A publication of Bureau of Land Management in California
Issue 505 - 11/4/11
THIS WEEK IN NEWS.BYTES:
- Get Outdoors tip of the week
- America's Great Outdoors
- Wild horses and burros
- Not for educators only: Wildlife trivia question of the week
- Renewable energy
- Headlines and highlights: Assorted topics from your public lands in California
- Selected upcoming events
- National and Department of the Interior items
If this message does not display properly in your email, you can see it online at:
http://www.blm.gov/ca/news/newsbytes/2011/505.html
  GET OUTDOORS TIP OF THE WEEK...
...hike to the rim of Amboy Crater. Designated a National Natural Landmark in 1973, Amboy Crater was recognized for its visual and geological significance. Although not unique, it is an excellent example of a very symmetrical volcanic cinder
cone. In response to increased visitation, BLM's Needles Field Office established a day use site.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/needles/amboy.html
  RELATED: "Historic Route 66" (BLM Needles Field Office)
Amboy Crater is one of the sites along old Route 66 -- one of the original highways in the US highway system, and probably the most famous. In California, the original 66 is known as The National Old Trails Highway. It runs from the Colorado River west of Needles through Goffs,
Essex, Danby, Chambless, Amboy, Ludlow, then on through Barstow and into Los Angeles. Through numerous clubs, associations, and interested individuals the spirit and grandeur of a pioneer trail that helped to settle the west lives on.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/needles/route_66.html
RELATED: "Celebrate birthday of historic Route 66 in Needles next week"(Needles Desert Star, 10/31/11)
"Nov. 11 is Veterans Day and the 85th birthday of Route 66." A ceremony to honor veterans will be held on Friday, Nov. 11. "At 3:45 p.m. a parade with floats, classic cars and a marching band will travel down Broadway (old Route 66)" followed by
live entertainment, a BBQ and vendors area. "Bring a toy ... for the Marine Reserves Toys for Tots Program." Saturday's events include a car show, 50s DJ, street dance, karaoke contest and dance contest.
http://www.thedesertstar.com/articles/2011/11/02/news/local/news882.txt
RELATED: "Historic Route 66 Back Country Byway" (BLM Arizona)
"Get Your Kicks on Route 66" has echoed for decades across America, and Arizona showcases 42 miles of the "Mother Road" from Kingman to Topock, at the California border and the Colorado River.
http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/recreation/autotour/rt66.html |
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 AMERICA'S GREAT OUTDOORS
 "East High kids kayak Humboldt Bay" (Humboldt Beacon, 10/27/11)
"Fortuna's East High School, in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, developed a geography and science unit to study Humboldt Bay. The unit incorporated a three-hour kayaking tour on Humboldt Bay on Oct. 6, discussing the
bay's geographical history and ecosystem."
http://www.humboldtbeacon.com/ci_19208087
  "California Coastal National Monument adds five new collaborative partners at Fort Bragg signing ceremony" (News.bytes Extra)
Five organizations joined the California Coastal National Monument's family of partners with the signing of individualmemoranda of understanding at a ceremony last week in Fort Bragg. The new CCNM partners are the Mendocino Land Trust, Mendocino Area Parks Association, Mendocino
Coast Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center, Native Daughters of the Golden West Fort Bragg Parlor #210, and Visit Mendocino County, Inc.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/info/newsbytes/2011/505xtra_ccnm_5mou.html
  "K9 on patrol at Imperial Sand Dunes"(News.bytes Extra)
Almost 80,000 visitors enjoyed bluebird skies over the Halloween Weekend at the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area. Making sure those visitors stayed safe were an elite group of individuals and their four-footed partners -- the BLM Police Canine Teams. Teams from Palm Springs,
Arizona, Idaho and New Mexico joined BLM's El Centro Field Office for the four-day dunes opening.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/info/newsbytes/2011/505xtra_isdra_canines_halloween.html
RELATED: "Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area" (BLM El Centro Field Office)
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/elcentro/recreation/ohvs/isdra.html
"2011 fee-free days set for BLM-administered public lands" (BLM national)
The Bureau of Land Management , in conjunction with other agencies within the Department of the Interior, will waive recreation-related fees for visitors to the National System of Public Lands on the Veterans Day holiday weekend, November 11-13. These fee-free days also apply to
areas managed within the BLM’s National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS).
http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/Recreation/BLM_Fee_Free_Days.html
"San Joaquin River given designation for blueway" (Merced Sun-Star, 11/4/11)
"The San Joaquin River is one of two California streams designated by the federal government to become a blueway -- a boating trail to camping, fishing, bird-watching and other kinds of recreation. A U.S. Interior Department report names the San Joaquin and the Los Angeles River
in Southern California as blueway sites. The department says it will help the regions link wildlife refuges, parks and other public recreation spots on the river."
