livings on or near the lands in question, "wilderness" is not just about cozier dreams of happy squirrels. It's about loss of livelihood as a full- or part-time miner, rancher, sawmill worker, or even mushroom picker -- having to go on the government dole rather than feed their families with honest, productive work.

Federal wilderness protection for California land moves forward

The Senate clears the way for passage of legislation that would expand wilderness protection to more than 2 million acres of public land nationwide, mostly in California and the West.


By Richard Simon
Los Angeles Times


Reporting from Washington -- Large swaths of California wild lands would gain federal wilderness protection under legislation that took a step toward approval in the U.S. Senate during a rare Sunday session.

The measure, which would expand the protection to more than 2 million acres of public land nationwide, may be the most significant conservation legislation in a decade, said Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the bill's manager.

It would designate as wilderness -- the government's highest protection -- about 190,000 acres in Riverside County, including parts of Joshua Tree National Park; about 450,000 acres in the Eastern Sierra and San Gabriel Mountains north of Los Angeles; and about 90,000 acres in Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, including John Krebs Wilderness.

The measure also would authorize $88 million in funding to launch an ambitious effort to restore the San Joaquin River, which has been drained for decades to supply Central Valley farms. More water would be left in the river, and populations of spring-run chinook salmon would be returned under terms of a legal settlement in a long-running environmental battle over the river.

The proposal is expected to win final Senate approval by the end of the week and then go to the House, where it is also expected to be approved.

"We're very excited that these slices of wild California are so close to being permanently protected," said Ryan Henson, policy director of the California Wilderness Coalition.

As part of its wilderness protections, the measure would authorize a study on whether the Tule Lake Segregation Center, a World War II internment camp for Japanese Americans, should be included in the national park system.

"This is a great moment -- for me personally and for California -- to see three important parts of it move closer to becoming law," said Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.).

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called the Sunday session -- and the Senate's first roll call of the year -- out of anger over what he regarded as stalling tactics by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a critic of the bill.

Democrats increased their majority in the November election and were prepared to flex their muscle to prevent a filibuster. But it wasn't necessary. Because the bill includes projects eagerly sought by senators from both parties for their states, it easily cleared the procedural hurdle with a 66-12 vote.

Besides California, wilderness designations would be made in Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Michigan, West Virginia and Virginia. The package of about 160 bills also would designate former President Clinton's childhood home in Hope, Ark., as a national historic site.

The measure also includes initiatives intended to reduce wildfire risk and increase water supplies.

The legislation drew opposition from conservatives and property rights groups, which assailed it as a land grab that would close areas to energy production. Critics also questioned whether Congress, facing massive budget deficits and a backlog of park maintenance, should be taking up legislation now that would authorize, among other things, a commission to plan a 450th anniversary celebration in 2015 for the founding of St. Augustine, Fla.

"We can't continue to pass bills by putting together a little bit of what everybody wants and forgetting what's good for our country," said Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.).

Mike Matz, executive director of the Campaign for America's Wilderness, said the legislation would be a "most welcome action by many Americans who face so much uncertainty in their lives. It will be nice for them to know they can visit their most treasured spots and see them just as they are. They will be able to continue to hike, hunt, fish, camp or canoe amid this natural splendor, and that is no small consolation in these difficult times."

Artist's gallery a must-see

Jamie Lee Pricer
The Desert Sun



Carl Bray (right) spent time in the 1950s with Indian Wells neighbor and artist Fred Chisnell. (Courtesy of The Bray family)



His canvas of choice is a slab of masonite, perhaps because it is a sturdy medium when you paint in railroad yards or out in the desert.

His most popular subject is the wispy smoke tree that grows in washes.

His painting — influenced by days spent near the Salton Sea with iconic desert artists such as John Hilton, Maynard Dixon, Bill Bender and Clyde Forsythe — ranks him as a prized California artist.

His Indian Wells gallery was a Coachella Valley landmark for nearly 50 years.

