Apple Valley supports it, but County Supervisor Lovingood doesn't
By Pat Orr
Apple Valley Review
Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s staff has been “working” the High Desert communities for some time now to line up support for her newly revised California Desert Conservation and Recreation Act with some success. This is a follow-up and enhancement of the 1994 California Desert Preservation Act which Feinstein sponsored.
My interest was piqued when San Bernardino County 1st Supervisor Robert Lovingood announced his opposition to the new Feinstein bill after the Apple Valley Town Council gave a unanimous vote of support to the same legislation a few meetings ago. Apple Valley interests and Lovingood’s are usually aligned fairly closely, so I was curious: What happened here?
I spoke with a Lovingood representative, Mayor Larry Cusack and Councilman Scott Nassiff to see if I could get the facts and see where the divide over support for this legislation occurred. To complicate matters further, Congressman Paul Cook, R-Apple Valley, is also involved because though he likes the elements contained in Feinstein’s bill, he feels that individual legislation on key areas would be better and stand up to challenges and/or changing political winds than to have one sweeping bill.
Feinstein’s people have been busy placating almost every constituency as she sought to satisfy the “tree huggers,” the off-road vehicle enthusiasts and the alternative energy crowd. Keep in mind here that we're talking about Bureau of Land Management land becoming a federally protected preserve. No new public lands are included in the Feinstein bill.
The conspiracy theorists concern is that all private land is being gobbled up by the federal government. In actuality, Cook went against the wishes of the Marine Corps who wanted to expand into Johnson Valley by being supportive of a more restrictive map of the proposed affected area.
One basic problem is an area of trust. Feinstein has proffered more than once that should the bill receive too much local objection and the legislative path be blocked she will just turn to President Barry and his pen to write an executive order to place a historical preserve designation on it and thereby toss out all the agreed upon compromises with the off-roaders and other stakeholders. So the “my way or the highway” attitude could have been a velvet hammer to gain local support, but Nassiff said that wasn’t the case.
The Council was “satisfied that our No. 1 goal, which is to be able to control where these massive wind and solar projects are located within Apple Valley, was met by this new legislation.” Nassif also said he personally felt that Cook’s plan to pass separate laws protecting the rights of off-road enthusiasts and other desert users was a good idea to avoid any administrative changes that could modify the original intent of specific provisions within Feinstein’s sweeping bill.
Lovingood’s main area of concern seems to lie with the little-or-no attempt to protect San Bernardino County’s important mining industry in this new bill. Any expansion of mining into BLM areas would be impossible and there is no guarantee that any aggressive federal agency won’t come after current mining operations because they operate in or near a protected area. Like many who are suspicious of the radical conservationist agenda, Lovingood also openly worries about future restrictions by administrative rule or caveat that could cost surrounding businesses dearly if the desert were closed to off-road or trail enthusiasts.
Is any of this a done deal? No.
Negotiations and deals are still being discussed and Cook is at work on at least five separate pieces of legislation on this same subject. You can read a current draft of the actual law on Feinstein’s senate website if you're interested. Feinstein sees this as her legacy to California and is determined — one way or another — to see it happen.
Do dogs like the flea market?
I’m not sure, but most folks love a good sale on junk and that’s what the Rockin' Flea Market is all about. It’s free to park, get in and browse. Come over to Lion’s Park just off Highway 18 on Saturday and spend a few hours browsing through someone’s most valuable junk. It may not be too late to sign on to be a vendor — just go to the town website for more information.
If you bring your dog along, remember, the fleas are free.
— Pat Orr is a local business owner, community volunteer and political junkie.