Desert Protective Council News
Welcome to Our New Communications Coordinator
Posted by Indy Quillen on February 1, 2012
The Desert Protective Council is delighted to welcome our new Communications Coordinator, Indy Quillen. Indy will be managing our web site, blog and social network pages, as well as editing our quarterly El Paisano newsletter and online E-Paisano.
Thank you Desert Protective Council
Posted by Chris Clarke on December 31, 2011
Today marks my last day as Communications Consultant for the Desert Protective Council, as I’m moving on to other projects. It’s been a very rewarding two and a half years, and I’m grateful to the DPC for the opportunity to do some important work on issues that mean a great deal to me.
In particular, I’d like to thank a few current and former members of DPC’s Board of Directors — Nick Ervin, Larry Klaasen, Geoffrey Smith, and Mike Colm — for their generous aid and assistance; former Communications Consultant Lawrence Hogue for advice and continuing friendship, and the DPC’s amazing Conservation staff person Terry Weiner for her boundless energy and enthusiasm.
And last but most importantly, I’m grateful to you, the DPC’s members, friends and colleagues, for your unwavering support. It’s been a privilege to be part of the DPC’s now 58-year history. Look forward to great things in 2012, and please, do feel free to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
New El Paisano now online
Posted by Chris Clarke on November 27, 2011
The Fall 2011 issue of our newsletter El Paisano is now online, along with its accompanying Educational Bulletin The Mysterious Mojave River by Laura Cunningham. Check it out!
The Most Astonishing Boring Plant in the Desert
Posted by Chris Clarke on November 23, 2011
There are a lot of dramatic and prominent plants in the California deserts—towering Joshua trees, fierce bristling chollas, even saguaros along the Colorado River—but one of the most amazing plants in the desert is one it could take you years to notice, hiding some jaw-dropping science behind a singularly unimpressive appearance.
Native Singers Keep Culture Alive
Posted by Chris Clarke on November 10, 2011
One of the worst habits of modern American writers is that of referring to this continent’s original inhabitants in the past tense. This is as true of the desert as anywhere in the U.S. It’s understandable, in a way: Native people dominate the history, modern and ancient, of the desert. Writing about the desert’s past without writing about Native people is just about impossible.
But there’s more to the Native people of the desert than the seemingly permanent ancient rockworks and petroglyphs. Native people are still here, shaping the desert. A few, the Agua Caliente Cahuilla in my own Palm Springs being an example, have attained a certain measure of political and economic power. Others—including some of the Agua Caliente’s close neighbors—still struggle for self-determination and respect. All of them work to defend and preserve their diverse cultures. And some aspects of that cultural diversity are far harder to preserve than a petroglyph or intaglio. Some are as ephemeral as a soft voice spoken in the desert wind.
Main road through Joshua Tree National Park reopens
Posted by Chris Clarke on November 9, 2011
The main road through the length of Joshua Tree National Park is open once again. As of November 1, visitors can travel the spectacular Pinto Basin Road for the first time since violent storms cut off access September 13. That storm, which dumped three inches of rain on the basin and adjacent areas, created flash floods that removed the road in several places along its length, most critically in a small canyon south of the Cottonwood Springs Visitor Center.
DPC Comments on Algodones Dunes Fee Changes
Posted by Chris Clarke on November 5, 2011
As seen in our Desert Environmental News posting for November 4, 2011, the BLM is discussing the fee structure for use of the Imperial Sand Dunes (a.k.a. Algodones Dunes), a popular off-roading destination. The DPC’s Terry weiner submitted comments to the BLM on the fee structure: those comments can be seen below the fold.
KPBS Discusses SDG&E Rooftop Solar Rate Hike
Posted by Chris Clarke on October 19, 2011
San Diego’s public radio station KPBS covered the San Diego Gas & Electric Company’s plan to charge a “grid access” fee to property owners who’ve incurred the expense and bother of installing rooftop solar panels. The discussion, on the station’s “midday edition” program, included JC Thomas, SDG&E’s manager for government and regulatory affairs, Daniel Sullivan of Sullivan Solar Power, and rooftop solar owner Gil Fields. You can listen to the discussion here.
Imperial County Planning Commission Approves Landfill Expansion
Posted by Chris Clarke on October 12, 2011
In a nearly unanimous vote earlier today, the Imperial County Planning Commission approved the expansion of the Burrtec Salton City landfill we reported on earlier this month. We will have a more thorough examination of the project’s future next week, but here are the details as we know them in the meantime
Work Resumes On Sunrise Powerlink After Helicopter Accidents
Posted by Chris Clarke on October 10, 2011
Transmission lines in the desert | Creative Commons photo by Chazz Layne
Work on the controversial Sunrise Powerlink transmission line between San Diego and Imperial counties was briefly halted last week after a startling series of mishaps involving helicopters ferrying supplies and equipment to Powerlink work sites.
The California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) suspended all helicopter operations for construction of the Powerlink on Tuesday, September 27. The PUC lifted the order October 3, after San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)—the developer of the transmission line—reported it had held safety refresher sessions for its crews. The grounding came the day after a load of straw wattle used for erosion control fell from an improperly rigged helicopter. The previous Thursday, September 22, a load of plywood had likewise plummeted to the desert floor from a helicopter rigging, just three days after the same thing had happened to a load of micropile pipe—rigid steel tubes used to reinforce foundations, like a much stronger form of rebar.
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