Carl Bray was born in 1917 in Prague, Okla. He studied art during the Depression at Miami College in the Dust Bowl state, while working on farms to pay his tuition.

He moved West to find work in 1936 and landed a job with the railroad in Southern California, where he worked for more than 40 years. He painted almost every day, either at the railroad yard or later at one of his studios.

He married his wife, Luella, in 1939. The young couple moved 20 miles east of Niland, little more than a lonely railroad siding. Despite the lack of creature comforts, including air conditioning, the Brays learned to love the desert, and it was here that a shy Bray met the other iconic artists.

The railroad job took Bray and his wife to the Los Angeles area during WWII, where they bought property in rural El Monte, built a house and started their family of four children.

The desert beckoned, though. In the early 1950s, Bray bought a Highway 111 frontage lot in Indian Wells for $1,000. Working weekends and vacations, he built a house and gallery, and the family moved to the desert in 1953. Their backyard, now a golf course, was once the site of one the largest Cahuilla villages in the valley, Kavinish.

At the time there was little development in Indian Wells. The Brays' neighbors included a few cabins, a dance hall, two small groceries, two gas stations, a dance hall and a café. By the early 1960s, those businesses had been demolished, and the Bray gallery remained a signal outpost for miles in either direction on Highway 111.

Bray's art was popular, and people, including a steady fan base of celebrities, stopped by the gallery regularly.

Done in 2008, this 8-by-10-inch painting is of Carl Bray’s
most popular subject, smoke trees. (Courtesy of Adele Ruxton)

Bray continued working for the railroad while his wife ran the gallery. In the early 1960s, the Brays started to spend summers in Taos, where he had a gallery on the plaza for several years.

Bray retired from the railroad and continued to paint. He figures he's painted more than 6,500 smoke trees. Through the years, he has won dozens of art awards, demonstrated art on TV and has one-man shows throughout the nation and overseas. His paintings are owned by celebrities and held by the city of Indian Wells in its permanent collection.

The couple sold their Indian Wells property in about 2000 and moved to Banning.

Luella died a year ago, and the new owners of the Bray property lost it recently to foreclosure. It's now owned by Indian Wells, and the fate of the city's oldest building is not clear.

Ann Japenga contributed to this story.

An expensive land grab

Editorial
Oil & Gas Journal

In a move with dire implications for exploration and production on federal land, the US Senate returned to business as usual as the 111th Congress began work. The phrase “business as usual” here means sneaking energy mistakes into law as parts of a wide-mouth sandwich of provincially irresistible spending adventures.

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) reintroduced an omnibus lands bill that opponents fear will tighten limits on access by producers to federal oil and gas resources. He had withdrawn the legislation, actually a package of more than 150 bills, in November in response to resistance led by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.).

‘Worst habits’

In a statement on the Senate floor last week, Coburn said he had learned from the Democratic leadership that the lands package contained 12-13 new bills. “This is an omnibus lands bill that indulges the worst habits of a parochial Congress,” he said.

When the lands bill was under consideration last year, the Western Business Roundtable of Lakewood, Colo., said its biggest concern was congressional establishment of the National Landscape Conservation System (NCLS), a Department of Interior program now covering 27 million acres in 850 parcels of federal land. Administered by the Bureau of Land Management, the NCLS includes national monuments, national conservation areas, wilderness and wilderness study areas, wild and scenic rivers, and national scenic and historic trails. “The bill would give federal land managers the ability to alter the longstanding multiple-use management philosophy of the BLM by elevating the conservation purposes above other purposes for NCLS units,” the group said.

Claire Moseley, executive director of Public Lands Advocacy in Denver, called the NCLS move “a whole new land classification” that would block or delay exploration and development with new layers of regulation and legal hurdles. Another group, the American Land Rights Association, predicted that under the lands bill NCLS units would become national parks, with traditional uses restricted and roads cut off. It also warned of political pressure to add federal acreage to NCLS regulation. It called the legislation “one of the largest land grabs in history.”

