Chumash and coastal tribes held ceremonies at the sandstone mounds of Painted Rock for thousands of years, leaving behind more pictographs than any site in California. American Indians drew their last pictograph on Painted Rock 200 years ago. Since then, passers-by have immortalized themselves in sandstone and spray paint.

"People go and scrape off the paintings," said Johna Hurl, assistant manager of the monument. "They'll carve their initials into the rock itself." To stop this, the Bureau of Land Management proposes closing the rock to all but guided tours. Its six staff members, who do everything from administration to maintenance, can't police all the geologic and historic treasures at the 250,000-acre monument.

These and other Western wildlands are among the country's 11 most endangered historic places, according to an annual list released Thursday by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The problems at Painted Rock are part of a larger trend, according to the trust. It's going on throughout the 26 million acres of pristine federal land run by the bureau, known as the National Landscape Conservation System.

Lewis-and-Clark vistas and American Indian pueblos "are being threatened or destroyed, often before they can be studied or even inventoried," wrote Preservation Trust staff. They are as important—and as threatened—as Ernest Hemingway's crumbling home in San Francisco de Paula, Cuba, and more than 100 historic downtown buildings on the city of Detroit's "hit list" for demolition.

"A lot of people have the misconception we're talking about big old plantation homes," said Jeannie McPherson, spokeswoman for the Preservation Trust. "That's not it at all." The Bureau of Land Management's 26 million acres in 12 Western states have a "wealth of undiscovered areas" that need to be inventoried and preserved, she said.

Each year, the trust accepts nominations for its "America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places" list. Of roughly 70 entries, the committee selected the 11 most threatened sites with the greatest preservation potential. The wildlands run by the Bureau of Land Management are poor cousins to the well-funded National Parks system, said Geary Hund, desert and monuments program director for the Wilderness Society, which nominated the lands for the list. Native animals and plants crowded out by San Joaquin Valley development take refuge at the Carrizo Plain, Hund said, which is sometimes called "America's Serengeti," after the famous plain in Tanzania.

Stuffed Like a Turkey

As Chair of the House Transportation Committee, Don Young (R-AK) plays a very powerful role in determining how precious transportation dollars are spent nationwide. Ask him what he thinks of the six year transportation spending bill sailing through Congress, and he'll proudly tell you "it's stuffed like a turkey."

Unfortunately, Mr. Young's meal-ticket is being covered by taxpayers, who are sure to get heartburn when they see some of his ridiculous projects in line for funding.

Exhibits A and B are Don Young's Alaskan "Bridges to Nowhere." The proposed mile-long Gravina Island Bridge would connect Ketchikan, an area with a population of 7,800, to an island of 50 residents. This bridge would come only twenty feet short of the length of the Golden Gate Bridge and would be 80 feet higher than the Brooklyn Bridge. Currently, a reliable ferry serves the island and runs about every 10 minutes. The House of Representatives has already earmarked $223 million for this $315 million project.

Another project, the proposed Knik Arm Bridge, would be more than 2.5 miles long, and would connect Anchorage to land that almost no one lives on. Traffic engineers have never been able to justify this project. But the House of Representatives has other ideas and already budgeted $200 million for this project that will eventually cost an astounding $2.3 billion.

Meanwhile, there are literally hundreds of thousands of roads and bridges that aren't getting the attention they deserve, and families and commuters are paying the price.

In its latest report on America's infrastructure, the American Society of Civil Engineers rated our roads a "D" grade and our bridges a "C." It's no wonder. One in four bridges nationwide is in bad shape and in need of repair, and one in six miles of interstate are in bad condition and need attention.

See how your state's roads and bridges fare.

All of those rocky roads and rickety bridges create major safety problems for American families and commuters. According to the Federal Highway Administration, outdated and substandard road and bridge design, pavement conditions, and safety features are factors in 30% of all fatal highway accidents. Non-fatal accidents are also more common, and when any accident occurs, more hazardous road conditions and traffic congestion are created.

American families are paying the price for bad roads and bridges in other ways. Driving on roads in need of repair costs U.S. motorists $54 billion per year in extra vehicle repairs and operating costs—$275 per motorist.

