For Immediate Release: October 25, 2001                CA-610-02-10
Contact:  Doran Sanchez (909) 697-5220; E-MAIL: dasanche@ca.blm.gov

Public Invited to Help Agencies Develop Boundaries of Proposed Mohave Ground Squirrel Conservation Area

The public is invited to help cities, counties and agencies develop the boundaries of a proposed conservation area for the Mohave ground squirrel, a mammal listed as "threatened" by the State of California.   The location of these boundaries will be a critical component of the West Mojave Plan, an interagency program intended to conserve sensitive desert plants and animals while streamlining the time-consuming and expensive process of obtaining permits required by the federal and California endangered species acts. 

Maps of the proposed conservation area boundary are now available for public viewing and mark-up at the Ridgecrest City Hall, Indian Wells Valley Water District, Bureau of Land Management Ridgecrest Field Office, California City Hall, Trona Senior Center and Inyo County Planning Department (addresses below).  The maps will be available at those locations until Friday, December 21, 2001.

The Mohave ground squirrel is one of the most important of the nearly 100 species being considered by the plan.  It's range lies wholly within the western Mojave desert, and it is listed as a "threatened" mammal by the State of California.  Because it is listed, proponents of commercial and other large-scale projects to be constructed on private lands within the squirrel's range must obtain an "incidental take permit" from the State of California, in addition to any other discretionary permits they might require from cities, counties and agencies.  Permit issuance may take months, and may require expensive biological surveys and land purchases.  Moreover, the protective biological measures imposed as a condition of permit issuance are developed for each project in isolation, and may be inconsistent with those required by other permits.  This limits their effectiveness, and precludes a "big picture" approach.

The West Mojave Plan is intended to address both of these issues.  Time-consuming case-by-case permits will be replaced by streamlined conservation measures developed in advance, and which conform to a regional conservation strategy designed by leading biologists to conserve Mojave ground squirrel populations and habitat.  Permit applicants will be provided with business planning certainty: they will know, in advance, the conservation measures that will be required of them, and could plan for costs and rely on swift permit approval.  This will enable cities and counties to be more competitive in their efforts to attract development to the region.  "If we do our job correctly, we will preserve our desert resources and, at the same time, provide a stimulus to the regional economy," said project manager Bill Haigh.  "That's the reason cities and counties throughout the western Mojave desert are joining state and federal agencies to prepare the plan." 

At the heart of this program is the establishment of a conservation area for the Mojave ground squirrel, which will protect its habitat and help reverse population declines.  A relatively higher development fee will be required of new projects to be located on public and private lands within the conservation area, and other protective measures will be applied.  A motorized vehicle access network will be developed which is designed to provide access to public lands and recreational areas in a manner compatible with the conservation of the squirrel.  Outside of the conservation area, the existing requirement for biological surveys of private lands requirement will be lifted, and the construction of single family residences will be exempted from the incidental take permit requirements.

It is important to draw the boundary lines of the Mohave ground squirrel conservation area with care.  Therefore, public input is being solicited throughout the West Mojave planning process to ensure that the boundary reflects both biological and local community needs.  The next two months are the first step in this process; after a proposal is developed, formal public meetings will be held late this winter to review the conservation area boundaries and other aspects of the West Mojave Plan.  Additional public meetings will be held in the summer of 2002 after the draft environmental impact report and statement is released for public review.

Maps are now available for public scrutiny, markup and comment at the following locations:

• City of Ridgecrest City Hall, 100 West California Avenue, Ridgecrest
• Indian Wells Valley Water District, 500 West Ridgecrest Boulevard, Ridgecrest (Corner of Norma and Ridgecrest)
• County of Inyo Planning Department, 168 North Edwards Street, Independence
• City of California City, City Hall, 21000 Hacienda Blvd, California City
• Trona Senior Center, 13187 Market Street, Trona
• Bureau of Land Management, Ridgecrest Field Office, located at 300 South Richmond Road, Ridgecrest

Comments may be left at the office displaying the maps, or they may be mailed to the following address:  West Mojave Interagency Planning Team, 6221 Box Springs Road, Riverside, California, 92507.  Emails may be sent to the following address: wmojave@ca.blm.gov.  All comments must be received by no later than Friday, December 21, 2001.

-BLM-