In his Senate remarks, Coburn put the acreage figures into perspective by noting that the US area off-limits to development as wilderness already exceeds that of developed land—107 million vs. 106 million acres. Beyond giving statutory authority to the NCLS, an initiative of former Interior Sec. Bruce Babbitt late in the administration of President Bill Clinton, the bill in various ways would withdraw a further 3 million acres from leasing and energy exploration, Coburn said. Some of that lock-up would occur through wilderness and other such designations imposed with the stipulation that the land become subject to NCLS management.

In a period of intense public concern over energy supply, federal deficits, and economic health, the mere consideration of new measures to restrict commercial use of federal land is distressing. A new ICF International study for the American Petroleum Institute shows how much the US already denies itself by limiting oil and gas leasing in Rocky Mountain states. If land now off limits for other than statutory reasons became accessible, the study estimates, the Rockies by 2030 would have new production of 35,000 b/d of oil from 321 million bbl of reserves and 677 MMcfd of gas from 8.4 tcf of reserves. The extra production would boost all-time government receipts by $22 billion and employment in 2030 by 12,318 jobs.

Local seductions

When the federal government proposes to undertake further sacrifice of this type, taxpayers, energy consumers, and job seekers deserve to know what’s happening to them. But revelation is difficult when official refusal to pursue national potential hides in a swarm of local seductions. Coburn said 1,082-page lands bill last year contained 592 spending measures, including 15 new state and local water projects. The proposed spending totaled $10 billion—“money we don’t have,” he said.

The new version of the bill is 100 pages longer and no doubt more expensive. Legislation important to energy supply, to the economy, and to the federal budget deserves treatment more straightforward than this.

Wilderness bill moves forward in the Senate

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — In a rare Sunday session, the Senate advanced legislation that would set aside more than 2 million acres in nine states as wilderness. Majority Democrats assembled more than enough votes to overcome GOP stalling tactics in an early showdown for the new Congress.

Republicans complained that Democrats did not allow amendments on the massive bill, which calls for the largest expansion of wilderness protection in 25 years. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and other Democrats said the bill — a holdover from last year — was carefully written and included measures sponsored by both Republicans and Democrats.

By a 66-12 vote, with only 59 needed to limit debate, lawmakers agreed to clear away procedural hurdles despite partisan wrangling that had threatened pledges by leaders to work cooperatively as the new Obama administration takes office.

Senate approval is expected later this week.

Supporters hope the House will follow suit.

"Today is a great day for America's public lands," said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M. "This big, bipartisan package of bills represents years of work by senators from many states, and both parties, in cooperation with local communities, to enhance places that make America so special."

The measure — actually a collection of about 160 bills — would confer the government's highest level of protection on land ranging from California's Sierra Nevada mountain range to Oregon's Mount Hood, Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado and parts of the Jefferson National Forest in Virginia. Land in Idaho's Owyhee canyons, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan and Zion National Park in Utah also would be designated as wilderness.

Besides new national wilderness designations, the bill would designate the childhood home of former President Bill Clinton in Hope, Ark., as a national historic site and expand protections for dozens of national parks, rivers and water resources.

Reid said about half the bills in the lands package were sponsored by Republicans. Most had been considered for more than a year.

"I am happy that after months of delay we will finally be moving forward," Reid said.

The bill's chief opponent, Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., denounced what he called Democratic bullying tactics.

"I am disappointed the Senate majority leader has refused to allow senators the opportunity to improve, amend or eliminate any of the questionable provisions in his omnibus lands bill," Coburn told fellow senators.

"When the American people asked Congress to set a new tone, I don't believe refusing to listen to the concerns of others was what they had in mind," Coburn said. "The American people expect us hold open, civil and thorough debates on costly legislation, not ram through 1,300-page bills when few are watching."

Coburn and several other Republicans complained that bill was loaded with pet projects and prevented development of oil and gas on federal lands, which they said would deepen the nation's dependence on foreign oil.

Environmental groups said the bill set the right tone for the new Congress.

