California Desert Protection Act of 1987 : hearings before the Subcommittee on Public Lands, National Parks, and Forests of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, One Hundredth Congress, first session, on S. 7 ... July 21 and 23, 1987 online

S. Hrg. 100-272

CAUFORNIA DESERT PROTECTION ACT OF 1987



HEARINGS

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS, NATIONAL PAEKS

AND FORESTS

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON

ENERGY AND NATUEAL RESOURCES

UNITED STATES SENATE

ONE HUNDREDTH CONGRESS '^.T-rvw

-. .^ru JTORy

FIRST S^ION

S. 7

TO PROVIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE PUBLIC LANDS IN THE

CALIFORNIA DESERT



JULY 21 AND 23, 1987








Printed for the use of the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources



Boston PuDiic LiDrar^
Boston MA 02116 ^



S. Hrg. 100-272

CAUFORNIA DESERT PROTECTION ACT OF 1987



HEARINGS

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS, NATIONAL PARKS

AND FORESTS

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON

ENERGY AND NATTJEAL RESOURCES

UNITED STATES SENATE

ONE HUNDREDTH CONGRESS

nRST SESSION

ON

S. 7

TO PROVIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE PUBLIC LANDS IN THE

CALIFORNIA DESERT



JULY 21 AND 23, 1987




Printed for the use of the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources



U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
77-551 WASHINGTON : 1987

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office
U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402



COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES

J. BENNETT JOHNSTON, Louisiana, Chairman

DALE BUMPERS, Arkansas JAMES A. McCLURE, Idaho

WENDELL H. FORD, Kentucky MARK O. HATFIELD, Oregon

HOWARD M. METZENBAUM, Ohio LOWELL P. WEICKER, Jr., Connecticut

JOHN MELCHER, Montana PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico

BILL BRADLEY, New Jersey MALCOLM WALLOP, Wyoming

JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico FRANK H. MURKOWSKI, Alaska

TIMOTHY E. WIRTH, Colorado DON NICKLES, Oklahoma

WYCHE FOWLER, Jr., Georgia CHIC HECHT, Nevada

KENT CONRAD, North Dakota DANIEL J. EVANS, Washington

Daryl H. Owen, Staff Director

D. Michael Harvey, Chief Counsel

Frank M. Gushing, Staff Director for the Minority

Gary G. Ellsworth, Chief Counsel for the Minority



Subcommittee on Pubuc Lands, National Parks and Forests

DALE BUMPERS, Arkansas, Chairman
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico, Vice Chairman

JOHN MELCHER, Montana MALCOLM WALLOP, Wyoming

BILL BRADLEY, New Jersey LOWELL P. WEICKER, Jr., Connecticut

TIMOTHY E. WIRTH, Colorado MARK O. HATFIELD, Oregon

WYCHE FOWLER, Jr., Georgia PETE V. DOMENia, New Mexico

KENT CONRAD, North Dakota FRANK H. MURKOWSKI, Alaska

CHIC HECHT, Nevada
J. Bennett Johnston and James A. McClure are Ex Offico Members of the Subcommittee

Thomas B. Williams, Senior Professional Staff Member
Beth Norcross, Professional Staff Member

(n)



CONTENTS



Page

S. 7 3

Department of Agriculture statement 51

Hearings:

July 21, 1987 1

July 23, 1987 327

Tuesday, July 21, 1987

STATEMENTS

Apfelbaum, Sharon, member, Palm Springs City Council, Palm Springs, CA .... 314
Braude, Marvin, member and president pro tem, Los Angeles City Council,

Los Angeles, CA 179

Bright, Keith, Inyo County supervisor. Independence, CA 267

Bumpers, Hon. Dale, a U.S. Senator from the State of Arkansas 1

Cranston, Hon. Alan, a U.S. Senator from the State of California 74

Crites, Buford, member, Palm Desert City Council, Palm Desert, CA 316

Griles, J. Steven, Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management,
Department of the Interior, accompanied by Robert Burford, Director,
Bureau of Land Management; and Edward Hastey, California State Direc-
tor, Bureau of Land Management 219

Hunter, Hon. Duncan, a U.S. Representative from the State of California 153

Joyner, John, chairman, San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, San

Bernardino, CA 289

Lehman, Hon. Richard H., a U.S. Representative from the State of California . 115