New Rules Imperil Long-Time Forest Management Process
Since 1976, America's priceless national forests were managed under the National Forest Management Act (NFMA). The Bush administration has upended that longstanding system in favor of one designed to maximize agency discretion and to minimize public participation in decisions that affect our forests.

Besides dumping the Roadless Rule that protected nearly 60 million acres of pristine forest, the US Forest Service has moved to impose new regulations and directives that sharply weaken the forest planning process. The agency is accepting public comments on the NFMA directives until June 21, 2005.

Chapter Volunteer Training Workshop; February 11, 2006
Please avoid scheduling hikes, meetings, events, trips, and other activities on February 11, 2006. This is the date of our annual Volunteer Training Workshop. New members of management committees are among the primary beneficiaries of this program, but all members benefit from the variety of training and informational sessions included in the workshop. Help strengthen our chapter and abide by the ExComm's request to keep this date clear. If you have any questions, would like to participate in the the Workshop, or help organize it, contact Garen Yegparian at (818) 563-3918 or by email at yeghpairiank@earthlink.net.

Plastic Bags Are Suffocating Us
The Plastic Bag Industry has begun an intensive public relations campaign. They want to stop legislation that would eliminate the plastic bag problem in San Francisco. They are clever, crafty, and, of course, well-funded.

The truth is that plastic bags are a worldwide environmental disaster. The second truth is that countries around the world are successfully eliminating plastic bags from their shopping cultures.

Plastic bags are a lot worse than we ever could have imagined. It's hard to believe that they only arrived on the shopping scene about 25 years ago. Now, between 500 billion and 1 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide every year according to Vincent Cobb, founder of reuseablebags.com.

The problem is so bad that Bangladesh, the poorest country on the planet, has banned their manufacture and distribution. They discovered that their sewers were blocked up by millions of plastic bags that caused enormous devastation in recent floods.

Plastic bags are so ubiquitous that in South Africa, once one of the most beautiful countries on earth, they are referred to as the "national flower". There are two floating islands of plastic bags in the Pacific Ocean, each reported to be the size of Texas (no pun intended).

Ireland was so inundated with the menace that in 2002, it implemented a bag fee of approximately 20 cents. Within three years the Irish (with no consumer riots) have changed their shopping habits and they have reduced plastic bag usage by a whopping 90%. That's why the Plastic Bag industry is coming out with its PR guns blazing. They have everything to lose. In Ireland, those bag companies which could not adapt their business models to the new reality are no longer in business.

The problem with plastic bags is that the material is not bio-degradable. It's photo-degradable, meaning it simply breaks up into smaller and smaller parts of the same material. It does not return to nature.

Actually that's not true. It does return to nature. Every species from the smallest plankton to the largest whale is mistaking plastic globules for food and eating it. It's part of the ocean's food chain now. This means that when we eat fish we are likely to be ingesting photo-degraded plastic.

And if that weren't bad enough, the ocean plastic has been found in a 2001 study in Japan to attract PCBs in enormous quantities.

So we're eating PCBs as well.

Beaches, even in the remotest places on earth, are found to have measurable amounts of plastic particles in the sand. Sea turtles eat the plastic and die. Sea birds get strangled by plastic bags. Once-pristine coral reefs off the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia now are coated with black plastic bags, which hang in the water like dead fish until finally they become so saturated that they settle on the ancient coral and strangle it.

San Francisco spends at least $8.5 million per year (17 cents a bag) and probably much, much more on the disposal of plastic bags. They foul the machinery at the waste disposal center; they contaminate the recyclables, decreasing their value; they contaminate our bay; they get stuck in our trees and our power lines.

They are the second leading cause of suffocation among babies. The Bush administration, of course, will not help. They have demonstrated an unimagined disdain for the world's environment. But that does not mean that cities like San Francisco cannot defend themselves from this callousness. Many movements in this country begin in San Francisco. We can start our own environmental movement that can repeat itself in cities and towns all over the country. We can demonstrate to other cities that they too can defy this federal government. That we, like the Irish, can solve our own environmental problems in an enlightened manner and in spite of George Bush.

