By Jessica Dacey | Within the Mojave Trails National Monument and just a few miles from historic Route 66, Bonanza Spring is a vibrant symbol of the desert’s intact ecosystem. Clustered among reeds and swarming with bees, the spring waters an extensive riparian area. It is the biggest wetland for 1,000 square miles, and it […]
By John Hiatt | Currently, the Air Force is proposing to expand the Nellis Test and Training Range (NTTR), in Southern Nevada, by some 300,000 acres, and the Navy wants to expand the Fallon Naval Air Station, in north central Nevada, by 769,724 acres, for a combined total of nearly 1.1 million acres. These proposed expansions come […]
By Alex Ertaud | As the snow thaws and creeks swell this time of year, many turn their eyes and thoughts upward, not to the heavens but to the Sierra High Country. The Sierra in the summertime provides much to us humans. A respite from the heat, clean mountain air and water, and immeasurable beauty in the […]
By Hilary Clark | After a strenuous three-and-a-half hour hike, I reach the top of Telescope Peak, Death Valley’s highest point at over 11,000 feet. I watch the sun set over Mount Whitney to the distant west. To the east, I see the expansive shades of desert brown. Bristlecone pines surround me like twisted works of […]
Interviews with Joan Taylor | Two Experts Share Their Views | Michael Cohen, Senior Research Associate, Pacific Institute: A lot of people are saying you need to import water from Mexico to save the Salton Sea, but there are several challenges. It would require permission of the Republic of Mexico, which is currently not very fond of our […]
By Bill Powers | Rooftop Solar and Batteries are the Right Solution | The role played by equipment owned by California’s investor-owned utilities (IOUs) in California’s recent wildfires is front-page news in the state. It is important to understand how the electrical utilities have responded to high fire hazard conditions and to look at alternatives. Photo above: The […]
By Alyssa Bravo and Isaac Otero | What is the next step in addressing environmental issues in our world today? Comite Civico Del Valle* believes that involving the youth will be beneficial. This is one of the reasons why Comite Civico Del Valle (CCV) started the Environmental Health Internship that we have been fortunate to participate […]
by Tom Budlong | Nine companies* have looked for gold at Conglomerate Mesa. Looked and left. The early ones started around 1984 when Conglomerate was the Cerro Gordo Wilderness Study Area (WSA). Then in 1994 the California Desert Protection Act (CDPA) released the area from WSA status. More came. They ranged from biggies (Newmont, BHP), to […]
by Wynne Benti | Desert bighorn threatened by military expansion. Legislative Environmental Impact Statement opens for public review December 2017. In the heart of the Desert National Wildlife Refuge, north of Las Vegas, the Sheep Range is home to one of the most isolated and biologically diverse communities in the Mojave Desert. Sheltered by massive […]
By Kate Allen | From December 2008 to March 2016, I had the pleasure of leading more than two dozen Desert Committee service trips in Death Valley National Park. These were sponsored to help restore wilderness values in the 91% of the Park that is designated wilderness. The ranger responsible for directing the projects was […]
