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While the expansion is not a done deal and the fight is not over, the environmental report recommends the expansion into Johnson Valley.

ARTICLE LINK HERE

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Here is the official response. It does not seem like they listened to us. Basically they are giving 1/2 to the marines, and will only let OHV use the Marine portion when they want to. Why cant the marines go to the US army training grounds, those are already big enough.

What We Have to Say About Johnson Valley

By JohnConger, Acting Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Installations andEnvironment at the Department of Defense.

Thank youfor your petition.

TheAdministration's proposal for expansion of the land reserved for use by theMarine Corps balances Marine Corps training requirements that extend throughoutthe year with preserving safe public access for recreational activities withincertain areas of the Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Area. Theproposal was transmitted to Congress for consideration on April 26, 2013,because, for areas greater than 5,000 acres, Congress is responsible forcreating and renewing withdrawal of public land for military training andtesting.

This baseexpansion plan was developed over the course of nine years in consultation withthe Bureau of Land Management (BLM), community leaders, and recreational usersand was subject to an environmental impact statement that assessed the needs,alternatives and impacts of large-scale training exercises at the TwentyninePalms Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center.

If enacted,the proposal would affect approximately 188,000 acres of the Johnson ValleyArea: 42,000 acres would be designated for recreational use, 43,000 acres wouldbe shared recreational and military use, and 103,000 acres would be reservedfor exclusive military use. The 42,000 acre recreational use area and the43,000 acre shared use area would remain under the jurisdiction of theSecretary of the Interior, managed by the BLM. The 43,000 acre shared use areawould be available for public recreation, except for two 30-day periodsannually, when it would be closed to the public for military use. In addition,the Administration also proposes to designate these approximately 85,000 acresof land (the 42,000 acres and 43,000 acres referenced above) as the “JohnsonValley Off Highway Vehicle Recreation Area” under management of the BLM. Thisarea would remain available for OHV recreational activities, both informal andorganized. Approximately 103,000 acres of the 188,000 acre area would bereserved for exclusive military use. The King of the Hammers race is an exampleof the type of organized race that could continue in the shared use area. Thisrace, which has in the past crossed both what would be the shared use area andthe exclusive use area, has been a significant generator of economic activityassociated with OHV recreation in the Johnson Valley Area, accounting for over15% of the total yearly visitation. In addition the Marine Corps will consider,on a case by case basis and under controlled conditions, the use of thisexclusive military use area for organized races, including the King of theHammers race.

Enactment ofthis proposal is essential to provide the space required to train Marines forspecific missions and to ensure the Marines' continued success when calledupon. There are no other Marine Corps properties where this requirement can bemet. Marines need to train in as close to a real-world setting as possible andMarine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) training must allow Marines to conductintensive operations over extended distances that allow for maneuvering in thepresence of ground and air live-fire. A MEB consists of 15,000 Marines andsailors, and their aviation and ground combat equipment, including artilleryand mortars. Currently, training of this scope must rely on classroominstruction and simulation which cannot provide realistic and practical experiencefor command, control, and maneuver. This absence of a MEB-level training rangelimits Marine Corps readiness by leaving the USMC without a venue forconducting fully integrated, live fire MEB training.

Since 2000,the Department of the Navy has intensively studied the Marines' warfightingrequirements. In November 2000, the Marine Corps published Marine CorpsStrategy 21, which identified the MEB as the primary contingency response forceof the Marine Corps. An independent study by CNA's Center for Naval Analyses in2004 concluded that MEB-level realistic large-scale air, ground training isessential for the Marine Corps to prepare units to respond to large-scalecontingencies, and that this training can only be conducted at an expandedTwentynine Palms. In 2008, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, UnderSecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, concurred. InFebruary 2013, after nine years of study and analysis, the Marine Corpsdetermined the only viable cost effective alternative was to expand theTwentynine Palms training area into the Johnson Valley OHV Area.

