HomeMy WebLinkAbout24658RESOLUTION NO. 24658
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, HONORING AND
RECOMMITTING TO THE SAFEGUARDS THAT HAVE
BEEN PUT IN PLACE OVER THE PAST 25 YEARS AS A
RESULT OF THE 1994 CALIFORNIA DESERT
PROTECTION ACT.
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS DOES HEREBY
RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
WHEREAS, October 31, 2019 marks twenty-five years since the signing of the
1994 California Desert Protection Act (CDPA), which recognized the world class
uniqueness of the California deserts and provided destination points by creating the
Mojave National Preserve, Joshua Tree National Park and Death Valley National Park,
as well as 69 new desert wilderness areas in the California desert region; and
WHEREAS, the California Desert Protection Act catalyzed efforts to protect desert
wildlife, natural areas and military installations through subsequent legislative and
administrative efforts including the creation of the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa National
Monuments, the 2009 Public Lands Omnibus Act, the designations of Castle Mountain,
Mojave Trails and Sand to Snow National Monuments, the landmark collaborative Desert
Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (a 2016 amendment to the 1980 California Desert
Conservation Area Plan that designated 4.2 million acres of the desert's most sensitive
natural and cultural landscapes for conservation, included conservation management
actions to protect desert resources, and streamlined renewable energy development in
targeted areas) and the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation
Act of 2019 (collectively, with the CDPA, "Twenty Five Years of Desert Protection"); and
WHEREAS, over the last twenty-five years, the protected lands and wildlife values
of the California desert have created an economic windfall. The economic benefit of
desert travel, including visitor spending, industry earnings and government revenue, is
increasing every year - to $7.62 billion in 2018. Travel industry -generated employment in
the California desert region has increased by more than 35% since 2010 alone, with more
than 73,000 employees in 2018. Indeed, a 2017 National Park Service report shows that
over 2.5 million visitors to Joshua Tree National Park alone in 2016 spent close to $125
million in communities near the park. That spending supported 1,701 sustainable jobs in
the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $165 million; and
WHEREAS, the protected lands of the California desert are the historic home and
contain the sacred sites, cultural artifacts and cultural landscapes of the Chemehuevi,
Mojave, Serrano, Cahuilla, Paiute and other tribes that have lived in the desert region for
millennia; and
Resolution No. 24658
Page 2
WHEREAS, the protected lands of the California desert provide a place for
members of the desert community and visitors alike to view wildlife, hike, bike and engage
in off -road motorized recreation; and
WHEREAS, the protected lands of the California desert provides a place for
residents who enjoy the rural character of deserts, mountains and wildlands to experience
solitude, undisturbed vistas and glorious sunsets and to gaze up into the night sky without
light or noise pollution; and
WHEREAS, the protected lands of the California desert supports training activities
at five military installations representing four of the five military services (Navy, Marine
Corps, Army, Air Force), each of which are vital to our nation's military security and to our
region's economy. Protected public lands buffer installations against development and
unsustainable use of groundwater which could threaten the military's ability to safely and
effectively train for wartime and peacetime contingencies, and
WHEREAS, the protected lands and conservation measures of the California
desert safeguard precious groundwater, aquifer watersheds, desert plants and wildlife,
and air quality critical to our region and economy; and
WHEREAS, the protected lands and conservation measures of the California
desert support local planning by providing certainty to establish goals, policies, and
implementation actions related to renewable energy production, habitat mitigation,
environmental protection, recreational opportunities, community character, natural
resource utilization, scenic resource protection, and economic development; and
WHEREAS, the protected lands and conservation measures of the California
desert are the product of community input and stakeholder engagement; and
WHEREAS, it remains in the City of Palm Springs' interest to maintain the
protected lands of the California desert as a recreational resource, as part of the larger
ecosystem, and as wildlands.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the City of Palm Springs honors and
recommits itself to the safeguards within the past Twenty -Five Years of Desert Protection
and the scenic vistas, cultural landscapes, wildlife habitat, dark night skies, water
resources, military security and economic benefits provided by the protection of lands in
the California Desert such as Joshua Tree and Death Valley National Parks, California
Desert National Conservation Lands like Rainbow Basin, Juniper Flats, and Amargosa
Basin, and planning frameworks like the 2016 Desert Renewable Energy Conservation
Plan (an amendment to the 1980 California Desert Conservation Area Plan) that balance
conservation, recreation, and development.
Resolution No. 24658
Page 3
PASSED, APPROVED, AND ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF PALM SPRINGS THIS 23,d DAY OF OCTOBER, 2019.
ATTEST:
thony . Mejia,
City Clerk
David H. Ready, Esq., P
City Manager
CERTIFICATION
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE) SS.
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS)
I, ANTHONY J. MEJIA, City Clerk of the City of Palm Springs, hereby certify that
Resolution No. 24658 is a full, true and correct copy, and was duly adopted at a regular
meeting of the City Council of the City of Palm Springs on the 23rd day of October,
2019, by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Holstege, Middleton, Roberts, Mayor Pro Tern Kors, and
Mayor Moon
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the
City of Palm Springs, California, this day of Ock-�� , z's•1-z
nthony J. ejia, M C
City Clerk