CALIFORNIA - Update on Johnson Valley
Final EIS Available for Public Review and Comment
Dear BRC Action Alert Subscriber,
As many of you know, the Department of Defense has proposed a major expansion of the Twentynine Palms Marine Base. The expansion would threaten continued use of the popular Johnson Valley OHV area.
The required Final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed expansion is out for public review and comment. The FEIS is here. A handy Q&A document is here:
I spoke briefly with Stuart Gosswien, Sr. Director, Federal Government Affairs at SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association), and he said the final plan will provide limited public access to approximately 40,000 acres for 10 months a year.
http://www.sema.org/government-affairs
Here is the EIS summary paragraph:
Stuart noted that a bit of context is helpful. He said although the issuance of the EIS has been anticipated for months, Congress is still expected to enact the 2013 Defense Authorization Act that will include a provision requiring the Marines to undertake a study on alternative ways to share the land with the OHV community. The House has included the provision in its version of the bill, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein intends to sponsor the provision when the Senate takes up their version of the bill, thereby guaranteeing it will be in the final law. Although the Marines have put forth their EIS, Congress must ultimately enact legislation authorizing any transfer of land from the BLM to the Marines.
Meanwhile, efforts continue to protect Johnson Valley. The California Motorized Recreation Council (CMRC), a non-profit association comprised OHV organizations in California recently signed a contract with the Livingston Group, a large Washington, DC, lobbying firm. The move supports a re-enforced effort to protect motorized recreation in Johnson Valley.
http://savethehammers.org
While public comment is invited, at this stage of the public process, introduction of new material is not possible unless it can be linked to material already subject to public comment and analysis.
For those that submitted comments during the previous public comment periods, now is the time for you to review the Final EIS and determine if your comments have been addressed. If they have been addressed and you believe the discussion does not reflect your intent, you can submit rebuttal comments.
Also, if a topic was introduced by the agency that was not part of the original document open for public comment, you have the opportunity to challenge that topic.
In short, it is incumbent on you, the one that submitted comments, to review the document to ensure your comments have been addressed.
Public comment will be accepted until August 27.
Thanks in advance and, as always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact BRC.
Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208-237-1008 ext 102
PS: You can support efforts to protect OHV use at Johnson Valley by donating to the Save the Hammer's effort on the web: http://savethehammers.org
The BlueRibbon Coalition is a national recreation group that champions responsible recreation, and encourages individual environmental stewardship. With members in all 50 states, BRC is focused on building enthusiast involvement with organizational efforts through membership, outreach, education, and collaboration among recreationists. 1-800-BlueRib - www.sharetrails.org
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