We can start with the seemingly innocuous plastic bag. We can do what it takes to change our shopping habits, reduce our usage by 90% within three years, save millions of dollars, and take charge of our own environmental destiny.

Charles Kalish, San Francisco, <chkalish@ix.netcom.com>

A Set of One Liners

• Women who seek to be equal to men lack ambition.
• The sooner you fall behind the more time you'll have to catch up.
• Honk if you love peace and quiet.
• Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.
• It's lonely at the top, but you eat better.
• You're just jealous because the voices are talking to me and not you!
• Keep honking. I'm reloading.
• Montana: At least our cows are sane!
• Save the whales. Collect the whole set.
• Few women admit their age. Few men act theirs.
• He who laughs last thinks slowest.
• Who stopped payment on my reality check?
• Assassins do it from behind.
• Multitasking means screwing up several things at once.
• Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

Welcome Juana Torres to Southern California Forests Campaign
by Bill Corcoran

It is my pleasure to let you know that Juana Torres has joined the team in the Los Angeles field office. Juana will lead our Latino and faith community outreach efforts for the Sierra Club's Southern California Forests Campaign.

Juana is a native of Los Angeles. Her parents came to California from El Salvador in the late 1970s.

"I was taught a great deal about the fight for social justice and the environment, since they were both huge issues that emerged in my parents' native country," said Juana, who recently graduated from California Lutheran University with a bachelor's degree in both Environmental Science and Political Science. Currently, she is working on a masters in Public Policy and Administration at California Lutheran.

Juana's persuasive powers are impressive—she once persuaded her mother to give up using her car for a few days to help decrease air pollution. She also worked to establish an environmental major at her college. We look forward to Juana putting those powers and her fluency in Spanish to good use broadening the constituency for our southern California national forests.

Friends of the Southern California Forests Campaign
The Southern California Forests Campaign report is coming out of a winter hibernation as the campaign itself completes a period focused on planning and preparing for 2005. These campaign reports, which will be issued monthly from here on out, are designed to keep you informed of upcoming campaign events and objectives as well as to recap recent activities.

The campaign is now swinging into action in anticipation of the early fall 2005 release of the final forest management plans for the four southern California national forests. The forests campaign is the Sierra Club’s ongoing effort to bring people together to help protect our four southern California national forests – the Angeles, Cleveland, Los Padres, and San Bernardino – for a generation to come.

Recent Highlights

• Campaign organizer Juana Torres signed on as the campaign’s second full-time staffer in May. Over the coming months she will be developing an outreach program to engage our diverse southern California populace on forest protection issues.
• The forests campaign has grow significantly over the last few months due to new promotional efforts. Membership now stands at 2,034.
• The Southern California Forests Campaign’s 2005 series of community meetings continues to go well with over 200 people attending recent programs in San Juan Capistrano, San Diego, and Pasadena.

Campaign Staffing

Juana Torres will lead the campaign’s Latino and faith community outreach efforts, working with Bill Corcoran and John Monsen. Juana is a native of Los Angeles. Her parents came to California from El Salvador in the late 1970s. Juana recently graduated from California Lutheran University with a bachelor's degree in both Environmental Science and Political Science. Currently, she is working on a masters degree in Public Policy and Administration at California Lutheran. Juana will be focusing her efforts on broadening the constituency for our southern California national forests. Juana can be reached at juana.torres@earthlink.net or at (213) 387-6528 x226 in the LA field office.

Liaison With Forest Service
The campaign touches bases with Ron Pugh, head of the Forest Service plan revision team, on at least a monthly basis. The release date of the forest management plans has slipped to September 2005. The Forest Service plans a series of open house meetings across the forests to present the final plans, much as they did when the draft plans were issued in spring 2004. Details should be available from the Forest Service over the summer. We are working with the agency to diversify its meeting locations to better reflect the diversity of forest visitors.

