BLM California News.bytes Issue 683

Title: Untitled Document

Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument

ISSUE 683 - JULY 16, 2015

- Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument
- Youth 
- Wildfire
- Discover the Desert
- Headlines and Highlights
- BLM and DOI Highlights
- Wildlife Question of the Week
- Upcoming Events

BERRYESSA SNOW MOUNTAIN NATIONAL MONUMENT

President Barack Obama Designates Berryessa Snow Mountain as One of Three New National Monuments

Associated Press, 7/10/2015
President Barack Obama signs a document designating three new national monuments; Berryessa Snow Mountain in California, Waco Mammoth in Texas, and the Basin and Range in Nevada, in the Oval Office of the White House Friday, July 10, 2015, in Washington. Read full story

Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument

Congratulations to community leaders and partners instrumental in today’s designation of the new Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument. The public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service in the new National Monument are some of the most scenic and biologically diverse landscapes in northern California. The new monument includes public lands that stretch from Lake Berryessa north to the mountains of the Mendocino National Forest north of Clear Lake. (BLM Facebook)

Recreation Opportunities Abound at New National Monument

Whether you travel by foot, horse, mountain bike, dirt bike or boat, you have recreation opportunities at the new Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.The new 330,780-acre monument, designated on July 10 by President Obama, is comprised of existing federal lands, extending from Berryessa Peak and other lands in the vicinity of Lake Berryessa in Napa, Yolo, and Solano counties through the spectacular lands of Lake, Colusa and Glenn Counties to the eastern boundary of the Yuki Wilderness in Mendocino County. (Newsbytes Extra)

Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument: what comes next?

Napa Valley Register, 7/10/2015
It’s too early to say how soon the region might feel the effects of the newly created Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, federal official’s say. Friday’s declaration of the monument status begins a long process of creating a new management plan for the federal lands included it its boundaries. Read full story

Park District Purchase Would Open up Berryessa Wildlands

Napa Valley Register, 7/14/2015
A key Napa County piece of the newly created Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument could get an entrance that no longer requires hikers to ford a stream and bushwhack. Read full story

YOUTH

BLM Thanks AmeriCorps Gold 8 Crew for a Great Seven Months

The AmeriCorps Gold 8 crew has been working with BLM offices around California for the last seven months and is ending its experience at the Bishop Field Office in July. The crew has had the opportunity to work with multiple BLM offices including the Redding, Ukiah, Eagle Lake and Mother Lode offices. (Newsbytes Extra)

A Day with the Generation Green Team

It was a crisp morning on Thursday, July 9, 2015 when the Generation Green crew from Grant Union High School ventured out to the Cosumnes River Preserve. It was an abnormally cool day in the Sacramento Valley where recent temperatures had climbed into the 100’s baking the entire region. The preserve however was blanketed by clouds, providing ideal conditions for the day as the students gathered their energy to do take a canoe trip and conduct field work in the preserve. (Newsbytes Extra)

WILDFIRE

If You Fly We Can’t

California BLM would like to remind you, If You Fly We Can’t. (BLM Facebook)

Drone Disrupts Water Drops on 35-acre Brush Fire near Yucaipa

LA Times, 7/12/2015
A drone aircraft temporarily disrupted water drops over a 35-acre brush fire Sunday near Yucaipa, in San Bernardino County, authorities said. The fire was first reported about 2:30 p.m.. in Mill Creek Canyon near California 38, a few miles from where the 31,000-acre Lake fire continues to smolder, the U.S. Forest Service said. Read full story

DISCOVER THE DESERT

Graffiti Removal at Alabama Hills Special Recreation Management Area

Recreation staff at the Bishop Field Office recently removed graffiti in the Alabama Hills Special Recreation Management Area. “This area is special because of the exceptional rock formations and when vandals spray paint those rocks it is can spoil the experience. There were seven separate “tags” we had to remove,” said Rich Williams, outdoor recreation planner at the Bishop Office. (Newsbytes Extra)

