Hundreds of people turned out for a public meeting Tuesday afternoon in Whitewater Preserve at which U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein heard public comment on her efforts to create three desert monuments. Feinstein told those in attendance that her plan—which would create the Sand to Snow, Mojave Trails, and Castle Mountains National Monuments—would protect the desert and still allow a mix of recreation, conservation, and renewable energy. Eva Soltes of Joshua Tree said that making the areas national monuments would bring two million visitors to the area and serve as an economic boost. Many people fear, however, that designating the areas as national monuments would make activities that are currently allowed, such as off-roading and mining, off limits. Feinstein is urging President Obama to use the Antiquities Act to create the monuments, an action to which many in attendance objected. U.S. Representative Paul Cook of Yucca Valley said in a statement that designating the areas as national monuments could “sharply curtail recreational and economic activities.”