"By voting to protect mountains and pristine wildlands, Congress is starting out on the right foot," said Christy Goldfuss of Environment America, an advocacy group. "This Congress is serious about protecting the environment and the outstanding lands that Americans treasure."

U.S. Senate poised to shut Off-Highway Vehicles out of more than 1 million acres of public land

FEATURED ALERT
American Motorcyclist Association

The U.S. Senate is poised to act as early as Sunday [01/11/2009] on a massive package of public lands bills that would shut motorcyclists out of more than 1 million acres without adequate public comment, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) reports.

The last-minute move just as the newly elected Congress takes over has raised the ire of the AMA and at least one congressman, who believe the proposal and process deserve more public participation.

"Those who say things get better with time obviously never encountered the public lands omnibus bill," said U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah). "This bill was a bad idea last Congress and it's only gotten worse over the past month."

Ed Moreland, AMA vice president for government relations, agreed.

"It makes little sense to lump together more than 160 very important public lands bills into once package and expect the public to digest it all, and to rush a vote through the Senate on a weekend." Moreland said.

More than 160 public lands bills have been grouped together by Senate majority leader Harry Reid. The package would create more than 1 million acres of designated Wilderness land, which would shut out all motorized vehicles.

The last-minute congressional maneuver would also make the National Landscape Conservation System permanent. This system creates an additional level of bureaucracy for the National System of Public Lands and would remove much of the authority of the existing agency in managing those lands.

"Congress should put together a new package and pass it through committee rather than debate legislation carried over from the previous Congress," Rep. Bishop said. "Poor process produces poor product, and this is an example of congressional process at its worst. Parts of this bill are good, and parts are very bad. Each part deserves to be discussed and voted on its own merits."

"Continued responsible access to public lands is a vitally important right for current and future generations," added Moreland. "This measure deserves to be fully analyzed and thoughtfully debated in the 111th Congress prior to a final vote."

All AMA members and anyone else who enjoys outdoor recreation is urged to contact their U.S. Senators and ask them to oppose the omnibus public lands bill.

TAKE ACTION

'Citizen of the Year' Bud Smith passes away

Obituary
Las Vegas Review Journal


Bud Smith at home in 2005.

MELVIN SMITH JR. -- Melvin "Bud" L. Smith Jr., of Cima, Calif., passed away Sunday, Dec. 7, 2008, after a long battle with lung cancer. He was 76 years old.

Bud Smith was born Nov. 18, 1932, in Canistota, S.D., to Melvin Leroy Smith and Francis Campbell. He married Marilyn A. Day Feb. 28, 1952, who passed away in 1995.

He served in the military forces during the Korean War, during which he was stationed in Puerto Rico. Bud was a Las Vegas business owner of an appliance delivery and antenna installation service. He retired to his home in the East Mojave near Cima, now surrounded by the Mojave National Preserve, where he was a pillar of the community.

Bud Smith was instrumental in saving his neighbors' homes during the Hackberry Complex wild fires in 2005. He was awarded "Citizen of the Year" for his efforts by the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department.

Bud's home was a favorite camp site for the Norco Mounted Posse's Annual Mohave Trail Ride for many years. He will be greatly missed by family and friends.

Bud was preceded in death by his wife, Marilyn; his parents, Melvin and Francis Smith; brothers, William and Eugene Smith; and his sisters, Frances Stephenson and Barbara Sireci. He is survived by his daughters, Peggy Goodnough, Rhonda Long, Patricia Jackson-Lemp, Jacqueline Smith and Shelley Smith; his son, Melvin Leroy Smith III, 13 grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and his sister, Gloria Cowger.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17, at Bunkers Memory Gardens, 7251 W. Lone Mountain Road, Las Vegas, NV 89129.

Desert artist Carl Bray's historic home and gallery threatened

Simlar to recent efforts to demolish the Rancho Dos Palmas home of John W. Hilton, another desert artist's historic home and gallery is in peril

by Daniel Rohlfing
Bodega Bay Heritage Gallery Newsletter


Carl Glen Bray.