TheDepartment of the Navy's Environmental Impact Statement evaluated the economicimpacts of the proposed expansion on communities and businesses. The proposedbase expansion would provide net benefits to the local economy, including 110new jobs, $4 million in additional salaries, and $7.5 million in additionalregional sales. This would be in addition to the existing contributions byTwentynine Palms to the local economy, including a 2012 workforce payroll ofapproximately $600 million (most of which is spent in the local area bypersonnel stationed and employed on the base), $1.8 million from the U.S.Department of Education to San Bernardino County schools, and base contractsvalued at $28 million awarded to local vendors. The increase in jobs andexpenditures is expected to offset a projected loss from the recreational andfilm industries of $1.5 million in sales and $216,000 in taxes. (The $1.5million in sales represents approximately .01% of the $1.1 billion in sales theRetail Trade and Accommodation/Food Services sectors of Yucca Valley, AppleValley and Victorville generate annually).

TheDepartment of the Navy places a high value on maintaining positive relationshipsin the communities in which they are based and Johnson Valley is no exception.The development of this proposal has been carried out in consideration ofextensive public input with the goal of balancing the needs of Marine Corps'training requirements with existing recreational activities.

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http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/News/13-12-12/California_s_Johnson_Valley_off-highway_vehicle_area_saved.aspx

California's Johnson Valley off-highway vehicle area saved

December 12, 2013

The Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area in California won't be taken over by the military after all, thanks to language included in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 that was approved by a U.S. House-Senate conference committee on Dec. 11, the American Motorcyclist Association reports.

The AMA, together with a coalition of off-highway recreation partners, congratulates U.S. Rep. Paul Cook (R-Calif.) for his leadership in protecting the interests of the OHV community -- many of whom are motorcyclists -- by getting the language inserted into the bill. Cook's language ensures the safety of the residents in the Johnson Valley area, which is just east of the San Bernardino Mountains near Los Angeles, and provides an adequate training area for the U.S. Marines stationed at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms.

Specifically, Cook's language designates the Johnson Valley OHV area as the Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area, which will be managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior. The area is designated specifically for recreational uses including, but not limited to, OHV use, camping and hiking. Marine Corps activities would be allowed in a shared use area twice a year for a maximum of 60 days and would require use of non-dud producing ordnance.

The Cook amendment was inserted in the NDAA in June by the U.S. House Armed Services Committee, of which Rep. Cook is a member. The measure then went to a House-Senate conference committee, where conferees worked out House and Senate differences in the bill. The final conference committee bill released on Dec. 11 contains the Cook amendment. The bill now goes to the House and Senate floors for approval before going to the president to be signed into law.

Wayne Allard, AMA vice president for government relations, praised Cook, who is a retired U.S. Marine Corps colonel, for his efforts to protect the local economies and provide for the safety of the residents surrounding the Twentynine Palms Marine Base. The base wanted to expand its live fire training into Johnson Valley.

"It was the strong leadership and exceptional ability of Paul to work with the Natural Resources Committee and Armed Services Committees in the U.S. House and Senate that protected the popular off-highway area in Johnson Valley," Allard said. The Johnson Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area is the first federal land-use designation for off-highway use and becomes a precedent for future motorized recreation."

The AMA joined with the California Motorized Recreation Council, a non-profit 501©3 represented in Washington, D.C., by The Livingston Group, to work with Cook to develop the amendment that preserves access to the Johnson Valley OHV riding area.

CMRC members and partners include the Off-Road Business Association, California Association of 4-Wheel Drive Clubs, California Off-Road Vehicle Association, American Sand Association, California-Nevada Snowmobile Association, AMA District 36 (Northern California, Northwestern Nevada), AMA District 37 Off-Road (Southern California), The Partnership for Johnson Valley and countless individuals and businesses. The Specialty Equipment Market Association, the Motorcycle Industry Council and Americans for Responsible Recreational Access also provided valuable support.

A map of the compromise plan for Johnson Valley can be found at the link: http://cook.house.gov/johnson-valley-map

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Good news! :D/>

Depends how you look at it.

They say it's a win but we lost HALF of JV.

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