Salazar Announces New Appointments to BLM Desert Advisory Council
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has appointment four new members and re-appointed one member to the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) citizen-based California Desert District Advisory Council (DAC) which advises the BLM on public land issues.
The council’s new members are: Alexander Schriener Jr. of Bermuda Dunes who will represent renewable resource interests; Thomas Hallenbeck of Bishop who will represent transportation rights-of-way; San Bernardino County Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt of Wrightwood who will sit as an elected official and represent county government; April Sall of Pioneertown who will represent public-at-large interests; and Tom Acuna of Encinitas who has been re-appointed and will represent renewable energy industry interests.
The 15 member DAC works closely with BLM field office managers in Ridgecrest, Needles, Barstow, Palm Springs, El Centro and the desert district office in Moreno Valley. The California Desert District Advisory Council was established by Congress through the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976.
“The work of the desert advisory council truly highlights how unique partnerships can strengthen our management efforts and help promote cooperative conservation,” states Steven Borchard, BLM California Desert District manager. “We rely on their creative input and active participation to help us resolve the myriad of land management issues facing the California desert.”
The BLM’s resource advisory councils (RACs), composed of citizens chosen for their expertise in natural resource issues, help the agency carry out its stewardship of 261 million acres of public lands. The bureau, which manages more land than any other federal agency, has 24 RACs across the West, where most BLM-managed land is located. As an agency of the Department of the Interior, it is responsible for managing various public land uses – such as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production – while conserving the land’s natural, historical, and cultural resources.
–BLM–
California Desert District 22835 Calle San Juan de Los Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553
Category: Access Issues, Press Releases
