Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** Coveted oceanfront land in California to become nature preserve
------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, November 7, 2022
Mugu Lagoon as seen from the Mugu Peak Trail. The newly acquired Deer Creek Beach property will enhance connectivity between the Santa Monica Mountains and Point Mugu State Park. Source: Santa Monica Mountains Flickr, NPS ([link removed])

On Friday the nonprofit conservation group Trust for Public Land (TPL) announced the purchase of the Deer Creek Beach property in Ventura County, California just northwest of Malibu for about $25 million. ([link removed]) TPL intends to transfer ownership of the property to the adjacent Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area that is managed by the National Park Service and California State Parks.

Decades-long legal disputes had cast doubt over the future of the 1,250 acres of land ([link removed]) that biologists covet as environmentally valuable for myriad species while developers see it as prime real estate—the median home price in the area is around $5 million. For more than 20 years, the National Park Service has been targeting the Mansford property ([link removed]) as a potentially “high-value acquisition” to enhance connectivity between the Santa Monica Mountains and the 14,000-acre Point Mugu State Park.

Guillermo Rodriguez, TPL's California state director says it may take another two years to complete the procedures necessary to bring the property under management by the National Park Service ([link removed]) . In the meantime, TPL plans to raise an additional $5 million that is necessary to improve public access to the area. “Land once thought lost forever to development and industry is being reclaimed for wildlife and the health and well-being of the public,” Rodriguez said. “Conservation in California is arduous, frustrating and expensive, but the results are worth it.”
Quick hits


** Will Colorado's strict oil and gas rules spread to other states?
------------------------------------------------------------

E&E News ([link removed])


** As climate change impacts worsen, U.S. weighs which communities to save
------------------------------------------------------------

New York Times ([link removed])


** Please don't lick this psychedelic toad, National Park Service warns
------------------------------------------------------------

CNN ([link removed]) | NPR ([link removed])


** Coveted oceanfront property in California to become nature preserve
------------------------------------------------------------

Los Angeles Times ([link removed])


** Montana's Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge designated as dark sky sanctuary
------------------------------------------------------------

Flathead Beacon ([link removed])


** New Mexico's beloved pinyon jay is losing its pine habitat
------------------------------------------------------------

Wired ([link removed])


** White House and Interior Department prep for tribal nations summit
------------------------------------------------------------

E&E News ([link removed])


** Two men are going to prison for vandalizing Nevada petroglyphs
------------------------------------------------------------

News & Observer ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” Americans in these Western states of both political parties agree that holding and protecting large amounts of public land and national ownership really has been extraordinarily visionary and beneficial.”
—John Leshy ([link removed]) , former Interior Department Solicitor and public lands legal scholar and historian
Picture this


** @BMLNational ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
#DYK ([link removed]) - The American bison was named the national mammal of the United States on May 9, 2016. This majestic animal is a symbol of our American identity & one of the greatest conservation success stories of all time. [link removed] ([link removed]) . #NationalBisonDay ([link removed])

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Medium ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
Copyright © 2022 Center for Western Priorities, All rights reserved.
You've signed up to receive Look West updates.

Center for Western Priorities
1999 Broadway
Suite 520
Denver, CO 80202
USA
** View this on the web ([link removed])

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])