Like many veterans, I feel a great amount of patriotism when exploring public lands. Just as it is our duty to protect our country and its people, I and other veterans see it as our patriotic duty to safeguard special places like those in the California Desert. Our nation’s public lands are a key reflection of our country’s heritage — these lands belong to all Americans, as does the responsibility to protect them.

That’s why I encourage desert residents to join me in the fight to safeguard our California desert lands. It’ll take a united community to make sure our desert treasures are preserved for future generations, and it’s a responsibility we can’t take for granted.

Even “protected” places like our California Desert National Conservation Lands face ongoing threats from vandalism, as well as activities like overgrazing and irresponsible off-road recreation of designated routes. These activities threaten important natural and cultural resources, and endanger critical habitat for wildlife.

Read the full article at Daily Press.

Local veterans, their families and members of the High Desert community came together Nov. 3 at Juniper Flats to celebrate the gift of their local desert lands. The event participants came away both as graduates of a wilderness survival course, and as advocates on the issues affecting public lands in the California desert.

The event, hosted by Vet Voice Foundation, in partnership with the National Parks Conservation Association and Friends of Juniper Flats, included a hike to the Arrastre Canyon Waterfall in Juniper Flats. There, the hikers explored the extraordinary rock formations and deep water-filled canyons that make up these 50,000 acres of public land.

“This journey through Juniper Flats was particularly special, because the participants shared a strong connection to the desert and all it has to offer,” said Kate Hoit, California State Director for the Vet Voice Foundation. “There was so much pride and enthusiasm for protecting our Desert treasures, and a clear commitment to doing everything possible to ensure they’re passed down to future generations.”

Read the full article at Daily Press.

Press release Friends of the Inyo and the Sierra Club

LONE PINE, CA — Conglomerate Mesa, a unique and valuable part of our Eastern Sierra public lands that lies adjacent to Death Valley National Park, remains under threat from the prospect of industrial-scale open pit cyanide heap leach mining.

Earlier this year, after much public pressure, Silver Standard Resources, Inc. abandoned an approved exploratory drilling project known as Perdito. However, Friends of the Inyo and the Sierra Club recently learned that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approved a transfer of the project to the holders of the mining claim.

This means that the claim holders can indefinitely pitch the project to other mining companies, leaving the future of Conglomerate Mesa in limbo.

“Our community should be alarmed that we simply don’t know if Conglomerate Mesa is truly protected. This landscape is still at risk.” said Jora Fogg, Policy Director, Friends of the Inyo. “We will remain diligent in our efforts to permanently protect the mesa from destructive mining and at the same time defend the conservation commitments the BLM has already made to this place.”

Earlier this year, Friends of the Inyo, based in Bishop, California, together with a coalition of local and national groups, filed a formal challenge asking the BLM State Director to review the approval of the Perdito Exploration Project. BLM’s State Office in Sacramento has now granted that request for review.

Friends of the Inyo and members of the coalition will meet with BLM Acting California Director Joe Stout in November to present the case for why these lands should be protected. The Director will make a decision to affirm, reverse or modify the approval of the project by mid January 2019.

Conglomerate Mesa is on the doorstep of Death Valley National Park and adjacent to the Inyo Mountains and Malpais Mesa Wilderness. Visitors to the mesa can hike, backpack, camp, go rock scrambling, hunt, bird watch, stargaze and view wildflowers.

The lands were recently designated and protected as part of the California Desert National Conservation Lands, America’s newest collection of protected public lands managed by the BLM.

“Claim holders are now one step closer to fulfilling their goal of an industrial-scale open pit cyanide leach mine, which would poison our water supply and endanger our wildlife.” said Fran Hunt, Eastern Sierra Organizer for the Sierra Club. “Our coalition remains united in stopping any effort to damage this culturally and ecologically important area.”

The mesa’s beautiful and rugged landscape is dotted with Joshua Trees and Pinyon and Juniper Trees. It provides habitat for rare plants like the Inyo rock daisy and is home to bobcats, Golden Eagles, Mule deer and mountain lions. The area has also long been important to local tribes and tribal members for traditional uses and is rich in historical resources, including the remains of charcoal kilns and stone masonry sites used in the late 1800’s to supply the Cerro Gordo mine.