Carl Glen Bray came to the California desert during the depression. In classes sponsored by the WPA, he studied painting with Maynard Dixon and Russell Swan. He became a popular lecturer for college classes, television shows and art groups. In 1956, he settled a home and art gallery in Indian Wells and had developed a close friendship with artist/engraver Fred Chisnall. Fred Chisnall was an artist credited by John W. Hilton as his most demanding and most effective art teacher.

Adele Ruxton of the Indian Wells Historic Preservation Foundation wrote the Indian Wells City Council about the matter in a January 7 letter. Here is the text of that letter.

Re: Carl Bray House and Gallery -- Please let it be noted that the Indian Wells Historic Preservation Foundation, at its regular meeting on January 6, 2009, approved a motion to request that the City of Indian Wells maintain a 90 day moratorium on the possible demolition of the Carl Bray House and Gallery. It was only on the morning of the meeting that the board learned of the fact that the city had purchased the house from the seller. It had always been the hope that whoever owned the property would work with the IWHPF to help preserve an important and historic site within the city limits.

At this point in time we want only to hear of the city’s intentions and to ask that at some point “our side” can be presented for review. In the event that the buildings must come down, we will need the time to photograph, describe, register, etc. so that the site may become one to be recognized with some kind of distinctive marker. And we would like to see that the Carl Bray Gallery sign be a part of the Indian Wells archives.

Do bear in mind that the Bray house and gallery are one of a kind and havebeen a travel stop for thousands of tourists over the years. To remove the landmark might be detrimental to the integrity of the city and the hope to preserve its legacy.

We ask of you again to honor our request for a moratorium.

Ann Japenga contributed to this story

Desert Sunset on Mountains by Carl Glen Bray

Desert town's lone water worker stays on the go to maintain flow

Calvin Louie, the water agency’s manager and only full-time worker, was once a UCLA police officer. “I’m a one-man band,” he says. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Calvin Louie, manager of Cabazon's tiny district, endures snakes in the mail, metal thieves and scofflaws from a cramped office. But new quarters are in the works.

By David Kelly
Los Angeles Times

Not long ago, an irate customer expressed his displeasure with the tiny Cabazon Water District by dropping a live rattlesnake through the mail slot.

"It was pretty good size, too, slithered right under the desk," said R.D. Cash, president of the water board.

A thick pane of glass, dubbed "the rattle trap," was swiftly installed over the slot to prevent any further reptile deliveries.

"No matter what you do, you'll always have irate customers," Cash said.

Snakes in the mail are just one of the perils faced by the water district, housed in an old fruit stand along Main Street.

Thousands of dollars of equipment have been stolen, vandalism has been rife, and business is conducted from behind a barred, bulletproof window.

The quarters are laughably cramped, and staffing is exceptionally light.

"I'm it," said water district manager Calvin Louie, a former police officer and the sole full-time employee. "I'm a one-man band. And if I don't do my job, it's kind of noticeable. People turn on their water and nothing comes out."

For more than half a century, the Cabazon Water District has persevered on a shoestring budget, managing by sheer grit to provide water to this hardscrabble, unincorporated community of 2,300 and a few life-sized dinosaurs near Palm Springs.

But a change is coming, one that will likely signal the end of an era.

A roomy $1.4-million, climate-controlled building, funded by Riverside County, is expected to go up in the next few years, replacing the current 800-square-foot office.

"The water district has been a master of innovation," said Andy Frost, a regional manager with the Riverside County Economic Development Agency. "But the old place is simply inadequate."

The 54-year-old block of beige stucco has hardly aged gracefully. The ceilings are low, the carpets tattered and stained. It's so small that hundreds of people have to line up outside each month to pay their bill at the window.

"It's easier to bring it in rather than mail it," said Randy Miller, 53, as he waited at the window in the blustery wind. "It's sort of a gathering place, and after a while you feel like you know the people."

The new facility will have an actual lobby so folks like Miller won't freeze in winter or melt in summer. But it won't come with any additional staff, at least not right away, so Louie expects to continue his extremely hands-on management style.

