Free Republic

Eight towns would love to land the new Sierra Nevada Conservancy headquarters, projected to eventually have 70 employees and a $10 million budget. But only two showed up at the historic first meeting of the conservancy board Thursday in Sacramento, and both were from Nevada County. Nevada City used a laid-back approach in its pitch, but Truckee came on like a runaway snowboarder. Auburn, Colfax, Placerville, Amador City, Ione and Jackson were no-shows. “Give us your serious consideration,” said Truckee Mayor Craig Threshie in a lengthy speech that trumpeted the town’s location, history and commitment to the range. “We have...

The Sierra Nevada, historically a majestic battleground for competing local interests, comes under the stewardship of the state's newest and biggest conservancy this week. Proponents say the 25-million-acre Sierra Nevada Conservancy will be more than a protector of the mountain environment - it will also be an incubator for jobs and economic growth. The conservancy's 13 voting board members - seven state appointees and six county supervisors - will hold their first meeting at 10 a.m. Thursday in Sacramento at the state Energy Commission building, 1516 Ninth St. The Sierra Nevada Conservancy is the ninth conservancy created by the Legislature...

Bear River Canyon, Placer County -- Framed by a crystalline stream and steep slopes carpeted with ponderosa pine and black oak, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill Thursday authorizing the Sierra Nevada Conservancy, a new state agency dedicated to preserving the 25 million acres of forest, meadow and craggy granite peaks that comprise John Muir's "Range of Light."

After signing the Sierra Nevada Conservancy bill along the Bear River, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger gives a thumbs-up to dignitaries and the media. From left are Assemblyman John Laird, D-Santa Cruz; state Resources Agency Secretary Mike Chrisman; California EPA Secretary Terry Tamminen; and Assemblyman Tim Leslie, R-Tahoe City. The Union photo/John Hart Standing on a wide gravel bar with the Bear River flowing gently by him, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the Sierra Nevada Conservancy bill Thursday to the sound of bipartisan applause. "California is where the conservation movement began, and today we are happy to continue this noble tradition," Schwarzenegger said....

After four years of on-and-off negotiations, state lawmakers have sent Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a bill to create a state conservancy for California's largest mountain range, and the governor is expected to sign it. The Assembly voted 62-14 Wednesday to create a Sierra Nevada Conservancy with a stated mission of protecting sensitive areas, reducing fire risks and improving tourism opportunities in 22 counties, including Placer and El Dorado. More than anything, the new conservancy would allow the Sierra's rural counties to tap millions of dollars in state bond funds that have gone largely to affluent coastal areas and urbanized Lake Tahoe....

State Sen. Sam Aanestad, R-Grass Valley, said he fears water rights in the Sierra could be jeopardized by a conservancy aimed at protecting the mountain range's resources, such as the South Yuba River, shown here off of North Bloomfield Road. State Sen. Sam Aanestad on Monday attacked the idea of a Sierra Nevada Conservancy, fearing it will infringe on property and water rights. Despite Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's endorsement of the plan, the Republican legislator last week voted against a compromised version of the bill, which would create an organization aimed at gathering grants and other funds to protect and improve...

Dear Sierra friends, I am seeking your thoughts. As you know, I am carrying AB 1788, which would create a Sierra Nevada Conservancy. A state conservancy is an agency that delivers state funds to areas of special value, such as Lake Tahoe or the California Coast. It makes grants and undertakes projects for a wide range of efforts, from acquisition of habitat to fire prevention and economic development. Unlike entities such as the "Coastal Commission" or the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, a conservancy does not have any power to regulate lands. As a staunch defender of private property rights...

Two bills that would create a Sierra Nevada Conservancy are set to move into the state Senate. The two efforts, AB 2600 and AB 1788, are progressing despite lingering questions over the degree of local control in the legislation. The aim of a conservancy is largely to coordinate funding and conservation efforts for the 400-mile long mountain range. The Sierra Nevada Conservancy is an almost five-year effort by conservationists to focus funding on an area that they say has largely been looked over. The California coast and Lake Tahoe both have conservancies, but the Sierra Nevada as a whole is...

Two bills making their way through the California Assembly would create a Sierra Nevada Conservancy. If passed, the conservancy would direct money to help manage the public lands in the mountain range. The Union photo/Pico van Houtryve It spans nearly 500 miles, supplies the water that nourishes California’s economy and has provided vocations and vacations for generations, but the Sierra Nevada has no benefactor like the conservancies that care for Lake Tahoe or the state’s vast coastline. That could change this year, however, if one of the two bills now winding through the Legislature is approved - or if...