Wilderness Wednesday

Wilderness Wednesday is celebrated with this beautiful shot of Surprise Canyon Wilderness by BLM Wilderness Specialist Bob Wick.
Find out more information on the Surprise Canyon Wilderness

Family Nights

Families joined the BLM near Palm Springs, CA at the annual series of Family Nights. As the sun went down the ultraviolet lights were illuminated to search for mysterious desert creatures. These special glowing critters included Sand Scorpions and Giant Hairy Scorpions. Over 100 people came out to discover this unique experience of the night desert.
Find out more on Night Adventures at the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument 

Joshua Tree Park Expansion Eyed

San Bernardino Sun, 7/14/2015
The National Park Service is holding a series of public meetings on the possible expansion of Joshua Tree National Park. The expansion opportunity comes, in part, as a result of a federal court decision last year to return some the Eagle Mountain land taken from what was then Joshua Tree National Monument during the World War II war effort. Read full story

HEADLINES AND HIGHLIGHTS

Happy Birthday BLM!

On this day in 1946, the General Land Office and the Grazing Service merged and became the Bureau of Land Management within the Department of the Interior (@americasgreatoutdoors).  With historical roots spanning 200+ years, the BLM now manages many places – like ghost towns, mining camps, and homesteads – that give visitors a glimpse of our nation’s history. (BLM Tumblr)

Enjoy your Public Lands

A little motivation to ‪get outside‬ and enjoy ‪your public lands. An Off-Highway rider stops to enjoy some of the scenic views from BLM managed Chappie-Shasta Off-Highway Vehicle Area. (BLM Facebook)

BLM Ukiah Field Office Announces Temporary Road Restrictions for Rally Car Race

The Bureau of Land Management will temporarily close Walker Ridge Road and the South Cow Mountain Off-Highway Vehicle Area to general recreation use and through traffic to provide for public safety during the Mendocino Rally race on July 18  and 19. (BLM News Release)

BLM Gathers Comments on Point Arena -Stornetta Unit

Attendees gave their opinions on a wide variety of issues, from electric bicycle use to grazing, at scoping meetings last week on the California Coastal National Monument Resource Management Plan Amendment. (Newsbytes Extra)

Pt. Arena Field Station Future Bright

Ukiah Daily Journal, 7/14/2015
The Mendocino College Board of Trustees has authorized President Reyes to consummate the sale of an easement of the Field Station to the Bureau of Land Management. The necessary legal documents are being prepared and there is in place an agreement between the two parties to finalize the process, including the to-be-determined price the BLM will pay the college for the easement. Read full story

Polls Shows High Support for Desert Plan on Conservation, Wind and Solar Power

San Bernardino Sun, 7/8/2015
A comprehensive plan to balance desert conservation with increased use of wind and solar power has a nearly 75 percent approval rate, according to an opinion poll released Wednesday. The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan, described as an unprecedented cooperative effort between state and federal agencies, drew broad support from voters of every political party when it was described to them, according to a poll commissioned by The Pew Charitable Trusts. Read full story

Knight calls on Army Corps of Engineers to deny Cemex permits

Santa Clarita Valley Signal, 7/14/2015
Congressman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, took another swing Tuesday at the firm that proposes a giant open-pit mine in Canyon Country, calling on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deny the company the permits it needs to mine. In his latest effort to stop Cemex from mining in Soledad Canyon, Knight fired off a letter Tuesday to Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, commanding general and chief of engineers for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Read full story

Gun Snatched from Federal Agent Confirmed as Pier 14 Weapon

San Francisco Chronicle, 7/10/2015
A gun that was stolen out of a federal agent’s parked car in downtown San Francisco was confirmed by police Friday to be the pistol that was used, four days later, to kill a woman walking with her father on Pier 14. Forensic crime lab technicians determined the bullet that struck 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle in the heart along the Embarcadero on July 1 came from the gun recovered in the bay by divers shortly after the shooting, police said. Read full story