That means personally checking the pressure and water levels all over town at 5:30 p.m., 9 p.m., midnight and often 4:30 a.m. every day. It means answering emergency calls 24 hours a day. And it means dealing with crime and antiquated equipment.

"When I first got here, you had to shut down the entire town to fix a leak," said Louie, hopping into a truck with Cash and heading out to check some underground pipes.

When he arrived, he lifted a heavy metal grate in the road and climbed down into a concrete bunker full of blue pipes and black widow spiders. He keeps the keys with him at all times in case the door slams shut.

"In a normal water district, this is all done on a laptop computer, but I have to do it manually," he said, fiddling with a pressure gauge.

If he didn't, he said, bad things could happen. Excess pressure once burst pipes and fixtures all over town. On two occasions, overflowing tanks turned roads into rivers.

"That was B.C.," said Louie, 49, adjusting his white cowboy hat. "Before Calvin."

The former UCLA police officer and security manager for Desert Premium Outlets in Cabazon has been manager for four years. And few can doubt his commitment.

He rides his horse into the San Jacinto Mountains to inspect water tanks in his off hours.

He endures a closet-sized office and manages a staff of four part-time employees. In winter, flooding turns the back lot into a virtual lake. In summer, two small air-conditioning units struggle to keep the office cool.

Then there is the crime. Over the last few years, the district has lost $20,000 worth of equipment to vandalism and metal theft. Once, the entire back end of a truck was stolen, leaving only nuts and bolts. Thieves are even filling trucks with water stolen from hydrants.

On top of this, the district's revenue has dropped 28% in the last year because of housing foreclosures.

Despite the challenges, Louie seems to relish the edginess of the job.

Moments after checking the pipes and emerging from the bunker, his cellphone rang, and he immediately tensed up.

"Water theft in progress," he announced.

He and Cash drove to a ramshackle house surrounded by trash-strewn lots. Louie had shut off the water earlier for nonpayment, but it had been reconnected with a washing-machine hose.

He brushed past a barking dog and made for the door. The owners were gone, so he grabbed a wrench.

"I'm going to shut it off again, and if they reconnect it I'll file a complaint with the sheriff's office," he said in a calm but stern voice.

Cash watched from the sidewalk.

"Calvin has a law enforcement background," he said with genuine admiration. "He has the huevos to do stuff like this."

Louie turned off the water and held up the hose like a trophy.

"You probably ought to keep that as evidence," Cash said.

Later on, back at the office, Louie was asked if it might be better for a larger, better-funded water agency to take over operations.

He wouldn't hear of it.

"They could repair the infrastructure, but they would want to recoup their cost through the consumers," he said. "The water district has been the hub of the community for years, and for that reason we think it should stay in business."

Land-auction meddler has a new plan

Drilling foe hopes to raise $45,000 to keep the parcels until Obama steps in.


By Patty Henetz
The Salt Lake Tribune


Tim DeCristopher after he was escorted out of the BLM offices in Salt Lake City following his fraudulent bids on several oil and gas leases during a BLM auction. Griffin/The Salt Lake Tribune

The University of Utah student who foiled a federal oil and gas lease auction the Friday before Christmas hopes he can buy time for Utah's scenic redrock desert - and himself - until the Bush administration is out the door.

Tim DeChristopher announced Wednesday afternoon that he would pay the U.S. Bureau of Land Management $45,000 to hold the 13 lease parcels he won in a Dec. 19 sale. His aim is to fend off drilling at least until President-elect Barack Obama takes office and new officials are in charge of the federal Interior Department and Bureau of Land Management.

"This would be the most effective way of ensuring we could protect the land, at least until the new administration came in," DeChristopher said.

The 27-year-old economics major faces possible federal felony charges after winning bids totaling about $1.8 million on 13 lease parcels that he admitted he had neither the intention nor the money to pay for.

But since committing what he called an act of civil disobedience, DeChristopher has heard from hundreds of individuals around the country willing to chip in to keep drill rigs off the land and DeChristopher out of prison.