Levine, Hon. Mel, a U.S. Representative from the State of California 101

Lewis, Hon. Jerry, a U.S. Representative from the State of California 61

Martindale, William, mayor, Blythe, CA 283

McCandless, Hon. Al, a U.S. Representative from the State of California 130

McCarthy, Leo, Lieutenant Governor, State of California 170

Pratt, Larry, on behalf of State Senator H.L. Richardson, Sacramento, CA 266

Van Vleck, Gordon K., secretary of resources. State of California 162

Wallop, Hon. Malcolm, a U.S. Senator from the State of Wyoming 57

Wessel, Mai, councilman, Barstow City Council, Barstow, CA 322

Wilson, Hon. Pete, a U.S. Senator from the State of California 59

Thursday, July 23, 1987

STATEMENTS

Anderson, Judith A., chair, California Desert Protection League 471

Badaracco, Robert J., recreation planner, San Luis Obispo, CA 688

Barnes, Robert A., Tulare County Audubon Society, Porterville, CA 598

Brashear, Marie, executive director, California Desert Coalition 335

Burk, Peter, president, Citizens for Mojave National Park, Barstow, CA 613

Chapman, Howard N., former employee of the National Park Service, San

Raphael, CA 508

Cranston, Kim, Committee for California Desert National Parks, Los Angeles,

CA 328

Dewey, R. Gene, president, Unocal Molycorp Inc., Los Angeles, CA 527

Dodson, James L., Sierra Club regional vice president for southern California

and Nevada , 489

Duvall, Shelley, producer/actress, Los Angeles, CA, and member. Committee

for California Desert National Parks 328

(III)



IV

Page
Edmiston, Tasker L., Monterey Park, CA, accompanied by Beula Edmiston,

president, Friends of the Wildlife 622

Emde, Don, American Coalition of Outdoor Recreation Publishers, Montrose,

CA 645

Fairchild, Morgan, actress and member. Committee for California Desert

National Parks, Los Angeles, CA 329

Fife, Donald, geologist, nonrenewable resource consultant. National Inholders

Association 374

Fitzpatrick, D. Ross, president, Viceroy Resource Corp., and B & B Mining

Co., Vancouver, BC 537

Green, Ralph E., U.S. exploration manager, Homestake Mining Co., San

Francisco, CA 538

Hess, Dr. David M., chairman. Resource Conservation Committee, California

Association of Four Wheel Drive Clubs 422

Hughes, Elden, chair, Angeles chapter. Sierra Club, Whittier, CA 633

Jessop, Stanley, president, Blythe Chamber of Commerce, Blythe, CA 637

Kari, W. Douglas, Esq., founder. Desert Survivors, Los Angeles, CA 480

Keller, Mary Beth, vice president, American Recreation Coalition 427

LaPre, Dr. Lawrence Franklin, consulting biologist, San Bernadino Valley

Audubon Society, Riverside, CA 694

Lutz, Dr. Loren, chairman. Advisory Council for the California Desert District 443
Milanovich, Richard M., chairman of the tribal council, Agua Caliente Band
of Cahuilla Indians, Palm Springs, CA, accompanied by Art Bunce, tribal

attorney 686

Montana, Arthur, professor, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 563

Norris, Dr. Kenneth S., professor of natural history and environmental stud-
ies. University of California, Santa Cruz 452

Ortner-Kubler, Vyola, elder, Agua Caliente Indian Tribe, Palm Springs, CA,
accompanied by Georgiana Ward, Agua Caliente Band Reservation; and

Jim Rothschild, Andreas Cove Development Co., Cathedral City, CA 654

Prather, Michael, Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Club, Lone Pine, CA 697

Rasor, Robert, vice president, government relations, American Motorcyclist

Association 649

Rouse, Glenn F., executive director, California Mining Association, Sacramen-
to, CA 539

Schifferle, Patricia, California-Nevada regional director, Wilderness Society,

San Francisco, CA 568

Smith, Eugene D., vice president, government and public affairs, U.S. Borax
& Chemical Corp., accompanied by William M. Pennell, senior geologist,

U.S. Borax 518

Smith, Genny, publisher, and former member of the BLM Advisory Commit-
tee, Palo Alto, CA 496

Solinsky, Christian W.H., resources director, California Chamber of Com-
merce, Sacramento, CA 662

Stebbins, Dr. Robert C, emeritus professor of zoology. University of Califor-
nia, Berkeley, CA 499

Stout, Richard J., president. Federation of Metal Detector & Archeological

Clubs, Inc., Frenchtown, NJ 676

Strain, James L., California Federation of Mineralogical Societies, Inc 554

Willis, Dave, Ashland, OR 711

Wilson, James Wheeler and Wilson Boots, Bishop, CA 718

Wirth, Hon. Timothy E., a U.S. Senator from the State of Colorado 327

APPENDIXES

Appendix I
Responses to additional committee questions 723

Appendix II
Additional material submitted for the record 811



CALIFORNIA DESERT PROTECTION ACT OF 1987



TUESDAY, JULY 21, 1987

U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Pubuc Lands,

National Parks and Forests,
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,

Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:10 p.m., in room
SD-366, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Dale Bumpers, pre-
siding.

