Public Meeting for Eagle Mountain Boundary Study

JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK, Twentynine Palms, California – The Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service will conduct a joint public meeting on January 18, 2017, from 6pm-9pm at UC Riverside Palm Desert, 75080 Frank Sinatra Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92211. The public will have the opportunity to comment on the Secretary of Interior’s proposal to withdraw approximately 22,462 acres of public lands for 20 years from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws; from location, entry, and patent under the United States mining laws; and from disposition under all laws pertaining to mineral and geothermal leasing, and mineral materials, and all amendments thereto and to transfer administrative jurisdiction over such lands from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to the NPS for administration as part of Joshua Tree National Park (JTNP). The notice published in the Federal Register on November 18, 2016 (Vol. 81, No. 223) temporarily segregates the lands for up to 2 years and gives the public an opportunity to comment on the proposed withdrawal application.

Joshua Tree Park Superintendent, David Smith said, “This is the next step in the public process that could lead to a revised boundary at the park. As we discuss a potential withdrawal of public land it’s crucial that people in the area have a say in the eventual outcome”. Smith also emphasized that the meeting will be a great opportunity to engage with both the BLM and Park Service to get questions answered about the recent segregation, the boundary study and how the DRECP will affect the Eagle Mountain area.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

David Smith, Superintendent, Joshua Tree National Park, 760-367- 5502
or
Doug Herrema, Field Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Palm Springs South Coast Field Office, 760-833-7100