Posted on 04/23/2007 7:34:52 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
Conservationists say U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer's plan to designate 2.4 million acres of California mountains as wilderness ---- including areas in San Diego and Riverside counties ---- would preserve a back-country treasure for future generations.
But off-road enthusiasts say Boxer's new wilderness bill would lock up that treasure forever so that only a privileged few could use it.
California already has one of the nation's most extensive wilderness systems, one that covers more than 14 million acres or 13 percent of its sun-splashed lands.
Local examples include the 16,000-acre Agua Tibia Wilderness just north of Palomar Mountain along the San Diego-Riverside county line, where groves of conifers in shaded canyons shelter rare Mexican spotted owls. Another example is the 40,000-acre San Mateo Canyon Wilderness northwest of Temecula, which harbors the headwaters of one of Southern California's last free-flowing rivers.
And now, at the urging of conservation groups, Boxer is proposing to boost the state's inventory of pristine, protected lands.
While the biggest additions would be in the Angeles and Los Padres forests, and in the Sierra Nevada, well to the north, some would come locally. For example, Boxer's newly introduced legislation ---- the California Wild Heritage Act of 2007 or Senate Bill 493 ---- targets Eagle Peak, a chaparral-dominated landscape of canyons and waterfalls east of Ramona for a new area and aims to increase the size of the Agua Tibia wilderness near Temecula.
The wilderness expansion is necessary, said Cindy Buxton of Imperial Beach, a member of the San Diego County Chapter of the Sierra Club and group expert on the Eagle Peak proposal.
"We have a lot of amazing environments in this county," Buxton said. "We have the ocean, we have chaparral, we have desert, we have oak woodlands and we even have some alpine coniferous forests."
The Boxer bill would help ensure that all the different types of landscapes are preserved, she said.
"We're trying to leave something for the next few generations," said Oceanside resident Dave Voss, co-chairman of the local Sierra Club's forest and wilderness committee.
Padlocking the great outdoors
But Meg Grossglass, a spokeswoman for the Bakersfield-based Off-Road Business Association who resides in the French Valley community near Temecula, said enough land has been preserved already, and the bill would have the effect of putting a padlock on places people would otherwise visit. That, she said, is because many prefer not to recreate on foot or horseback, the only permitted methods of travel in most wilderness areas.
"I truly believe that wilderness keeps families away from the great outdoors," Grossglass said. "We should be encouraging people to get away from all the technology that keeps them in the house and go visit the outdoors."
Bill Dart, director of land use for the Off-Road Business Association, said the legislation "takes a swipe at the folks who actually use public lands and locks up more land." Dart said he is mostly concerned with proposed wilderness areas in the Sierra Nevada, some of which would close places now open to off-roaders.
Locally, the legislation would add 2,000 acres to the Agua Tibia Wilderness, 214 acres to the 14,000-acre Pine Creek Wilderness in eastern San Diego County and 21,000 acres to existing wilderness lands in the heavily forested San Jacinto Mountains of western Riverside County, near Idyllwild.
Meanwhile, an entirely new wilderness area is proposed for North San Diego County. Composed of more than 24,000 acres, the proposed Eagle Peak Wilderness takes in the mountain by the same name, the San Diego River and Cedar Creek gorges and several scenic cascades, among them Mildred Falls (the county's highest), Cedar Creek Falls and Three Sisters.
As far as Buxton is concerned, this is the best time of the year to visit the area.
"It's green. The flowers are out. There's water that runs over beautiful boulders, and waterfalls and punch bowl," she said. "It's unbelievably pristine and untouched. A lot of people think it is the best place on earth."
An outdoor paradise
An hour's drive from much of North County, Eagle Peak is popular with a wide range of recreation seekers.
"It's an outdoor sportsman's paradise," said John Elliott of Descanso.
It is particularly popular with rock climbers, who say Eagle Peak is one of the most challenging and rewarding technical climbs in San Diego County.
The U.S. Forest Service is studying whether to close the peak to climbing during the spring nesting season of the golden eagles, but bill supporters said the legislation won't affect that decision one way or another. Climbing is generally permitted in wilderness areas.
The area also is popular with hikers, hunters, swimmers and off-roaders.
"You won't find a bunch of guys on dune buggies and quads out there," Elliott said. But he said there are people like him, who ride their dirt bikes on area roads to Eagle Peak and the top of Cedar Creek Falls.
While some visitors, particularly hikers, generally support the idea of declaring the area a wilderness, off-roaders are sharply opposed.
"They (conservationists) have been promoting this area as the new wilderness area for San Diego," Elliott said. "But you know what? It's just not suitable." He said that is because of the need to keep roads open for fighting fires rescuing visitors.
Still, given the changing political climate in Washington, with the Democrats now in charge, there is a good chance that California's Democratic sponsor will be able to push the bill through Congress, Elliott said.
Buxton, of the Sierra Club, said conservationists are reasonably optimistic about the bill's chances of passage. And she countered the suggestion that Eagle Peak is not worthy of the wilderness label.