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. DALE BUMPERS, A U.S. SENATOR
FROM THE STATE OF ARKANSAS

Senator Bumpers. Today the subcommittee begins consideration
of S. 7, a bill that seeks to provide protection for public lands in the
California desert.

The California desert stretches some 25 million acres, from the
Sierra Nevada range and Death Valley in the north, to the Mexi-
can border in the south, and includes about a quarter of the land
in the State of California.

The desert area is diverse in its geology, wildlife and natural re-
sources, including huge sand dunes, waterfalls, archaeological sites,
extinct volcanoes and some 90 mountain ranges. The desert also in-
cludes over 760 species of wildlife, 700 species of flowering plants
and the oldest living organism known to man, the clonal creosote
rings.

The uses of the California desert are as diverse as the landscape.
The area has become an increasingly popular place for recreation
of all kinds. The Bureau of Land Management estimates that visi-
tors spend over 16 million visitor days a year in the desert making
it one of the most heavily used recreation areas in the country.

The desert also provides a significant share of the Nation's min-
eral resources, and many mineralogists feel strongly that much of
the mineral potential of the California desert has yet to be discov-
ered.

The military has also made extensive use of the desert. The
Marine Corps, Air Force, Army and Navy all have facilities there.

In 1976, recognizing the unique attributes of the California
desert. Congress established the 25 million acre Desert Conserva-
tion Area through the Federal Land Management Policy Act. The
Congress directed the BLM to prepare a comprehensive land use
plan for the management, use, development, and protection of the
12.1 million acres of public lands on the desert. With a great deal
of public input, the plan was finalized in 1980.

(1)



Response to the plan has varied dramatically. Some of the public
has been very supportive of the BLM's plan and feel that it meets
its mandate of protecting the area's resources and providing for a
wide range of uses. Others have been highly critical of the plan
and maintain that the fragile desert ecosystem has not been ade-
quately protected.

However, there is one aspect of the planning effort that few dis-
agree upon: the magnitude of the challenge that BLM has been
given in managing such a vast and diverse land base with so many
different constituencies.

The measure before us today, S. 7, would establish 3 new nation-
al parks in the desert and designate some SVa million acres of new
wilderness, including 81 new wilderness areas in BLM-managed
public lands. The bill makes a variety of other changes in land
management authority in the California desert.

A longtime resident and rancher from the East Mojave was
quoted recently in a National Geographic article on the California
desert. And he said, "It doesn't take a smart man to see what's
wrong, but it'll take a smart man to fix it." In that spirit we will
do our very best today and Thursday to hear from as broad a spec-
trum of opinion as possible in hopes of responding to this proposed
legislation in an infornred and thoughtful manner. Today we will
hear from elected California officials and the Department of the In-
terior, and Thursday we will hear from almost 40 public witnesses.

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome those of you
who will be testifying. I know that many of you have traveled a
long way to share your views with us.

At this point, I will insert copies of the proposal in the hearing
record, which will remain open for two weeks to receive additional
statements and materials.

[The text of S. 7 and a statement submitted for the record from
the Department of Agriculture follow:]



II



100th congress

1st Session



S.7



To provide for the protection of the public lands in the California desert.



IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

January 6, 1987

Mr. Cranston introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources



A BILL



To provide for the protection of the public lands in the
California desert.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-

2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 That this Act may be cited as the "California Desert Protec-

4 tion Act of 1987".