BLM AND DOI HIGHLIGHTS

Check Out What Happened Last Week at the BLM: JULY 6-10, 2015

On Friday, July 10, President Obama designated three new national monuments:  Berryessa Snow Mountain in California, Waco Mammoth in Texas, and Basin and Range in Nevada. Read the White House Fact Sheet about the new monuments. Read the press releases about the new BLM-managed national monuments: Berryessa Snow Mountain and Basin and Range. (BLM Tumblr)

This Week take an Adventure with My Public Lands Roadtrip in BLM Colorado

The BLM manages 8.4 million acres of public lands in Colorado – ranging from 4,000 to over 14,000 feet in elevation. Join the #mypubliclandsroadtrip in Colorado for beautiful landscapes and back country byways, fossils and geological formations, and unique recreation like rock crawling. (BLM Tumblr)

WILDLIFE QUESTION OF THE WEEK

What is the diet of Tule Elk?
a) beavers
b) fish
c) grasses
Keep reading for answer below

UPCOMING EVENTS

July 18: Trail Building Workshop

A trail building workshop is scheduled for Saturday, July 18, from 9 a.m.. to 12:30 p.m.., at the Hidden Valley Trailhead. Avery Love, a recreation technician with the Bureau of Land Management Arcata Field Office, will instruct participants on techniques for building sustainable trails. Participants will hike a half-mile to the project site. They should bring hats, sunglasses, lunches and water and wear sturdy shoes and pants. The BLM will provide gloves and hand tools. (BLM News Release)

July 18 & 25: Discover the Desert

Discover The Desert‬ at night when the desert comes alive when the Friends of the Desert Mountains hosts Night Time Adventures in the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument. On July 18 and 25 these family-friendly, after-dark events will seek out night creatures with the use of blacklights. Be prepared to find scorpions, tarantulas, lizards and more. Find out more details at the Friends of the Desert Mountains website. 

July 25: Poet and Environmental Writer will Lead Workshop

Jerry Martin, Poet and Environmental Writer will lead a workshop on how to write with a one hour discussion and lunch. The event will be held at the Headwaters Education Center, Elk River Trail, Headwaters Forest Reserve. For more information visit Headwaters Education Center Website. 

August 1: Second Annual Discover the Coast @ Point Arena

Join the local community at the second annual Discover the Coast @ Point Arena celebration with lighthouse tours, self-guided hikes, local food vendors, and an art fair. Explore at your own pace with a self-guided hike along 3.5 miles of coastal trail between the City Hall and Lighthouse Road. Visit stations staffed with docents to learn more about history, geology, botany and wildlife of the area. Discover the Coast @ Point Arena (BLM Website)

August 9: Nature Stories

Paul Woodland, Storyteller and Naturalist, will present the whit, whimsy and wonders of nature stories. All ages encouraged. The event will be held at the Headwaters Education Center, Elk River Trail, Headwaters Forest Reserve. For more information visit Headwaters Education Center Website.

August 15: Falk History Walk

The Headwaters Education Center will have a history walk and talk about the history of Falk, a historic lumber mill town. The event will be held at the Headwaters Education Center, Elk River Trail, Headwaters Forest Reserve. For more information visit Headwaters Education Center Website. 

August 15: Learn about Forest Dynamics

Phillip Van Mantgem, USGS Research Ecologist, will discuss forest dynamics with an emphasis on climate change impacts, fire ecology and the management of forested ecosystems. The event will be held at the Headwaters Education Center, Elk River Trail, Headwaters Forest Reserve. For more information visit Headwaters Education Center Website.

WILDLIFE QUESTION OF THE WEEK ANSWER

What is the diet of Tule Elk ?

Answer is c) grasses
The tule elk eat grasses, herbaceous plants and the leaves of coniferous trees. The herds, which can range from just a few elk to 400, move around to find fresh vegetation.

SOURCE: BLM Wildlife Database (Tule Elk)

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