Community Meetings
To begin to energize the activist base for the release of the forest plans, the campaign is hosting a series of community meetings. Recent events in San Juan Capistrano, San Diego, and Pasadena have attracted over 200 people. A community meeting was held in Redlands on June 7, featuring naturalist Rick Halsey, who discussed Chaparral, Wildfire, and the San Bernardino Mountains. Other community meeting speakers have included noted trails author Jerry Schad, naturalist Royce Riggan Jr, and former Cleveland National Forest Supervisor Anne Fege. An additional community meeting is being developed for Santa Barbara in the fall.

Media
The forests campaign is developing a "10 Most Threatened Forest Areas" report for the southern California national forests that will be released in August, just before the forest plans are issued. Our goal is to focus media attention on issues that are likely to be important to us when the plans come out such as off-road vehicles, lack of planning for other recreational users, development in and around the forests, and paucity of recommended wilderness areas. Non-traditional messengers will be included wherever possible. Keith Hammond, who helped draft past California Wilderness Coalition statewide threats reports, is joining John, Juana, and Bill in drafting the report. Professional photographer Andrew Harvey is supporting these efforts with a new series of photographs.

Internal Communication
The campaign issues regular monthly updates on events and forest issues to the 1250 campaign members who have provided us with their email addresses. Several successful brief campaigns on behalf of specific forest issues have been conducted, including the generation of a remarkable number of 53 letters to the Forest Service in the Cleveland National Forest in support of Santa Ana Mountain’s Task Force (SAMTF) efforts to oppose the flooding of Morrell Canyon's oak forest and hiking trail that is threatened by a proposed hydroelectric project dam. Visit the forests campaign website for a picture of SAMTF volunteer Robin Everett and her 53 letters (http://www.sierraclub.org/ca/socalforests).

The campaign met with San Diego, Angeles, Los Padres, and San Bernardino Chapter Conservation or Executive Committees and the Orange Country Conservation Committee to provide an update on the campaign’s 2005 plans and seek suggestions. The campaign continues to work closely with the Southern California Forests Committee chaired by Joyce Burk and presents campaign updates at its quarterly meetings.

Sierra Club Chapters have been very supportive of the campaign. Chapter staffers Cheryl Reiff, Terry Wold, Rachel Myers, Johanna Zetterberg, Erin Duffy, and Andrew Christie have all made important contributions to the success of the campaign.

Chapter newsletters reaching over 75,000 members in the Angeles, San Diego, San Gorgonio, Los Padres, and Santa Lucia Chapters have featured recent articles and pictures supplied and customized by the campaign, often on the front page or as the lead story. Newsletter inserts have resulted in about 300 new campaign members.

The forests campaign has worked closely to coordinate its efforts with those of chapter forest and wilderness committees and to offer help to those groups whenever possible. Our thanks to the Santa Ana Mountains Task Force, the San Bernardino National Forest Task Force, the Angeles Chapter’s Forest Committee, and the San Diego Chapter’s Forest & Wilderness Committee. These groups co-hosted campaign community events in their areas.

Coordination

The campaign continues to coordinate efforts with various organizations and people, including Monica Bond of the Center for Biological Diversity and Holly Owens of the California Wild Heritage Campaign. We have upcoming meetings with the Coalition for Clean Air and Amigos de Los Rios.

John Monsen, Regional Conservation Organizer
Southern California Forests Campaign, Sierra Club Office: 213-387-6528 x203/ Home Office: 818-951-7714

Save the Verdugo Mountains!
Community Rally & Funeral for our Rural Community
Presented by F.A.L.C.O.N. Saturday, June 11 10:30 am-12:00 noon
Faith Lutheran Church, 7749 Apperson St (corner of Mt Gleason) Tujunga

Lots of funeral fun, including eulogy, coffin, photos of the deceased, melodrama, music, poetry, & photographs!

Get information about the Verdugo Mountains and Canyon Hills. Representatives of F.A.L.C.O.N. (Foothill Area League of Conservation Organizations and Neighbors), Sierra Club, Glendale-Crescenta VOICE, Canyon Area Preservation, Friends of the Verdugos, Shadow Hills Property Owners Association, La Tuna Canyon Property Owners Association, Valley Horse Owners Association will be present.

