The National Park Service is exploring the feasibility of expanding the Joshua Tree National Park boundary to include as much as 32,000 acres near Desert Center in Riverside County. The area in question is bounded on three sides by the park and once belonged to Joshua Tree National Monument, but in 1950, the Eagle Mountain area was removed for use by the mining industry. About two-thirds of the area in question is now managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Last night, the National Park Service held a public scoping meeting—one of four—to hear comments on a possible park expansion. Reporter Mike Lipsitz was there and files this report…
More than 200 people turned out for last night’s scoping meeting. It was a diverse mix that included environmentalists, representatives from area Native American tribes, local business and community leaders, and a large, loosely organized contingent of small claim mining enthusiasts including many who did little to conceal their disdain for the National Park Service. Park Superintendent David Smith and Park Service planners opened the meeting with a review of the boundaries involved, the criteria required for territory to be added to any national park, and a brief review of alternative ways of returning the area to the Park System. Presently, there is no plan to expand the park boundary to include Eagle Mountain. Such a plan would be presented for public review and comment if, and only if, the next 12 to 16 months of study indicate that bringing the Eagle Mountain area into the system would be both appropriate and feasible. Some 85 percent of the area being considered is undeveloped, contains regionally important habitat and migration corridors for rare and threatened wildlife that inhabit the park, or includes important historic and cultural resources. Even if the area were to come under the park service, it would not change private land ownership or mineral rights already held or permitted.
Public comments and ideas on this stage of the study process will be accepted through August 21.
Contact: David Smith, Superintendent, Joshua Tree National Park, Phone: 760-367-5500.
E-mail the study team at [email protected]
View the project web site at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/eaglemountain
Introductory newsletter, maps, and more information are available on the project website.