So far, would-be benefactors have pledged $14,000, he said.

DeChristopher, his lawyers and other advisers reckoned that if there were a specific reason for the fundraising, rather than just an ill-defined defense fund, enough money would roll in to allow him to write a $45,000 check to the BLM within the next couple of weeks.

"If I follow through on purchasing the leases, it makes it simply a question of my intent in opposing what I thought was a fraudulent auction," DeChristopher said.

The amount is based on a percentage of the $1.8 million; the agency requires such payments of all bidders to hold their parcels. Three Web sites have been set up to take pledges.

BLM special agents questioned and released the Sugar House resident after he disrupted the auction of 149,000 acres of public land in scenic southern and eastern Utah. The 13 bids he won by raising his auction paddle were on 22,000 acres of land near Arches and Canyonlands national parks.

DeChristopher admitted he ran up other bids by about $500,000 and said he would be willing to go to jail to defend his generation's prospects in light of global climate disruption and other environmental threats.

Melodie Rydalch, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Salt Lake City, said Wednesday the investigation into DeChristopher's actions are continuing. Prosecutors would have to decide whether to take the case to a grand jury for possible indictment.

Defense attorney Ron Yengich and former BLM Director Pat Shea, an attorney, are representing DeChristopher.

Shea said Wednesday his client could face several felony charges with penalties that could include substantial fines and a prison term. Shea also said "someone" with the federal solicitor's office suggested that because the lease sale is in flux due to legal action, paying the $45,000 might help DeChristopher.

"I can't make any predictions," he said. "We've had very good cooperation with the BLM and the U.S. Attorney's office."

Shea said he believes the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 could provide DeChristopher with some legal cover, though others argue he would be bound by the Mining Act of 1872 to develop the parcels should he buy them.

New owners safeguarding Moapa dace

Fish at home at Warm Springs Ranch

By HENRY BREAN
REVIEW-JOURNAL

MOAPA -- A finger-length fish with a black spot in the middle of its tail darts among sunlit bubbles in the spring-fed current of a small stream.

He doesn't know it, but this endangered little guy has some powerful friends.

Between the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, nearly every inch of the Moapa dace's natural habitat is now in the hands of people dedicated to keeping the fish alive.

The water authority holds the largest piece, a roughly 2,000-acre tract dotted with natural springs and imported palm trees that researchers believe is home to about 90 percent of all the dace on Earth.

The authority took control of the property known as Warm Springs Ranch, 60 miles north of Las Vegas, in September. The name has since been changed to Warm Springs Natural Area to reflect its new role as a haven for dace and other sensitive species.

Prehistoric water from the deep carbonate aquifer bubbles to the surface at dozens of locations on the property, creating small streams that come together to form the Muddy River.

The Moapa dace spawns in the warm spring pools and makes its home in the streams and upper reaches of the river's main stem. The dace's entire habitat is confined to an area just a few miles long, so even a minor threat could prove fatal to the species.

The authority eventually plans to develop a comprehensive management plan for the Warm Springs Natural Area. First, though, officials must take stock of their new property.

Janet Monaco, who heads the authority's Muddy and Virgin River Division, said a complete inventory is in the works for the 1,179-acre ranch. The results could be interesting, considering the land was once owned by Howard Hughes and includes a bath house, a large, spring-fed swimming pool with its own paddle boats, and some cabanas rumored to have been used as an all-nude tanning spot for Las Vegas showgirls.

Much of that stuff likely will be removed from the property in an effort to return it to its natural state, Monaco said.

Cattle grazing on the property also are expected to disappear once the current ranching lease expires in March.

Monaco said the management plan will spell out specific actions, but the overall goal is to create the best possible habitat for the dace and other sensitive species of fish, birds and insects.

A hint of how that might be done can be found across the road from the natural area at the Moapa Valley National Wildlife Refuge, a federal preserve originally established on 32 acres in 1979.