5 FINDINGS AND POLICY

6 Sec. 2. (a) The Congress finds and declares that —

7 (1) the federally owned desert lands of southern

8 California constitute a pubhc wildland resource of ex-

9 traordinary and inestimable value for this and future
10 generations;



2

1 (2) these desert wildlands display unique scenic,

2 historical, archeological, environmental, ecological,

3 wildlife, cultural, scientific, educational, and recreation-

4 al values used and enjoyed by millions of Americans

5 for hiking and camping, scientific study and scenic

6 appreciation;

7 (3) the public land resources of the California

8 desert now face and are increasingly threatened by ad-

9 verse pressures which would impair, dilute, and destroy

10 their public and natural values;

11 (4) the California desert, embracing wilderness

12 lands, units of the National Park System, other Feder-

13 al lands, State parks and other State lands, and private

14 lands, constitutes a cohesive unit posing unique and

15 difficult resource protection and management chal-

16 lenges;

17 (5) through designation of national monuments by

18 Presidential proclamation, through enactment of gener-

19 al public land statutes (including section 601 of the

20 Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 90

21 Stat. 2743, 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) and through inter-

22 im administrative actions, the Federal Government has

23 begun the process of appropriately providing for pro-

24 tection of the significant resources of the public lands

25 in the California desert; and



S 7 IS



3

1 (6) statutory land unit designations are needed to

2 afford the full protection which the resources and

3 public land values of the California desert merit.

4 (b) In order to secure for the American people of this

5 and future generations an enduring heritage of wilderness,

6 national parks, and public land values in the California

7 desert, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the Congress

8 that—

9 (1) appropriate public lands in the California

10 desert shall be included within the National Park

11 System and the National Wilderness Preservation

12 System, in order to —

13 (A) preserve unrivaled scenic, geologic, and

14 wildlife values associated with these unique natu-

15 ral landscapes;

16 (B) perpetuate in their natural state signifi-

17 cant and diverse ecosystems of the California

18 desert;

19 (C) protect and preserve historical and cul-

20 tural values of the California desert associated

21 with ancient Indian cultures, patterns of western

22 exploration and settlement, and sites exemplifying

23 the mining, ranching and railroading history of the

24 Old West;



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4

1 (D) provide opportunities for compatible out-

2 door public recreation, protect and interpret eco-

3 logical and geological features, and historic, pale-

4 ontological, and archeological sites, maintain

5 wilderness resource values, and promote public

6 understanding and appreciation of the California

7 desert; and

8 (E) retain and enhance opportunities for

9 scientific research in undisturbed ecosystems.

10 TITLE I— WILDERNESS ADDITIONS

1 1 FINDINGS

12 Sec. 101. The Congress finds and declares that —

13 (1) wilderness is a distinguishing characteristic of

14 the public lands in the California desert, one which

15 affords an unrivaled opportunity for experiencing vast

16 areas of the Old West essentially unaltered by man's

17 activities, and which merits preservation for the benefit

18 of present and future generations;

19 (2) the wilderness values of desert lands are in-

20 creasingly threatened by and especially vulnerable to

21 impairment, alteration, and destruction by activities

22 and intrusions associated with incompatible use and de-

23 velopment; and



r- S 7 IS



5

1 (3) preservation of desert wilderness necessarily

2 requires the highest forms of protective designation and

3 management.

4 DESIGNATION OF WILDERNESS

5 Sec. 102. In furtherance of the purposes of the Wilder-

6 ness Act of 1964 (78 Stat. 890, 16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), and

7 sections 601 and 603 of the Federal Land Policy and Man-

8 agement Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 2743, 43 U.S.C. 1701 et

9 seq.), the following lands in the State of California, as gener-

10 ally depicted on maps, appropriately referenced, dated Febru-

11 ary 1986 (except as otherwise dated), are hereby designated

12 as wilderness, and therefore, as components of the National

13 Wilderness Preservation System —

14 (1) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

15 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

16 which comprise approximately seventy-seven thousand

17 three hundred and eighty acres, as generally depicted

18 on a map entitled "Argus Range Wilderness — Pro-

19 posed", and which shall be known as the Argus Range

20 Wilderness;

21 (2) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

22 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

23 which comprise approximately sixty-one thousand three

24 hundred and twenty acres, as generally depicted on a

25 map entitled "Avawatz Mountains Wilderness — Pro-



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8

6

1 posed", and which shall be known as the Avawatz

2 Mountains Wilderness;

3 (3) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

4 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

5 which comprise approximately ten thousand eight hun-

6 dred and seventy acres, as generally depicted on a map

7 entitled "Bigel'ow Cholla Garden Wilderness — Pro-

8 posed", and which shall be known as the Bigelow

9 Cholla Garden Wilderness;

10 (4) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

11 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management and

12 within the San Bernardino National Forest, which

13 comprise approximately thirty-three thousand eight

14 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

15 "Bighorn Mountain Wilderness — Proposed", and which

16 shall be known as the Bighorn Mountain Wilderness;