All these features are at risk if an industrial-scale open pit cyanide leach mine moves forward. Indeed the approved exploration of the area would involve drilling to a depth of 1,000 feet, and would require operators to obtain water from an unspecified offsite location.

These activities would create dust and noise disturbance to visitors and wildlife, impact dark skies with bright 24/7 lights, and deplete scarce water sources. Local groups and the conservation community have been engaged in a campaign against industrial-scale mining on Conglomerate Mesa, and for the permanent protection of these special lands.

The community celebrated a victory this summer when — after pushback from local residents — Canada-based Silver Standards Resources withdrew their application to launch exploratory drilling on Conglomerate Mesa. However, fears have been reignited with the BLM transfer.

This action by BLM is extremely uncommon and leaves many questions unanswered about the future of Conglomerate Mesa. Photos of Conglomerate Mesa are available for use here.

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About Friends of the Inyo: Founded in 1986, Friends of the Inyo’s mission is to protect and care for the public lands of the Eastern Sierra. They are a member of the Friends Grassroots Network, a connected network of 67 locally based organizations around the west working to advance strong conservation management policies and practices on BLM lands. https://friendsoftheinyo.org

About the Sierra Club: The Sierra Club is America’s largest grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places.

For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.

Los Angeles can be an overwhelming place to live, especially for veterans. I often feel as if I’m surrounded by people who cannot relate to my experiences as a soldier in the United States Army. Luckily, I found my refuge and solace just a couple hours away in the California desert.

Being in the desert reminds me of where my military career took me, like the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s an environment where I feel equal to my civilian peers, not 10 years behind as I’m still working to catch up in my career since getting out of the military. With the desert as my backdrop, I feel comfortable sharing stories about my deployments and military career. The desert has played an integral role in my transition back to civilian life, both in allowing me solitude to remember my past and giving me the hope and wanderlust needed to create my future. I cannot imagine my life without the California desert.

That is why I cannot abide by Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke’s concerted push to roll back protections on public lands for commercial development. In February, the Trump administration ordered a review of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP), designed to balance the conservation of public lands with development of renewable energy in the environmentally-sensitive deserts of California. Experts confirm that the 400,000 acres authorized for development by the DRECP are beyond sufficient to generate enough energy for California to reach its mandate of running on 50 percent renewable energy by 2030.

The DRECP strikes an appropriate balance between land conservation and developing renewable energy sources like windmills and solar panels. Despite this, the Trump administration claims even more energy development is needed in the desert. By ordering a review of the DRECP, President Trump and Secretary Zinke are effectively opening the land for commercial activities that will close off public access, as would have happened in Juniper Flats if North Peak Wind had been built.

Re-evaluating the already-approved DRECP is a waste of taxpayer dollars and does a disservice to all stakeholders, including industry. The existing plan benefits renewable energy companies by providing access to existing data compiled through the DRECP rather than initiating expensive and lengthy new environmental studies, which helps streamline permit applications in specific, set-aside areas.

The millions of acres under the DRECP’s protection span seven counties and create wildlife corridors linking three national parks, five national forests, three national monuments, and 70 BLM wilderness areas. Jeopardizing the DRECP’s implementation risks the public’s access to millions of acres of lands in California, including national monuments and networks of vehicle trails. If these irreplaceable public lands are open for development, the iconic landscapes of the Mojave and Colorado deserts will be marred, Native American heritage sites will be destroyed, recreation areas will become inaccessible, and sensitive species will be at higher risk to endangerment and extinction through habitat destruction.

The Trump administration has made clear it does not value wilderness and public lands and Secretary Zinke continues to send a strong message that public lands are only valuable for their potential profits and not for their value to America’s heritage.

The existing DRECP is a shining example of achieving the responsible balance of energy production, conservation, and recreational uses of our public lands.

I am disappointed that Secretary Zinke, a fellow veteran, is willing to sacrifice our public lands so easily to the highest bidder, and without regard for the voices of the public. The desert is far too precious.

Allison Bailey is a veteran of the United States Army. She lives in Los Angeles.

This op-ed appeared on June 17, 2018, at vvdailypress.com.