Will we exchange hundreds of acres of open space in the Verdugo Mountains for a gated community of luxury homes? Come and find out the current status of the Canyon Hills Project.

For more information, contact Dean Wallraff, Conservation Chair, Angeles Chapter Verdugo Hills Group, Sierra Club at (818) 679-3141 or deanraff@Verdugos.org.

Resolution Passed by ExComm (May 22, 2005)

Opposition to Football Franchise in the Rose Bowl

The Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club opposes a potential National Football League franchise at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena’s Arroyo Seco because of its serious impacts on public recreation during games, increased traffic, air pollution and noise, and loss of the historic character of the Rose Bowl and surrounding area.

Useful Information

Channel Islands Fundraisers

JUL 23-24, SAT-SUN Channel Islands National Park & Marine Sanctuary Cruise — Wildlife & Watersports. July is the perfect time to enjoy wildlife, hike, swim, snorkel, and kayak all on the same weekend. The islands will be alive with curious sea lions, seals, as well as dolphins and numerous species of birds. Snorkelers will delight in the pristine waters of the marine sanctuary surrounding these islands, and photographers will especially enjoy the “magic hours.” The cruise departs on the 65 foot twin diesel Truth from Santa Barbara. Guests are encouraged to board the boat on Friday evening, July 22, to prepare for an early Saturday departure. The cruise is strictly informal. Each guest will have an assigned bunk equipped with a privacy curtain and a reading light. The cost, $350, includes bunk, sumptuous meals, snacks, and guide. Proceeds from this fundraiser will support Sierra Club’s political programs. To reserve space, send a check for $100 (payable "Sierra Club") to leaders, Joan Jones Holtz & Don Holtz, 11826 The Wye St, El Monte CA 91732. For more information, call Joan or Don (626) 443-0706 or email jholtzhln@aol.com; or call Gail Prothero (949) 347-1255 or e-mail gprothero@cox.net.

AUG 26-30. Whales, Pinnipeds & Wildflowers: Island Hopping in Channel Islands National Park ($775). Here is your chance to join us in a visit to all five islands of Channel Islands National Park. This 5-day, 5-island trip departs from Santa Barbara on the 65 foot twin diesel Truth early Friday morning, August 26, returning Tuesday afternoon, August 30. All participants are encouraged to board the boat Thursday, August 25 to facilitate an early Friday morning departure. Each island is unique and offers its own special charm. San Miguel for its white, sandy beaches & huge congregation of elephant seals; Santa Rosa for its rare Torrey Pines forest; Santa Cruz for high mountains, deep valleys & the famous Painted Cave; Anacapa for the west coast brown pelican rookery, steep cliffs, a picturesque lighthouse, and excellent snorkeling waters; tiny, but pristine, Santa Barbara Island for rocky shores home to a colony of friendly sea lions and a rolling grassy landscape shelter for a plethora of sea and land birds. All islands have rugged shorelines, dotted with sea caves, & inhabited by an abundance of wildlife. This cruise will be strictly informal. Each guest will be assigned a bunk with reading light and privacy curtains. The price, $775, includes sumptuous meals, snacks, and guided tours. A park ranger will travel with us to lead hikes & to help identify the dolphin, whales, sea lions, seals & numerous species of bird & plant life. Other activities may include kayaking, snorkeling, beachcombing, or just relaxing at sea. Proceeds will benefit the chapter political committees. To make a reservation, send a check for $100 (payable Sierra Club) and SASE to leader Joan Holtz, 11826 The Wye St, El Monte CA 91732. For more information, call Joan or Don (626) 443-0706, or e-mail jholtzhln@aol.com.