17 (5) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

18 vation Area and the Yuma District, of the Bureau of

19 Land Management, which comprise approximately

20 forty-seven thousand five hundred and seventy acres,

21 as generally depicted on a map entitled "Big Maria

22 Mountains Wilderness — Proposed", and which shall be

23 known as the Big Maria Mountains Wilderness;

24 (6) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

25 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,



S7lS



7

1 which comprise thirteen thousand nine hundered and

2 forty acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

3 "Black Mountain Wilderness — Proposed", and which

4 shall be known as the Black Mountain Wilderness;

5 (7) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

6 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

7 which comprise approximately seven thousand two

8 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

9 "Blackwater Well Wilderness — Proposed", and which

10 shall be known as the Blackwater Well Wilderness;

11 (8) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

12 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

13 which comprise approximately nine thousand five hun-

14 dred and twenty acres, as generally depicted on a map

15 entitled "Bright Star Wilderness — Proposed", and

16 which shall be known as the Bright Star Wilderness;

17 (9) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

18 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

19 which comprise approximately forty-two thousand six

20 hundred and forty acres, as generally depicted on a

21 map entitled "Cadiz Dunes Wilderness — Proposed",

22 and which shall be known as the Cadiz Dunes

23 Wilderness;

24 (10) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

25 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,



r ;



S 7 IS



10

8

1 which comprise approximately eighty-five thousand

2 nine hundred and seventy acres, as generally depicted

3 on a map entitled "Cady Mountains Wilderness — Pro-

4 posed", and which shall be known as the Cady Moun-

5 tains Wilderness;

6 (11) certain lands in the California Desert Dis-

7 trict, of the Bureau of Land Management, which com-

8 prise approximately fifteen thousand seven hundred

9 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled "Carrizo

10 Gorge Wilderness — Proposed", and which shall be

11 known as the Carrizo Gorge Wilderness;

12 (12) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

13 vation Area and Yuma District, of the Bureau of Land

14 Management and within the Havasu National Wildlife

15 Refuge, which comprise approximately sixty-eight

16 thousand three hundred acres, as generally depicted on

17 a map entitled "Chemehuevi Mountains Wilderness —

18 Proposed", and which shall be known as the Cheme-

19 huevi Mountains Wilderness;

20 (13) certain lands in the Bakersfield District, of

21 the Bureau of Land Management, which comprise ap-

22 proximately fifteen thousand seven hundred acres, as
28 generally depicted on a map entitled "Chimney Peak

24 Wilderness — Proposed", and which shall be known as

25 the Chimney Peak Wilderness;



11

9

1 (14) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

2 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

3 which comprise approximately one hundred and sixty-

4 five thousand two hundred acres, as generally depicted

5 on a map entitled "Chuckwalla Mountains Wilder-

6 ness — Proposed", dated January 1987, and which

7 shall be known as the Chuckwalla Mountains Wilder-

8 ness;

9 (15) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

10 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

11 which comprise fifty thousand six hundred and sixty

12 acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

13 "Cleghorn Lakes Wilderness — Proposed", and which

14 shall be known as the Cleghorn Lakes Wilderness:

15 Provided, That the Secretary of Interior may pursuant

16 to an application filed by the Department of Defense,

17 grant a right-of-way for, and authorize construction of,

18 a road within the area depicted as "non- wilderness

19 road corridor" on the map entitled "Cleghorn Lakes

20 Wilderness — Proposed";

21 (16) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

22 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

23 which comprise approximately forty thousand acres, as

24 generally depicted on a map entitled "Clipper Moun-



S 7 IS 2



12

10

1 tains Wilderness — Proposed", and which shall be

2 known as Clipper Mountains Wilderness;

3 (17) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

4 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

5 which comprise approximately fifty thousand eight hun-

6 dred and twenty acres, as generally depicted on a map

7 entitled "Coso Range Wilderness — Proposed", and

8 which shall be known as Coso Range Wilderness;

9 (18) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

10 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

11 which comprise approximately eighteen thousand six

12 hundred acres, as generally depicted on a map entitled

13 "Coyote Mountains Wilderness — Proposed", and which

14 shall be known as the Coyote Mountains Wilderness;

15 (19) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

16 vation Area, of the Bureau of Land Management,

17 which comprise approximately eight thousand six hun-

18 dred and forty acres, as generally depicted on a map

19 entitled "Darwin Falls Wilderness — Proposed", and

20 which shall be known as the Darwin Falls Wilderness;

21 (20) certain lands in the California Desert Conser-

22 vation Area and the Yuma District, of the Bureau of