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2011/11/04/2108288/san-joaquin-river-given-designation.html
RELATED: "Salazar releases 50-state report highlighting projects to promote conservation, outdoor recreation" (Department of the Interior news, 11/3/11)
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today released a final 50-State America’s Great Outdoors Report outlining more than 100 of the country’s most promising projects designed to protect special places and increase access to outdoor spaces. The full report -- which contains
two projects per state -- comes as part of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative to establish a community-based, 21st century agenda for conservation, recreation, and reconnecting Americans to the outdoors.
http://www.ca.blm.gov/h1jd
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WILD HORSES AND BURROS
  "Jumping hurdles for horse" (Seymour, TN Herald, 11/1/11)
"At the age of 14, Seymour resident Jacqueline Donahue wanted a horse." Now 16, she "was perusing the internet looking for horses, when she happened upon the Mustang Heritage Foundation. This program works with the Bureau of Land Management to find homes for excess  mustangs in the United States. With the deadline nearing for the Youth and Yearling Mustang Challenge, Donahue met all the requirements within two days and was able to get her horse. She placed second in her first competition with her new horse, Small Town Legend, out of 17 other
participants."
http://seymourherald.com/news/2011/nov/01/jumping-hurdles-for-horse/
"Weekend Veterans Day Parade in Shasta Lake might face a little wet weather" (Redding Record Searchlight, 11/3/11)
Tomorrow: "Rain or shine," the 19th annual Veterans Day parade will take place Nov. 5 in Shasta Lake. "Leading this year's parade is the U.S. Marine Corps Mounted Color Guard. This is the first time the color
guard, the last remaining mounted color guard in the Marine Corps, has participated in the parade. The active-duty Marines ride palomino-colored mustangs adopted from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management through its Adopt a Mustang program and perform at rodeos and parades throughout the U.S."
http://www.redding.com/news/2011/nov/03/weekend-veterans-day-parade-might-face-a-little/
  "Wild horses, burros available" (Riverside Press-Enterprise, 11/3/11)
"Ten mustangs and six burros rounded up from public land in the West will be available for adoption at Sundance Ranch in Redlands next weekend. The animals were gathered from ranges in California and Nevada ... have been wormed and vaccinated and are in good health .... The animals may
be viewed from 1 to 5 p.m. Nov. 11. On Nov. 12, BLM staff will approve adoption applications from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m."
http://www.ca.blm.gov/k1jd
"Horses, burros available for adoption in Santa Maria" (BLM news, 11/3/11)
Residents of the Santa Maria area will have the opportunity to add a horse or burro to their families when the Bureau of Land Management brings its adoption program to the Elks-Unocal Event Center in Santa Maria, on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 18 and 19.
The BLM will offer 20 horses, mostly yearlings, and 10 burros for public adoption. Anyone interested can preview the animals from 8 a.m. to noon on Friday, Nov. 18. After that, animals will be available for a $125 adoption fee. The event gates will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/info/newsroom/2011/november/CC1211_santamariaadoption.html
Follow us for daily updates on the High Rock Complex Wild Horse and Burro Roundup:
  http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/surprise.html
 http://www.facebook.com/blmcalifornia
 http://www.twitter.com/blmca
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NOT for EDUCATORS ONLY:
sharp-tailed snake |
WILDLIFE TRIVIA QUESTION of the WEEK:
The diet of the sharp-tailed snake consists almost entirely of:
(a.) moles
(b.) voles
(c.) bugs
(d.) slugs
(e.) thistle roots
(f.) cactus fruits
(g.) Super-premium mice cream
------> See answer near the end of this issue of News.bytes.
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 RENEWABLE ENERGY
"Luring renewable energy is a tale of fits and starts" (Capitol Weekly, 11/3/11)
BrightSource Energy started planning in 2005 for a solar array in the Mojave Desert, "nearly doubling the amount of solar thermal electricity being produced in the United States." The company applied in 2007 to the California Energy Commission and applied to build the plant on
BLM-managed public lands in eastern San Bernardino County. The Sunrise Powerlink transmission line, proposed to carry renewable energy from Imperial County to the coast, "took six years to win approval." The State of California has worked to shorten the process by coordinating more closely with
federal agencies.
http://www.capitolweekly.net//article.php?xid=1040pw8v4ojx3or&done=
 "Utility district moves Horse Lake project forward" (Lassen County Times, 11/1/11)
"[T]he Lassen Municipal Utility District's Board of Directors unanimously approved four agreements that will begin the environmental process for the proposed Invenergy Horse Lake Wind Farm ... Should Invenergy's 51-megawatt Horse Lake Wind Farm pass environmental scrutiny and earn
final approval from the Bureau of Land Management, wind turbines... could be seen along the crest of Fredonyer Peak."
http://www.lassennews.com/home/7336-utility-district-moves-horse-lake-project-forward
"Action on solar fee delayed again" (Palm Springs Desert Sun, 11/2/11)
"Riverside County supervisors have again delayed discussion on a controversial fee on future solar developments. Supervisors had established Tuesday as the deadline for county officials and the solar companies to make progress in their closed-door negotiations over a fee. Neither
side has indicated it is any closer to reaching a compromise. But during their regular meeting Tuesday, supervisors agreed to delay the public discussion of the fee until next week."