"This is not a Yosemite," Buxton said. Nonetheless, she said, Eagle Peak is a beautiful area that offers respite to nearby urban dwellers and must be preserved.
"We're asking, 'What do you want this to look like in 100 years?' " she said. "And if the answer is , 'I want to see it remain the way it is,' then the solution is wilderness."
Elliott said he is worried that designating the area wilderness will close those roads to the peak and the falls that he enjoys. Buxton sought to alleviate those concerns.
"We don't take away a single road," she said.
Not Disneyland
But there is more cause for concern, Elliott said.
"We've had nothing but problems in there," Elliott said. "It is a major nuisance area. And, I'll tell you, you make that area wilderness and the problems will get worse."
According to news reports from the last few years, at least one person drowned in one of the pools and at least one other died after falling off a cliff. Dozens of visitors were rescued after suffering heat exhaustion, broken ankles and rattlesnake bites.
Matt Mathes, a spokesman for the California regional office of the U.S. Forest Service in San Francisco, said Eagle Peak is a place where visitors occasionally get into trouble because they do not plan ahead.
"We try to keep the national forest as open as possible," Mathes said. "But sometimes people don't realize that this is not Disneyland. They do not realize how hot it is down there and how steep it is to hike out. People need to make themselves aware of the hazards and take precautions."
Elliott maintained that a wilderness designation would make matters worse because potential road closures would make it tougher for rescuers to reach those in trouble by vehicle or helicopter.
Mathes said the Forest Service, in writing a new Cleveland National Forest management plan recently, studied the idea of wilderness and recommend against it because of the area's fire danger. The area was the ignition point for the disastrous 270,000-acre Cedar fire, the largest wildfire on record in California, which rose out of the San Diego River Gorge and swept all the way into the city of San Diego in October 2003.
Mathes said the federal agency was concerned about fire trucks being able to use existing roads to reach the area to fight a future fire.
However, Buxton stressed that the legislation keeps roads open, and both rescuers and firefighters would be able to reach Eagle Peak the same way they do now.
Hell, lets do it...
Then lock all our idiot Kalifornicate politicians up inside the area — with NO modern services or facilities.....
Let them live and enjoy the “wilderness”.......
Semper Fi
Just for the record Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein were instrumental in the closing of the Mountain Pass rare earth mine near Mojave California. The only such mine of its kind in the US. Rare earths are of critical strategic importance for high tech weaponry and other military applications. The current greatest supplier of these exotic elements to the United States is the People’s Republic of China.
That should illustrate to anyone what side of US national security Boxer is on.
Bullshit! *
The only "future" generations that would enjoy this new "treasure" are the welfare cases who manage to get a job as a ranger. Misfits who can't actually do anything, but are great at the job of keeping the taxpayers out.
That thought just warms me up so much!
Your plan would only mean more aholes to be rescued.
The only politician I have ever heard of actually going into a wild area was Duncan Hunter back when illegals were coming through the Ca desert in droves. The problem was solved shortly after.
Usually the only people who venture out respect the real wilderness, except the illegals who trash every place they cross.
That’s 3,750 square miles. Twice the size of Delaware.
They want to leave this land protected “for the next generations”.
Well, the Earth collapses in ten years, tops, per the hysterical global warming crowd.
According to them, there will be no more generations, so you might as well enjoy this land now.
Actually most rangers are pretty cool. If you respect nature they are fine. In my experience.
The last time I talked with the head of the BLM in Palm Springs they were upset with the nature club people because they would get areas closed to the public then go in to those areas and have their own private parties. The BLM was on our side and did not like being forced to close areas by court order brought on by people living in Seattle.
Actually, "next generations" won't get to see them either. No motorized vehicles are allowed in Wilderness Areas (in fact, you can't even fly OVER a Wilderness Area). The only people who would get to go see them would be wealthy people who could afford to backpack in. If you are in a wheelchair, forget it...wheels are probably not allowed either.
That is the modus operandi for liberals. Make something accessible only to the liberal elite, by decree.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
How right you are.
BTW, your home page is great.
ALL the land in any State should be OWNED by that State..
UNless, of course we are no longer a republic.. but a democracy..
Don't you believe it. I've seen the libs in other nature cases. They want it so that only the liberal-greenie ecologically minded scientists (and political junkets) have access to the land. Average citizens (wealthy or not) need not bother to apply for permits. REJECTED!
You are right. If you want to see what the real agenda of the enviro wilderness architects is click here:
http://access-advocates.org/issues.htm
I’d like to see them actually take care of their public lands instead of having them burn up.
Oh crap, oh shit. My husband and I just bought property right in the middle of the southern California area. Crap crap crap...we better get our house built before this goes through. Maybe if we swear to use only only sheet of TP per day we will be ok.
I understand that between sen. boxer’s ears is a complete, pristine wilderness - but could there be 2.4 million acres of it?
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