The refuge now includes 117 acres of old ranch and RV park property that the Fish and Wildlife Service manages as part of the 1.6 million acre Desert National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Clark, Lincoln and Nye counties.

Refuge officials have spent the past several years tearing out swimming pools and thinning crowded stands of palm trees that, left unchecked, can choke streams and invite damaging wildfires.

The tree removal has proven somewhat controversial.

Monaco said one local resident complained that her view was spoiled when several hundred palm trees were cleared from refuge land across the road from her home.

Others have argued that the trees are a distinct variety of palm that evolved in North America and came to the Warm Springs area naturally. As such, they deserve to be protected just as much as the dace does.

Cynthia Martinez, who manages the Desert National Wildlife Refuge Complex, said there are no plans to eliminate the palm trees altogether. Some large groves will be left to preserve the character of the area and maintain roosting areas for bats that have taken a liking to the trees.

Wildlife managers also are hard at work eliminating non-native fish species that can crowd out the dace or worse.

In the early 1990s, tilapia, a non-native game fish, found its way up the Muddy River and began feeding on the natives. The dace population plunged from about 3,400 to fewer than 1,000 in just a few years.

Those numbers are on the way back up. As of the last official count, by researchers in February, 1,172 Moapa dace were living at the headwaters of the Muddy River.

So far, there have been few opportunities for the average taxpayer to see the work being done on the dace's behalf.

Martinez said the Moapa Valley refuge has no full-time staff and is closed to the public.

An effort is under way to clean up the property and construct facilities for visitors, but work has been hampered by a lack of funds.

"It's kind of been a work in progress," said Martinez, who wouldn't predict when the refuge might open.

When it does, visitors will be treated to an incomparable look at the dace in its natural habitat. The Fish and Wildlife Service has constructed a windowed cross-section of a spring-fed stream so people can watch the endangered fish swim at close range.

"I would like to have it open yesterday," Martinez said of the viewing area.

Eventually, Monaco also expects to see some public facilities within the Warm Springs Natural Area, including some birding trails, but visitor access likely will be limited to protect the dace.

The property was purchased with nearly $69 million in grants from the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, which uses proceeds from the sale of federal land in the Las Vegas Valley to fund conservation and recreation activities in the region.

The water authority began taking a lead role in the protection of the dace as part of a 2006 federal agreement with water users in the area.

The deal cleared the authority to begin tapping the nearby Coyote Spring Valley, where the agency has rights to enough water to supply about 20,000 Las Vegas Valley homes.

In 2002, the state water engineer put a hold on all pending applications for water rights in Coyote Spring Valley and ordered a two-year test pumping program to determine how much water development the basin could support.

In the next few months, the authority will start work on a 15-mile pipeline to carry water from the pumping test to the Muddy River. Because the river empties into Lake Mead, the authority can then recover that water -- along with other rights it holds along the Muddy's drainage -- using its existing intakes at the lake.

The authority's holdings on the river include water leased from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2006. The Mormon church once owned much of Warm Springs Ranch and still maintains a private, 72-acre recreation area for its followers.

Nevada Power Co. also uses water from the Warm Springs area for its Reid-Gardner power plant in nearby Moapa.

The recovery effort for the Moapa dace is being watched closely by environmentalists. Some view it as a test case for how the needs of sensitive species will be balanced against the growing thirst for water in the Las Vegas Valley.

The Moapa dace is expected to remain under federal protection until at least 75 percent of its historical habitat has been restored and its population is holding steady at least 6,000 adult fish. To reach that goal could take years and cost millions of dollars.

So why all this effort to save an isolated fish barely big enough to make a decent pizza topping? For one thing, federal law requires it.

"And the fish were here before us," Monaco said.

To Martinez, the better question is, Why not?

"They tell us a lot about our natural environment," she said of the dace. "They can be indicators to changes that could effect people."

And to dismiss an entire species, even a seemingly minor one, seems like an invitation to disaster, Martinez said.

"How many rivets can you remove from an airplane before the wing falls off?"