SEP 15-18 THU-SUN Channels Islands National Park & Marine Sanctuary Cruise — Wildlife, Hiking, Watersports. This 4-day, 4-island fundraising cruise will visit San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, and Anacapa Islands aboard the 65 foot twin diesel Truth, departing from Santa Barbara. Guests are encouraged to board the boats on Wednesday evening, September 14, to prepare for an early Thursday morning departure, returning Sunday afternoon about 5:00 pm. A ranger/naturalist will travel with us to lead hikes and to point out wildlife and wildflowers. Snorkelers will marvel at the diversity of life inhabiting the pristine waters of the Marine Sanctuary. Kayakers welcome. Photographers will especially enjoy the “magic hours.” The cruise is strictly informal. Each guest will have an assigned bunk equipped with a privacy curtain and a reading light. The cost, $650, includes bunk, sumptuous meals and snacks, & guide. Proceeds will benefit Sierra Club’s political programs. To reserve space, send a check for $100 (payable Sierra Club), to Joan Jones Holtz, 11826 The Wye St, El Monte CA 91732. For more information, call or e-mail Joan, (626) 443-0706; jholtzhln@aol.com; or Gail Prothero, (949) 347-1255; gprothero@cox.net.

Angeles Chapter Conservation Management Committee
Gordon LaBedz/Chair (562) 494-6368, Bonnie Sharpe/Vice Chair/Grants Chair
Jay Matchett/Treasurer, Al Sattler/Secretary, Robin Ives/Newsletter
Marcia Hanscom, Faramarz Nabavi, Dean Wallraff
Lori Ives, Publisher/Webmaster/Circulation (non-voting)
Johanna Zetterberg and Rachel Myers/Conservation Coordinators (non-voting)

Angeles Chapter Grants Committee
consists of the voting members of the Conservation Management Committee plus Judy Anderson and Rudy Vietmeier.

Angeles Chapter Conservation Committee
3435 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 320, Los Angeles CA 90010-1904
Motions should be submitted in advance, together with objective background material and supporting and opposing arguments, both to the Committee Chair and Newsletter Editor, for distribution with the agenda. Other motions will be postponed for action at a later meeting unless the motion is submitted in writing and unless the Committee votes an exception to ordinary procedure. Motions needing further action by the Angeles Chapter ExComm or some higher level of the Sierra Club should start out: "The Angeles Chapter Conservation Committee recommends that the Sierra Club..." To find out more about voting requirements and representatives, consult the Angeles Chapter website Conservation Committee.

AGENDA — Wednesday, June 15, 2005

7:30 pm Review of Agenda/Introductions

7:40 pm Staff Reports
7:55 pm Celebration for Johanna's moving up in the world
8:05 pm Grants schedule for remainder of 2005
8:10 pm Approval and scheduling of environmental litigation seminar (possible, not firm)
8:20 pm Tejon Ranch

8:30 pm Santa Clarita developments
8:40 pm Other
9:00 pm Adjourn            Next meeting: July 20, 2005

Orange County Conservation Committee

Dave Perlman/Chair, Rachel Myers/Conservation Coord (non-voting) http://angeles.sierraclub.org/ocosc/
LOCATION: Inn at the Park, 10 Marquette, Irvine. Take the 405 to Culver and go west towards the beach. Follow Culver past Michelson and University and turn right on Harvard. Take Harvard to Marquette and turn right. It's on the corner of Harvard and Marquette on the right hand side.

Agenda — June 21, 2005

7:00 Welcome, Introductions, Announcements
7:10 Conservation Staff Report - Rachel Myers
7:20 Santa Ana Mountains Task Force - Paul Carlton

7:40 Resolution supporting ARTIC and the Platinum Triangle plan - Jay Matchett.
7:50 Hobo Aliso TF Update - Penny Elia
7:55 Saddleback Canyons TF Update - Gloria Sefton
8:00 Break
8:10 Event for East Orange Hills, Silverado Canyon's Holtz Ranch and other land issues that effect the Santa Ana Mountains and Orange County - Ed Amador for The Canyon Land Conservation Fund
8:20 Holtz Ranch Resolution - Alex Mintzer, Jay Matchett
8:30 Headlands TF Update - Celia Kutcher
8:40
8:50
9:00 Adjourn      Next meeting: July 21, 2005

Conservation Committees Calendar
Task Forces and others, if you have an upcoming meeting to be listed in this calendar:
In Los Angeles County, contact Lori Ives (ivesico@earthlink.net);
In Orange County, contact Dave Perlman (david@perlman.com)