WALKING BOX RANCH - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE A Unique Heritage by Judy Bundorf and Jim Stanger Nestled in the heart of the proposed Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, Walking Box Ranch represents a microcosm of Nevada history, including ranching, mining, entertainment, politics, and more recently, conservation of the flora and fauna of the Mojave … Continue reading Walking Box Ranch – Past, Present and Future
Carbon Sequestration in our Desert Lands
CARBON SEQUESTRATION IN OUR DESERT LANDS Essential to California's 30X30 Initiative by Susy Boyd Background California's laudable efforts to conserve 30% of our state's lands and coastal waters by 2030 have not been lost on our desert region. In fact, a small but steadfast collection of environmental groups and scientists have been working over the … Continue reading Carbon Sequestration in our Desert Lands
Crisis in the Coyote Mountains
CRISIS IN THE COYOTE MOUNTAINS Trash and Vehicles in a Wilderness Area by Nick Ervin Like many readers of Desert Report, I have been active in desert conservation for a long time. My activities go back to the late 1970s when I gave testimony at a public hearing for the original Bureau of Land Management … Continue reading Crisis in the Coyote Mountains
Botanical Riches of Conglomerate Mesa
Threatened by Mining Exploration by Maria Jesus One of my most memorable trips to Conglomerate Mesa was on a hot summer day when I was looking for rare plants, but also keeping an ear out for helicopters. I had heard that K2 Gold, a Canadian exploration company, had received authorization to drill for gold at … Continue reading Botanical Riches of Conglomerate Mesa
Desert Home
A Photographer's Journey by Justin McAffee A desert is defined as a place receiving less than ten inches of sporadic rainfall annually. It doesn't mean a place uninhabited by flora or fauna, but the lack of rain certainly limits a desert's capacity to host large numbers of people, plants, and animals. But wastelands, they are … Continue reading Desert Home
The Steady State Economy
Real Conservation by Brian Czech Birgitta Jansen's "Greening Of America" (September's Desert Report) was incredibly insightful and aptly alarming. And, as she described the environmental challenges of industrial solar developments, wind turbines, and deep-sea mining, we could see the economy sprawling between the lines. My job is to take the baton from between the lines … Continue reading The Steady State Economy
The Deadly Border Wall
A Human Tragedy by James Cordero "El Centro Project 2" was the name given to the section of border wall that was to be built inside the Jacumba Wilderness by the Army Corps of Engineers. When construction started in May 2020, two things were already guaranteed: the project would cost a lot of money, and … Continue reading The Deadly Border Wall
Gold Exploration in Long Valley
A NEPA Categorical Exclusion by Lynn Boulton Still in effect today, the 1872 General Mining Act makes it very difficult for the federal govern-ment to deny proposals for hard rock mining. The Act and rising gold prices reaching a height of $2,038/oz on August 5, 2020, has stimulated gold exploration in California and Nevada. Over … Continue reading Gold Exploration in Long Valley
The Greening of America
But Is "Green" Really "Green?" by Birgitta Jansen The article that follows is long and detailed, but the subject ought not be dismissed casually. The extensive documentation in end notes may be accessed at the Desert Report website by going to the bottom margin on any page and clicking on "reference." Since the 1950s, the … Continue reading The Greening of America
Nevada’s Outback
The Next Green Energy Ground Zero by Kevin Emmerich, Basin and Range Watch Large-scale renewable energy developers have been looking for ways to develop vast swaths of Nevada public lands for about twelve years now. Their problem has always been a lack of available transmission access and capacity. Just about every basin in Nevada has … Continue reading Nevada’s Outback