January 15th, 2013: JOHNSON VALLEY, CA: In the ongoing effort to Save the Johnson Valley OHV area, a new campaign has emerged to raise national awareness regarding the expansion of the 29 Palms Marine base onto public lands. Volunteers have created a petition on the White House.gov site (http://petitions.whitehouse.gov) with the hope of receiving formal recognition from the White House regarding The Johnson Valley OHV area. The White House has committed to responding to any petition that receives 25,000 or more signatures within a 30 day time frame.
The petition specifically requests the White House to deny any request by the 29 Palms Marine Base to withdraw land from The Johnson Valley OHV area and use it for base expansion purposes. The title of the petition specifically requests the White House to: "Save the Johnson Valley OHV Area. Be fiscally responsible. Stop 29 Palms Marine base expansion. Keep public lands open." This petition will need roughly 1,000 signatures a day to be eligible to receive a response from a White House representative.
"We have made great strides forward in our fight to Save the Johnson Valley OHV Area" said Jeff Knoll, Off Road Business Association (ORBA) representative. "There was an amendment passed by Congress and signed into law by the President last month that requires the Marines to further investigate the economic impact the loss of this public land would have on multiple communities, but we need to do more", Knoll explains.
The amendment's passing grants some reprieve from the Marine's expansion initiative, however, it does not stop the expansion. In fact, the Secretary of the Navy is expected to release a formal Record of Decision any day announcing the Marines desire to move forward with existing expansion plans. The Marines current preferred plan means expanding the world's largest Marine Base by 160,000 acres, roughly the size of Singapore, and the public would lose over 100,000 acres of public land forever. Those opposed to base expansion argue that the expansion will cost tax payers millions and will have a negative financial impact on surrounding communities in the high desert.
"We are hoping with this petition to raise the level of national discussion on this issue." Said Dave Cole, founder of the King of The Hammers, a popular and growing motorsport event held annually in Johnson Valley. "1,000 signatures a day is an aggressive goal, but we've already submitted more than 22,000 letters directly to the Marines opposing base expansion, so we are confident we have the voices to make it happen. They just need to make themselves heard."
Sign a Petition to the White House in Opposition to a Base Expansion that Would Seriously Limit OHV Access in Johnson Valley
Please click here to sign a petition to the White House in opposition to a Marine Corps base expansion that that would seriously restrict OHV access to Johnson Valley.
Background:
Johnson Valley, a very popular OHV area in California, is in jeopardy. The Marine Corps is seeking to expand the neighboring 29 Palms facility and acquire most of the OHV area for use in training exercises. The Marines would only need the extra space for less than 30 days a year, but if they use the area for live-fire training as envisioned, the area will be forever closed to OHV recreation. Click here to sign a petition to the White House opposing a takeover of the area.
The President has pledged to respond to any White House petition that gets at least 25,000 signatures. As this alert was being written more than 8,000 people have signed the petition – and the effort just started on January 15th!
While Johnson Valley is in California, it is important that everyone weigh in to help ensure that this important riding area is not lost. Tomorrow it may be OHV access in your state that is being threatened.
Please click here to sign the petition before February 15th!
Please forward this alert to any friends or fellow enthusiasts who are interested in protecting access to public lands. You can enter up to ten email addresses in the tell-a-friend feature located in the left tool bar, or you can click here to send a link to this alert through your email provider.
