AMERICA'S GREAT OUTDOORS: Interior Releases Draft Study of California's San Gabriel Watershed and Mountains

WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced that the National Park Service (NPS) today has released for public review the Draft San Gabriel Watershed and Mountains Special Resource Study and Environmental Assessment. The Congressionally-authorized study is to determine whether all or part of the study area in California is significant, suitable, and feasible for designation as a unit of the national park system.

The study area covers approximately 700,000 acres of land in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan region, including urban communities, local and regional parks and open space, and 415,000 acres of the Angeles National Forest.

“Located next to our nation's second largest urban population, the beauty and open spaces of the San Gabriel Mountains and their surrounding area have much to offer to the residents of Los Angeles,” said Secretary Salazar. “Through this draft resource study, we are exploring ways we can conserve this important landscape and improve recreational opportunities for the community, in partnership with the people who live, work and play in this great area.”

“As someone who grew up in an industrial community in the shadows of the San Gabriel Mountains, I know how the beauty of this range, the watershed and the river that run through it helped connect Californians to their natural environment,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis of La Puente, Calif. “These Mountains heave meant so much to me and my Dad, and to the 1.5 million residents of the San Gabriel Valley. For so many years, families across the region have enjoyed hiking, rock climbing, bicycling, camping or just gazing out across the vast expanse. As a member of Congress, I wrote and passed legislation authorizing this study to preserve the cultural resources of the San Gabriel Watershed and Mountains. I encourage my friends and neighbors back home to attend public meetings this month and next—and share their feelings—so we can ensure that future generations can enjoy this national treasure for years to come.”

Through the special resource study process, the NPS made the following determinations about the study area:

• The San Gabriel Mountains and Puente Hills are nationally significant, meeting all four of the NPS criteria for national significance.

• The San Gabriel Mountains and Puente Hills are suitable for inclusion in the national park system, as the areas represent natural and cultural resource types that are not already adequately represented in the system or protected by another land managing entity.

A collaborative partnership-based park unit which respects the complex mix of land use, ownership, and regulatory authority in the study area would be a feasible addition to the national park system. A large traditional national park unit, owned and operated solely by the NPS, would be infeasible.

Four alternatives, two with a role for the National Park Service, are evaluated in the draft study and environmental assessment. Each of the alternatives seeks to protect significant resources, enhance habitat connectivity, and improve recreational opportunities for communities in the Los Angeles metropolitan region. In each of the alternatives, the U.S. Forest Service would continue to own and manage the Angeles National Forest.

No Action Alternative: Continuation of Current Programs and Policies. This is the “no action” alternative for this study, and assumes that current programs, policies, conditions and trends would continue.

Alternative A: San Gabriel Mountains National Recreation Area: A U.S. Forest Service Designation. Congress would designate the San Gabriel Mountains unit of the Angeles National Forest as a National Recreation Area (NRA) that would continue to be managed solely by the U.S. Forest Service.

Alternative B: San Gabriel Parks and Open Space Network. This alternative was dismissed from further consideration after public review of the preliminary alternatives in 2009. Some components of alternative B were incorporated into alternative D.

Alternative C: San Gabriel Watershed National Recreation Area. Congress would designate a river-based NRA that would raise the visibility of the San Gabriel River watershed, offer new educational and interpretive opportunities along the river and throughout the watershed, and improve river-based recreation. This would be a new model for a national park unit. Partnership arrangements among federal and state agencies, local governments, non-profit organizations, and area landowners would achieve the conservation, recreational, and educational goals of the NRA.

Alternative D: San Gabriel Region National Recreation Area: A Partnership Linking Significant Resources and Recreation. Congress would designate a larger scale NRA that would recognize and protect the significant resources associated with the San Gabriel Mountains and Puente Hills, explore opportunities to protect and enhance interconnected ecosystems, provide important open space connections for recreation and offer new educational and interpretive opportunities. The management approach of alternative D would be the same as alternative C, a new model of national park management whereby the NPS, U.S. Forest Service, and numerous other agencies and organizations with land and interests in the area would work collaboratively.

The NPS initiated this special resource study in 2005 and published preliminary management alternatives for public review in August 2009. The approaches to management and underlying values all reflect input provided by the public and interested organizations and agencies throughout the study process.

Following receipt and review of public comments, a final report, including a recommended course of action from the Secretary of the Interior, will be transmitted to Congress.

The executive summary, full report, and the NPS public comment system are available at the study web site: http://www.nps.gov/pwro/sangabriel

In addition, the NPS will host a series of public meetings throughout the study area in October and November, 2011 in order to present the draft study report, answer questions, and accept comments.

Public Meeting Schedule:

El Monte (Kick-Off Meeting)
Saturday, October 29
1pm – 3 pm
City of El Monte Senior Center
3120 N. Tyler Avenue
El Monte, CA 91731

Palmdale
Monday, November 14
7pm - 9pm
Larry Chimbole Cultural Center,
Joshua Room
38350 Sierra Highway
Palmdale, CA 93550

Pomona
Tuesday, November 15th
7pm - 9pm
Agriscapes Center, California Polytechnic Institute Campus
4102 S. University Drive
(South of Temple Avenue/ From Highway 57, exit Temple Avenue and go west towards Cal Poly Pomona. Turn left on South Campus Drive, Agriscapes is the building adjacent to the Farm Store).
Pomona, CA 91768

Santa Clarita
Wednesday, November 16th
7pm - 9pm
George A. Caravalho Activities Center
Santa Clarita Room A
20880 Centre Point Parkway
Santa Clarita, CA 91351

Tujunga
Thursday, November 17th
7pm - 9pm
Northeast Valley City Hall Auditorium
7747 Foothill Blvd
Tujunga, CA 91042

For more information:

• Phone: Martha Crusius, Project Manager, 415-623-2310, Barbara Butler, Landscape Architect, 415-623-2311
• E-mail: PWR_sangabriel@nps.gov

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