http://www.mydesert.com/article/20111102/NEWS01/111020311/Action-solar-fee-delayed-again
"Energy resources" (BLM California)
California is at the forefront of the country's hopes for renewable energy. The state's wind, solar, geothermal and biomass resources, many on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, hold tremendous promise for a secure and reliable energy future.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/prog/energy.html
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HEADLINES and HIGHLIGHTS
"Este Stifel selected as BLM Central California District Manager" (BLM news, 11/3/11)
Este has served as the BLM California Senior Technical Advisor since December 2010, coordinating statewide strategic planning efforts, policy review and development, and issues and assignments that directly support State Director resource management initiatives. She has provided
leadership for significant, ongoing BLM California projects and initiatives, including military withdrawals at the China Lake Naval Air Station and the Marine Corps Chocolate Mountains Gunnery Range, and abandoned mine lands program issues.
http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/info/newsroom/2011/november/CC1212_estestifelnewccdmanager.html
 "Future of proposed dump's 4,654 acres in question" (Riverside Press-Enterprise,
11/1/11)
"It's too early to know what will become of the 4,654 acres in eastern Riverside County that would have housed the world's largest trash dump ... Critics have been fighting the plan since 1988 ... Opponents also objected to a 1999 land swap by the Bureau of Land Management that allowed
the project to go ahead."
http://www.ca.blm.gov/d1jd
 RELATED: "Developer of Eagle Mountain dump files for Chapter
11" (Palm Springs Desert Sun, 11/2/11))
Mine Reclamation LLC president Richard Stoddard "said the bankruptcy filing is necessary to 'protect the company,' which has invested nearly $85 million in permitting and legal fees" and "spent almost 25 years obtaining necessary permits and waging a legal battle ... That legal
battle was finally lost in March when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Mine Reclamation's appeal from the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Mine Reclamation has no more appeals, a company spokesperson said."
http://www.ca.blm.gov/c1jd
"Thirsty marijuana grows sucking Eel River dry" (Willits News, 11/2/11)
"Even with above average rains and heavy early summer flows filling the streams at higher than normal levels throughout much of the summer," water flow in the Eel River and tributaries is "below average .... This particularly bodes poorly for drier years .... law enforcement and
environmentalists alike have become alarmed by the level of terracing, grading and clear cutting associated with many local grows" and resulting water runoff "heavily laden with sediment ... fertilizer, diesel, oil, pesticides and human waste .... While much of the 689 square miles of the whole
South Fork watershed is owned by large timber companies and the Bureau of Land Management, about half ... is privately owned."
http://www.willitsnews.com/ci_19248908
"The foundation for a fight" (Santa Clarita Signal, 11/3/11)
The BLM "granted permits for a large-scale sand-and-gravel mine in Soledad Canyon ... in 1990. Santa Clarita Valley residents have fought tooth and nail to get the project canceled since, saying it would clog the freeways with trucks and pollute the air. Federal legislation that
would ban mining there awaits a Senate hearing." State officials "estimate that ... the supply of sand and gravel ... from permitted mines covers less than 20 percent of the expected demand in the region over the next 50 years ... Local leaders ... say they called the state's bluff years ago on the
supposed mining shortage, and that mining can and must be done elsewhere."
http://www.the-signal.com/section/36/article/53856/
RELATED: "A long slow grind for gravel" (Santa Clarita Signal, 10/30/11)
"Mining giant Cemex has contracts and permits from the federal government and most county agencies to proceed with a mine in Soledad Canyon" but can't start without "a string of secondary permits and stamps of approval ... The process could take as little as two years -- or as many as 20,
experts say. Cemex officials said last week they continue to stand by the plan for a legislative solution to the proposed mine, for which they've held federal contracts for 20 years. But Santa Clarita city officials say the company plans to move ahead on the sand-and-gravel mine if a bill by Sen.
Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., doesn't make progress this year."
http://www.the-signal.com/section/36/article/53640/
JOBS
"Current job openings - BLM California" (USAJOBS website)
http://blm.usajobs.gov/JobSearch/Search/GetResults?location=California |
NATIONAL AND DEPARTMENT of the INTERIOR ITEMS
"Fracking rules for wells, water weighed by U.S. Interior" (Bloomberg Businessweek, 10/31/11)
"The U.S. Interior Department is considering regulations for production of natural gas and oil from shale on federal lands, including required disclosure of the chemicals used and standards for water and wells. The rules will probably be proposed in 'a couple of months' and become
final about a year later, David Hayes, the Interior Department's deputy secretary, said ... The department plans to seek 'full disclosure of the chemicals used in the hydraulic-fracturing process, with necessary provisions related to' trade secrets, Hayes said during a meeting of the Department of
Energy's shale-gas advisory panel."
http://www.ca.blm.gov/g1jd |
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News.bytes published by
Bureau of Land Management
California State Office
2800 Cottage Way, Suite W-1834
Sacramento, Ca 95825
(916) 978-4600
http://www.blm.gov/ca/
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