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NORA Proposal - Senate Bill 59 6 



The proposed Wheeler Wash Joshua Tree Forest Area of 

 Critical Environmental Concern contains one of the finest stands 

 of Joshua trees remaining in federal ownership. Preservation of 

 this large and beautiful forest while developing it for public 

 enjoyment will require the unique set of tools supplied so well 

 with ACEC status. Once again, the BLM has not yet acted to 

 protect this rich resource as mandated by FLPMA. This area also 

 richly deserves the protective status of a Congressional ACEC. 

 This status is also particularly apt in this case because about 

 half of the Joshua tree forest is slated for transfer from the 

 BLM to the Forest Service. 



Congressional designation of the Desert View Natural Area 

 and the Wheeler Wash Joshua Tree Forest as Congressional ACEC's 

 could have an additional benefit, namely the development of truly 

 coordinated management plans for the several different portions 

 of each ACEC to be managed by either BLM or USPS. For the same 

 reason, the Congress should create the Spring Mountains 

 Coordinated Management Area with ACEC status to mandate the 

 development of coordinated management plans for the entire Spring 

 Mountains area. It is only through the cooperation and especially 

 coordination of effort by both BLM and USPS that the highest 

 potential can be realized from these valuable public resources. 



AREA II: AFFECTED LANDS ALONG THE STATE LINE EAST OF US-395 

 (Township 9 & 10 North, Range 23 East in Douglas 

 County, and in Lyon, Mineral, and Esmeralda Counties) 



In AREA II, your proposed legislation would transfer about 

 191,330 acres of BLM administered land to the Toiyabe National 

 Forest and about 24,720 acres of BLM administered land to the 

 Inyo National Forest. The BLM would receive about 14,720 acres 

 currently administered by DSFS from the Toiyabe National Forest. 

 The subject lands are currently very well blocked up with no 

 cross administrative inho-ldings, and private inholdings the 

 distinct exception except along major roads and rivers. 

 Administrative encumbrances are few: 2880 acres of a Federal 

 Agency Protective Withdrawal along the east side of Antelope 

 Valley in Douglas County, and a 450 acre Power Withdrawal in 

 Wilson Canyon on the West Fork of the Walker River. 



A minor change in the proposed boundary near Wellington, in 

 Lyon County, would aid administration. The natural boundary, 

 which we propose be adopted as the administrative boundary, is 

 the West Fork of the Walker River rather than the road labeled as 

 Nevada Route 3 on my map. This would continue to keep BLM and 

 USES acreage well blocked up and avoid an orphaned tract of USES 

 land on the north side of the river and separated from the 

 remainder of DSFS lands by a broad tract of private land in the 

 valley. This would return approximately 1480 acres of the 

 proposed transfer back tp BLM management. 



